DISCOVERY 



301 



The British Association's 

 Meeting 



The meeting at Hull this year was useful rather than 

 distinguished. A mass of important subjects was 

 described and discussed, some of which are of interest 

 to many besides specialists. The presidential address 

 by Sir Charles Sherrington, however, dealt with a 

 subject that is difficult to describe to the layman, 

 problems of the mechanism of vital processes, especially 

 those of the nervous system, and can be followed in 

 detail by physiologists only. There is a considerable 

 number of amateur scientists who bother publishers 

 with their immature manuscripts on such problems 

 as the origin of life, the relation of mind to matter, 

 and kindred subjects, described or touched on in the 

 presidential address ; it is good to know that, if they 

 give the address the attention which it deserves, they 

 will remain quiescent for a time and be the wiser at 

 the finish. The philosopher, too, not yet recovered 

 from the fatigue of absorbing the theory of Einstein 

 (which, fortunately, by the way, was given a rest 

 this year), has now got a further problem to engage his 

 attention. And physiologists themselves are di\'ided 

 with respect to a conclusion on which the president 

 laid great insistence, namely, that biology must in 

 ultimate analysis be nothing but physics and chemistry. 

 The address, therefore, has the merit of stimulating 

 discussion among those who can imderstand it. It 

 is this setting men thinking and talking on a really 

 important problem, that is only partly solved, which 

 helps so much towards a complete or at least a pro- 

 visional solution of it. Some notes are given below 

 of a few of the subjects discussed. Several of the 

 topics, like those on agriculture or on economics, do 

 not come within our range. Others, like those on the 

 migration of the eel, the fixation of atmospheric 

 nitrogen, Wegener's theory of the origin of the con- 

 tinents, and the atoms of matter, have been discussed 

 in articles in earlier issues of this journal. 



MENTAL CHARACTERISTICS AND RACE 



This subject was discussed at a joint meeting of the 

 Anthropology and Psychology Sections. Professor 

 J. L. Myres said that mental qualities were inherited 

 just as phj'sical characters were, and therefore it 

 might be assumed they stood in some direct relation 

 with some element in the nervous system. Some 

 mental qualities appeared to be associated with phy- 

 sical characteristics, for instance, fiery temper and 

 red hair. The novelist had long made use of such 



' The Advancement of Science : 1922 (John Murray. 65.). 

 Xature, September 9 and 16. Reports in The Times, 

 September 9-14. 



associations, and everybody knew what was expected 

 of a hero with steel-blue eyes or a horse-face. Professor 

 il\"res described how it was possible to some extent 

 to enhance and combine mental qualities in certain 

 domestic animals. In illustration he spoke of the 

 recent establishment of the Rhodesian lion-hoimd, 

 which was bred with strength and courage to attack, 

 great speed, and tenacity to hold on. Individuals 

 did not always exhibit, however, the characteristics 

 expected of them. There were gun-shy pointers, for 

 example, and even gun-shy men in military families. 



Dr. C. S. Myers said that the two chief influences on 

 mental character were heredity and environment. 

 Sunshine, humidity, earthquakes, food-supply — all 

 these had an important influence on the mental 

 character of a race. Physical appearances were some- 

 times misleading. There might be handsome boys 

 and girls in a family of deficients. The explanation of 

 that was that they had been given a false start, which 

 had interfered with the growth of their minds, but not 

 with their bodies. An accident in infancy might 

 interfere with development and make a man, who 

 would otherwise have been brave, gun-shy. It was 

 interesting to see how different countries were develop- 

 ing different human types. It was now possible, for 

 instance, to distinguish the New Zealander from the 

 Australian. How these types came about was not 

 known, nor was it known how long they might persist. 

 Even different parts of a country showed marked 

 characteristics. In our own country Yorkshire and 

 Welsh people were musical. Another interesting fact 

 was that a characteristic might appear for a time and 

 then disappear. England in Elizabeth's day was 

 pre-eminent in music ; at various times other countries 

 had been pre-eminent in different branches of art. 



Mr. E. N. Fallaize quoted from two writers in the 

 time of King Henry VHI to show how little had been 

 the change in national characteristics. The first 

 writer, a Scot, described the Frenchman as volatile, the 

 German as wily, and the Englishman as fuU of pride 

 and with a great deal of self-satisfaction. The second, 

 the Venetian Ambassador in London, described the 

 English as hospitable and generous, and said that 

 if an English working-man met in the street a friend 

 who was starving he would not give him a slice of 

 bread, but would say, " Come and have a drink." 



THE AGE AND AREA THEORY 



One of the chief subjects discussed at a joint meet- 

 ing of the Zoology and Botany Sections was a statis- 

 tical theory of the geographical distribution of plants 

 and animals recently published by Dr. J. C. Willis 

 in a book entitled Age and Area. Dr. Willis, in 

 opening, said that Darwin's great contribution to 

 science was the establishment of evolution as the 



