CIENCE 



Friday, February 20, 1920 

 contents 



The Functions and Ideals of a National Geo- 

 logical Survey: F. L. Eansome 173 



George MaclosMe: Professor W. M. Rankin. 180 



Scientific Events: — 

 The California Institute of Technology; The 

 Annual Meeting of the Board of Trustees 

 of the American Miiseum of Natural His- 

 tory; The New York Meeting of the Ameri- 

 can Institute of Mining and Metallurgical 

 Engineers; Resolutions on the Death of Sir 



iter 1 81 



Notes and News 185 



University and Educational News 187 



Discussion and Correspondence: — 



Blood-inhaiiting Protozoa for Class Use: 

 Professor R. W. Hegner. Horizontal Eain- 

 lows: Professor Chancet Juday. Chem- 

 istry applied to Commerce: Williams 

 Haynes 187 



Scientific Books: — 



Schench's Physical Chemistry of the Metals: 



H. F 190 



Special Articles: — 

 The Developmental Origin of the Notochord : 

 Professor B. F. Kingsbury 190 



The Conference at Cleveland on the History of 

 Science: Professor Lynn Thorndike .... 193 



The American Association for the Advance- 

 ment of Science: — 



Financial Report of the Permanent Secre- 

 tary and of the Treasurer 194 



MSS. intended for publication and books, etc., intended for 

 review aliould be Bent to The Editor of Science, Garrison-on- 

 Hudson, N. Y. 



THE FUNCTIONS AND IDEALS OF A 

 NATIONAL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY^ 



Introduction. — Diu'ing the period of unrest 

 and uncertainty through which we are still 

 painfully groping, the many distracting calls 

 upon my time and thoughts have made per- 

 formance of the duty to prepare a presidential 

 address particularly difficult. In view of these 

 circumstances I may perhaps hope for some 

 indulgence on your part if my eiiort shows 

 some lack of thoroughness in its preparation 

 and falls soniewhat short of the high standard 

 set by some of my distinguished predecessors. 

 The subject of a presidential address to the 

 academy should, 1 think, be of wider interest 

 and more general character than would 

 ordinarily be an account of work in the 

 speaker's particular branch of science, and 

 this condition I have attempted to fulfill. 

 Although what follows will deal especially 

 with national geological surveys much of it 

 will apply in principle to any scientific bureau 

 conducted as a government organization. 



Reasons for the Existence of a National 

 Geological Survey. — In the beginning it may 

 be well to review briefly the reasons for the 

 existence of a national geological survey. 

 Why should the government undertake work 

 in geology while investigations in other sci- 

 ences are in general left to private initiation 

 and enterprise? The reasons that may be ad- 

 duced will differ with the point of view. The 

 geologist will suggest that whereas some 

 sciences, such as chemistry, physics or astron- 

 omy may be pursued with success with sta- 

 tionary and permanent equipment at any one 

 of a number of localities, geology is regional 

 in its scope and is primarily a field science as 

 contrasted with a laboratory science. Geology, 

 it is true, must avail itself of laboratory re- 



1 Address delivered as retiring president of the 

 Washingt/on Academy of Sciences on January 13, 

 1920. 



