18 SOME REASONS FOR STUDYING BIOLOGY 



Plants and Animals mutually Helpful. Most plants and ani- 

 mals stand in an attitude of mutual helpfulness to one another, 

 plants providing food and shelter for animals ; animals giving off 

 waste materials useful to plants in She making of food. We also 

 learn that plants and animals need the same conditions in their 

 surroundings in order to live : water, air, food, a favorable temper- 

 ature, and usually light. The life processes of both plants and 

 animals are essentially the same, and the living matter of a tree is 

 as much alive as is the living matter in a fish, a dog, or a man. 



Biology in its Relation to Society. Again, the study of biology 

 should be part of the education of every boy and girl, because so- 

 ciety itself is founded upon the principles which biology teaches. 

 Plants and animals are living things, taking what they can from 

 their surroundings ; they enter into competition with one another, 

 and those which are the best fitted for life outstrip the others. 

 Animals and plants tend to vary each from its nearest relative in all 

 details of structure. The strong may thus hand down to their 

 offspring the characteristics which make them the winners. Health 

 and strength of body and mind are factors which tell in winning. 



Man has made use of this message of nature, and has developed 

 improved breeds of horses, cattle, and other domestic animals. 

 Plant breeders have likewise selected the plants or seeds that have 

 varied toward better plants, and thus have stocked the earth with 

 hardier and more fruitful domesticated plants. Man's dominion 

 over the living things of the earth is tremendous. This is due to his 

 understanding the principles which underlie the science of biology. 



Finally the study of biology ought to make us better men 

 and women by teaching us that unselfishness exists in the natural 

 world as well as among the highest members of society. Ani- 

 mals, lowly and complex, sacrifice their comfort and their very 

 lives for their young. In the insect communities the welfare of 

 the individual is given up for the best interests of the community. 

 The law of mutual give and take, of sacrifice for the common good, 

 is seen everywhere. This should teach us, as we come to take our 

 places in society, to be willing to give up our individual pleasure 

 or selfish gain for the good of the community in which we live. 

 Thus the application of biological principles will benefit society. 



