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NATURE 



[June 12, 19 13 



rapid, shall not absorb his every mental activity 

 until such time as the destination is reached. 



Put crudely, it is the old choice between devotion 

 to the "means" and devotion to the "ends." 

 Engineers almost always care more for the latter 

 than for the former, being well aware that their 

 route must ever be subject to other than purely 

 abstract considerations. Unless engineering "in- 

 stinct " points along some reasonably converging 

 line, nothing will persuade them that the "acad- 

 emic" path is the true one. But this is stated 

 as the point of view of English engineers. How 

 does the matter stand with, let us say, the German 

 and the French? This question is to some extent 

 answered by the interesting fact that, although 

 a German edition of Perry's "Applied Mechanics " 

 was published five years ago, it is only in 1913 

 that a French translation is appearing. 



For this purpose the book has been divided into 

 two volumes, of which the first has now been 

 published with a preface by MM. E. and F. 

 Cosserat. After describing generally the method 

 of the book, the writers of the preface remark : 

 "C'est cette methode, quelque peu hdretique dans 

 notre pays, qui a et6 developee avec un tres grand 

 talent par M. John Perry dans le livre remarquable 

 que nous presentons aux lecteurs francais." 



The French mind is logical and is attracted by 

 logical method ; their engineering is a far more 

 highly refined product than the English — judged, 

 that is, from the scientific point of view. The 

 Germans are capable of as much precision as the 

 French, but are more desirous of taking high place 

 as capable technicians, and inclined, therefore, to 

 study the methods which successful English engin- 

 eers have adopted. How successful that study has 

 been there are many instances to show. It has 

 occasionally happened, indeed, that German 

 method has far outreached the English, so that 

 the less sturdy opinion in this country has felt 

 there is cause for pessimism, notwithstanding 

 that such industries are rarely the most productive 

 of income, or the least risky in respect of capital. 



Germany is willing to learn from England 

 because she values the "fait accompli." France, 

 looking more to abstract considerations, does not 

 think she has much to learn from English writers, 

 and refrains, therefore, from a zealous study of 

 them. If we take, for example, one of the prob- 

 lems dealt with in this book — that of the proper 

 design of springs — we find English engineers rely- 

 ing chiefly on rule-of-thumb methods, whilst the 

 most carefully refined analysis of the subject 

 appeared in French many years ago. Why, there- 

 fore, should the French look to us for guidance ? 

 Furthermore, it often happens that English 

 writings on the scientific study of engineering work 

 NO. 2276, VOL. 91] 



are unknown abroad. A Swedish engineer 

 recently explained to the writer that, in con- 

 sequence of the different way in which the book- 

 selling business is managed abroad, English 

 technical books are sold to a very small extent, and 

 that ninety-nine out of a hundred foreigners get the 

 impression that by far the greater progress in 

 science and theoretical engineering comes from 

 Germany. The translation of Prof. Perry's book 

 into French will help to eradicate this impression, 

 and we congratulate ourselves, as well as Prof. 

 Perry, upon this sign of appreciation of English 

 engineering science. H. E. W. 



PAL.EOLITIIIC MAN AND BRONZE AGE 



MAN. 

 Palaeolithic Man and Tcrramara Settlements in 



Europe. By Dr. Robert Munro. Pp. xxiii + 



507 + 74 plates. (Edinburgh: Oliver and Boyd; 



London : Gurney and Jackson, 1912.) Price 165. 



net. 



LAST year Dr. Robert Munro founded a 

 . lectureship in the University of Edinburgh 

 to popularise the results of research in anthropo- 

 logy and prehistoric archaeology, which have 

 recently become so important and interesting. He 

 himself gave the inaugural course, and these lec- 

 tures have now been published in a copiously illus- 

 trated volume, which will be welcomed equally by 

 the general reader and the student. In the first 

 part Dr. Munro summarises our present know- 

 ledge of Palaeolithic man in Europe, while in the 

 second part he gives a more detailed account of 

 the Terramara settlements of the Po valley in 

 northern Italy, to which he himself has paid special 

 attention. In all cases the readable text is accom- 

 panied by ample references to the literature of the 

 subject. 



Dr. Munro does well at the outset to emphasise 

 the fact " that the principles and laws which 

 govern the rest of the organic world, past and 

 present, are equally applicable to Man," and he 

 thus begins with an interesting sketch of organic 

 evolution. He points out that man's career was 

 an entirely new departure owing to his superior 

 mental endowments, and he argues that this 

 superiority was primarily due to the attainment 

 of the erect attitude. There are, however, still 

 many difficulties in accepting the latter opinion, 

 and more facts are needed before it can be satis- 

 factorily discussed. 



In the admirable review of the discoveries of 

 Palaeolithic man and his handiwork, Dr. Munro 

 makes several interesting suggestions, and formu- 

 lates judgments on some of the subjects of con- 

 troversy. He accepts the French classification of 



