76 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. LII. No. 1334 



author and by Alvin Seale. More than 300 

 species of Pacific marine fishes have been cast 

 and colored from life by J. W. Thompson and 

 described by Bryan and Seale. Of land snails 

 in the islands there appeai-s to be an endless 

 variety, certainly more than 400 forms, and 

 the Museum has them by the hundred thou- 

 sand. These have been arranged and many 

 new forms described by C. M. Cooke. The 

 collection of marine shells have all been deter- 

 mined by W. H. Dall. 



Clearly this is a good beginning toward 

 the gathering of data looking to the solution 

 of the problems of the Pacific Ocean. 



Charles Schuchert 



SCIENTIFIC EVENTS 



COTTON RESEARCH IN LANCASHIRE 



The British Cotton^growing Eesearch Asso- 

 ciation has issued a report covering the first 

 nine months of its work. According to an ab- 

 stract in the London Times actual research 

 work has as yet scarcely begun. Dr. A. W. 

 Crossley, the director of research, was not free 

 to leave the University of London until Easter. 

 The council and director agree that the asso- 

 ciation's researches will achieve success in pro- 

 portion to the extent to which they are organ- 

 ized on a cooperative basis, the workers in the 

 several sciences directing their efforts towards 

 the solution of a common problem. In order 

 that the various departments should all be 

 working at one center, a property, known as 

 The Towers, has been acquired at East Dids- 

 bury, a Manchester suburb, and the council is 

 about to issue a special building fund appeal 

 for £250,000. The nest step anticipated by the 

 council is the appointment of heads of depart- 

 ments on the subjects of chemistry, physics, 

 colloids, botany and technology. Dr. A. E. 

 Oxley, of Cambridge and Sheffield Universi- 

 ties, has been appointed head of the physics 

 department, and Dr. J. C. Withers, of the 

 chemical department, St. Thomas's, London, 

 has been appointed to direct the abstracting 

 and indexing of scientific and technical infor- 

 mation in the records bureau. It is stated 

 that information is so scattered that it will be 

 some time before a comprehensive idea can be 



given of the work accomplished in the past. 

 The report adds that the chief aim will be to 

 arrive at the principles or theory underlying 

 the practise of the industry, leaving the appli- 

 oation of the theory to those actively engaged 

 in the industry. Applied research can not, 

 however, be entirely omitted, especially in re- 

 spect of such matters as may be considered be- 

 yond the resources of individual firms. 



In cooperation with the Empire Cotton- 

 growing Committee a joint committee has been 

 appointed, with the immediate object of grant- 

 ing scholarships to graduate students, so as to 

 secure a supply of trained men for the future. 

 Three botanical research studentships have al- 

 ready been established. The total number of 

 individual members of the association is 

 1,408. The income for the year, including 

 £6,750 government grant, amounts to £17,150. 



THE BRITISH SCIENCE GUILD 



Nature reports the annual meeting of the 

 British Science Guild held in London on 

 June 8. Lord Sydenham, the president, in 

 his address on " Science and the nation," dis- 

 cussed industrial problems, due partly to an 

 abnormal state of mind arising from the war, 

 but originally fostered by the industrial 

 changes of the last century, namely, the gen- 

 eral use of machinery, rendering labor monot- 

 onous and leaving less room for the individ- 

 ual skill of the craftsman, and the formation 

 of large companies, whereby the personal touch 

 between master and man was lost. In the 

 latter portion of his address Lord Sydenham 

 emphasized the importance of a more general 

 knowledge of science, especially amongst 

 members of the government and the Civil Serv- 

 ice, and alluded to the efforts made by the 

 Guild in the dissemination of scientific knowl- 

 edge land methods. He concluded by quoting 

 Goethe's saying that " there is no more dread- 

 ful sight than ignorance in action." 



The president-elect, Lord Montagu, of Beau- 

 lieu, then delivered an address on " Some na- 

 tional aspects of transport," and afterwards 

 occupied the chair. Lord Montagu remarked 

 upon the growing difficulties of railways, 

 which, although subsidized by the state, were 



