June i6, 192 i] 



NATURE 



507 



scientific faculty, the value of the work was apt to be 

 largely lost. The discovery of new things was one 

 matter, and was a characteristic of the academic type 

 of mind ; the discovery of new uses for things was 

 another matter, and was typical of the commercial 

 mind. In this work of research the universities were 

 peculiarly fitted to take an important — a leading — 

 part. The research should not necessarily be pursued 

 along definite lines with a definite object in view ; 

 the great discoveries were not made in that way. 

 The Department of Scientific and Industrial Research 

 might well endow university scientific research on 

 chemical, metallurgical, and engineering work, super- 

 vising and co-ordinating and publishing the results. 

 Effort was largely commensurate to the prize offered, 

 and the discoverer should be rewarded for his labour 

 and genius ; but that would be a matter easy of 

 arrangement. Research associations undoubtedly per- 

 formed useful, even highly valuable, functions, but 

 the wind of science bloweth where it listeth, and the 

 time was ripe for a realisation of the fact that scien- 

 tific research could not profitably be hampered by 

 restrictions confining the efforts of those who were 

 employed therein. It was of the essence of research 

 that it should be free and untrammelled. 



Sir Richard Gregory proposed a vote of thanks to 

 the speakers, and remarked that the addresses of 

 their two distinguished new vice-presidents were of a 

 verv inspiring and instructive character. Dean Inge 

 had referred to the fact that a disease produced in the 

 organism an anti-toxin to fight it, and the anti-toxin, 

 Sir Richard suggested, that existed now for cer- 

 tain social diseases was the British Science Guild. 

 It was really a British Efficiency Guild, and in the 

 forefront of its activities must be the promotion, not 

 only of research, but also of the application of re- 

 search. We had numerous scientific societies, each 

 of which was concerned with -adding to scientific 

 knowledge by research, but there was no society or 

 organisation in the kingdom which existed, as the 

 Guild existed, to see that knowledge thus gained was 

 made good use of for national welfare. That was 

 why the Guild could perform a most useful service 

 in bringing before the public the value of research, 

 science, truth, and righteousness to a nation that 

 desired to maintain a leading position in the world. 

 The trade unions referred to by Dean Inge and Sir 

 Richard Redmayne were not trade unions, but wage- 

 unions. If they were really trade unions, and if 

 Labour were united with science to increase produc- 

 tion instead of merely scrambling for pence on a 

 Tom Tiddler's ground, then together they would be 

 the greatest force in our Constitution. 



On the proposition of Lady Lockyer, hearty thanks 

 were also accorded to the Warden and Court of 

 Assistants of the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths 

 for the use of their hall. Lady Lockver paid a grace- 

 ful tribute to the munificence of the Goldsmiths' Com- 

 pany in educational and other directions, and made 

 an appeal to those who were not members of the 

 British Science Guild to become associated with it, 

 whether they were scientific workers or not. 



University and Educational Intelligence. 



Cambridge. — Mr. E. K. Rideal, Trinity Hall, has 

 been appointed to the Humphry Owen Jones lecture- 

 ship in physical chemistry. Dr. L. Cobbett, Trinity 

 College, has been re-appointed University lecturer in 

 pathology. 



The Rede lecture was delivered on June 9 by 

 Sir Napier Shaw on "The Air and its Ways." The 

 NO. 2694, VOL. 107] 



lecturer likened the atmosphere to a steam-engine, for 

 which the heated surface of the earth and sea acted 

 as boiler, the cold polar regions and the cold upper 

 air as condenser, and the normal winds and cyclonic 

 depressions as flywheel. The normal winds were the 

 equatorial belt of air passing westwards and the 

 circumpolar motion of the upper air travelling east- 

 wards. Between them were the anticyclonic circula- 

 tions which, like the driving-belts of tanks, carried 

 forward the westward moving air of the equatorial, 

 and the eastward moving air of the polar, circulation. 



Manchester. — At the meeting of the council of the 

 University on June 8 the following appointments were 

 made : — Miss Winifred S. Clarke, lecturer in educa- 

 tion ; Miss May A. B. Herford, lecturer in classical 

 archaeology ; Mr. S. Williams, assistant lecturer in 

 botany ; Mr. W. Cartwright, assistant lecturer in 

 metallurgy; Mr. P. I. C. Gibson and Mr. A. Haworth, 

 demonstrators in pathology ; and Miss Georgina May 

 Duthie and Mr. R. C. Shaw, demonstrators in 

 anatomy. 



Mr. W. E. Alkins has resigned his appointment as 

 lecturer in metallurgy as from September 29 next. 



Oxford. — Mr. W. Brown, Christ Church, has been 

 elected Wilde reader in mental philosophy. 



St. Andrews. — The honorary degree of LL.D. is 

 to be conferred on July 12 upon the following : — 

 Prof. W. M. Bayliss, Sir William Henderson (chair- 

 man of Dundee Technical College), Emeritus Prof. 

 D. Macewan, and Prof. A. N. Whitehead. 



The University of Wales has decided to confer the 

 j honorary degree of D.Sc. upon Prof. T. W. E. David, 

 I Sir J. J. Dobbie, and Prof. A. Gray. 



j Mr. R. J. Pye-Smith, formerly professor of surgery 

 in the University of Sheffield, has bequeathed the 

 sum of loool. to the University in question for a 



j chair in surgery, 



\ Mr. a. MacCullum, of Edinburgh, who gave 



j 25,000?. during his life towards the erection of the 



1 new Royal (Dick) Veterinary College buildings in 



Edinburgh, has bequeathed, under certain conditions, 



on the death of his wife, a further sum of io,oooL for 



equipping and furnishing the college buildings. 



j The following appointments have been made in 

 I connection with the Royal College of Surgeons of 



England :— Dr. F. W\ Edridge-Green, Mr. V. Z. 



Cope, and Prof. T. Swale Vincent, Arris and Gale 

 ! lecturers ; Prof. S. G. Shattock, Erasmus Wilson lec- 

 1 turer; Sir Arthur Keith, Arnott demonstrator; and 



Sir Charles A. Ballance, Thomas Vicary lecturer. 



The London School of Economics and Political 

 Science is prepared to award one or more post- 

 graduate studentships, of value up to 200L a year for 

 one or two years, to suitable candidates who wish to 

 combine research with a certain amount of teaching 

 at the school, or to follow approved courses of study 

 with the view of qualifying themselves for such teach- 

 ing. Applications, stating qualifications and giving 

 two references, should be made as soon as possible to 

 the Director, London School of Economics and 

 Political Science, Clare Market, London, W.C.2. 



The Selborne Society has issued a list of lectures, 

 most of them illustrated by lantern-slides, which its 

 lecturers are prepared to give during the coming 



