January 6, 191 6] 



NATURE 



525 





>prue tongues has the merit of clearness, although the 

 colours are not those of nature. We feel sure it would 

 ■pay" the Planters' Association in Ceylon to employ 

 permanently one or more medical men to investigate 

 !'the subject further. J, W, W. S. 



SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEES ON NATIONAL 

 PROBLEMS. 



XITE have referred from time to time to the various 

 * * scientific committees appointed by the Govern- 

 ment and scientific societies to deal with problems aris- 

 ing out of the war. It seems worth while to bring 

 together now a list of such committees and a short 

 statement of their work so far as that can be made 

 known. It will be noticed that, with the exception of 

 the Advisory Council of the Privy Council Committee 

 and the Council and Committee of British Dyes 

 (Ltd.), no provision is made for the payment of 

 the experts in science and technology who are serving 

 on other committees appointed by the Government and 

 by scientific societies. 



Government Scientific Committees. 

 The Board of Invention and Research appointed 

 last July to assist the Admiralty in co-ordinating and 

 encouraging scientific effort in relation to the require- 

 ments of the Naval Service consists of the following 

 Central Committee and Panel of Consultants, who 

 advise the main committee on questions referred to 

 them : — 



Central Committee : Admiral of the Fleet Lord 

 F"isher of Kilverstone (president). Sir J. J. Thomson, 

 Sir Charles A. Parsons, and Dr. G. T. Beilby. Panel : 

 Prof H. B. Baker, Prof. \V. H. Bragg, Prof. 

 H. C. H. Carpenter, Sir William Crookes, Mr. W. 

 Duddell, Prof. P. F. Frankland, Prof. B. Hopkinson, 

 Sir Oliver Lodge, Prof. W. J. Pope, Sir Ernest 

 Rutherford. Mr. G. Gerald Stoney, and the Hon. R. J. 

 Strutt. Secretary and Naval Assistant : Captain 

 Thomas E. Crease, R.N. 



We are informed by the Secretary of the Lords 

 Commissioners of the Admiralty that the services of 

 the members and the scientific experts on the Central 

 Committee and the Panel of Consultants of the Board 

 of Invention and Research are given gratuitously. 



A Munitions Inventions Department of the Ministry 

 of Munitions of War, with Mr. E. W. Moir as Comp- 

 troller, was appointed in August last to consider pro- 

 jects for inventions relating to munitions for warfare 

 on land or matters pertaining thereto. The Advisory 

 Panel of scientific and other experts is as follows : — 

 Prof. A. W. Crossley, Mr. Horace Darwin, Dr. S. Z. 

 ; de Ferranti, Mr. A. MacDougall Duckham, Mr. W. 

 : Duddell, Dr. R. T. Glazebrook, Col. H. E. F. Goold- 

 I Adams, Sir Robert A. Hadfield, Prof. J. S. Haldane, 

 i Col. N. B. Heffernan, Sir Alexander B. W. Kennedy, 

 I Mr. F. W. Lanchester, Prof. A. P. Laurie, Mr. 

 Michael Longridge, Dr. W. H. Maw, Sir Hiram S. 

 Maxim, Capt. A. U. Moore, Sir Henry Norman, 

 Bart., Dr. F. G. Ogilvie, Maj.-Gen. Sir 'Georee K. 

 Scott-Moncrieflf, Mr. F. Wilfrid S. Stokes, Mr. J. 

 Swinburne, .Sir J. J. Thomson, Mr. A. J. Walter, Mr. 

 ; C. J. Wilson, and Lieut. -Col. J. C. Matheson. The 

 secretary to the Advisory Panel is Mr. H. W. Dickin- 

 son, Munitions Inventions Department, Princes Street, 

 Westminster, S.W. 



The Comptroller of the Munitions Inventions De- 

 partment assures us that these gentlemen are not paid 

 I and that their services in all cases arc voluntary. He 

 j informs us further that the work of the Department 

 is co-ordinated with that of the Board of Invention 

 and Research, and that a constant interchange of 

 information and ideas takes place. 



NO. 2410, VOL. 96] 



In July last, Mr. Arthur Henderson, President of 

 the Board of Education, issued a White Paper describ- 

 ing the Government scheme designed to establish a 

 permanent organisation for the promotion of indus- 

 trial and scientific research. A sum of 30,000/. has 

 been provided for the purposes of the scheme during 

 the first year. The circular points out that the scheme 

 is in no way intended to replace or interfere 

 with, the arrangements which have been or may 

 be made by the War Office or Admiralty or Ministry 

 of Munitions to obtain scientific advice and investiga- 

 tion in connection with the provision of munitions of 

 war. The scheme provides for the establishment of : — 

 (a) A Committee of the Privy Council responsible for 

 the expenditure of any new moneys provided by Parlia- 

 ment lor scientific and industrial research ; (b) a small 

 Advisory Council responsible to the Committee of 

 Council and composed mainly of eminent scientific 

 men and men actually engaged in industries dependent 

 upon scientific research. 'Ihe Committee of Council 

 consists of the Lord President, the Chancellor of the 

 Exchequer, the Secretary lor Scotland, the President 

 of the Board of Trade, the President of the Board of 

 Education (who is to be vice-president of the Com- 

 mittee), the Chief Secretary for Ireland, together with 

 such other Ministers and individual members of the 

 Council as it may be thought desirable to add. The 

 first non-official members of the Committee are : — 

 Lord Haldane, Mr. A. H. D. Acland, and Mr. J. A. 

 Pease. The first members of the Advisory Council 

 are :— Lord Rayleigh, Dr. G. T. Beilby, Mr. W. Dud- 

 dell, Prof. B. Hopkinson, Prof. J. A. M'Celland, 

 and Mr. R. Threlfall, with Sir WiUiam S. M'Cormick 

 as administrative chairman. The primary functions 

 of the Advisory Council will be to advise the Com- 

 mittee of Council on (i) proposals for instituting 

 specific researches; (ii) proposals for establishing or 

 developing special institutions or departments of exist- 

 ing institutions for the scientific study of problems 

 afiecting particular industries and trades ; (iii) the 

 establishment and award of research studentships and 

 fellowships. The Advisory Council will also be avail- 

 able, if requested, to advise the several Education De- 

 partments as to the steps which should be taken for 

 increasing the supply of workers competent to under- 

 take scientific research. It is contemplated that the 

 Advisory Council will work largely through sub-com- 

 mittees reinforced by suitable experts in the particular 

 branch of science or industry concerned. In pursuance 

 of the Order in Council, the Treasury has authorised 

 ■f-he payment of remuneration to the members of the 

 Advisory Council. 



The Minister of Munitions of War, with the con- 

 currence of the Home Secretary, has appointed a com- 

 mittee to consider and advise on questions of indus- 

 trial fatigue, hours of labour, and other matters 

 affecting the personal health and physical efficiency of 

 workers in munition factories and workshops. The 

 committee is constituted as follows : — Sir George 

 Newman (chairman); Sir Thomas Barlow, Bart., Mr. 

 G. Bellhouse, Prof. A. E. Boycott, Mr. J. R. Clvnes. 

 Mr. E. L. Collis, Dr. W. M. Fletcher, Prof. Leonard 

 E. Hill, Mr. Samuel Osborn, Miss R. E. Squire, and 

 Mrs. H. J. Tennant. 



The president of the Board of Agriculture and 

 Fisheries has appointed a committee (consisting of 

 Lord Middleton (chairman), Mr. Henry Chaplin, Sir 

 Ailwyn Fellowes, the Hon. Alexander Parker, Major 

 Sir M. Burrell, Bart., Sir G. Greenall, Bart., and 

 Capt. M. S. Adye) to consider and advise the Board 

 as to the steps which should be taken to secure the 

 production and maintenance in England and Wales of 

 a supply of horses suitable and sufficient for military 

 purposes, especially on mobilisation. 



