442 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLIV. No. 1135 



lisliment of a Commonwealth Institute of 

 Science and Industry. The institute is to 

 be governed by three directors, two of whom 

 will be scientific men of high standing, 

 while the third will be selected for proved 

 ability in business. The directors are to be 

 assisted by an advisory council composed 

 of nine representatives of science and of 

 industry; these representatives are to seek 

 information, advice and assistance from 

 specialists throughout Australia. The chief 

 functions of the institute are (1) To ascer- 

 tain what industrial problems are most 

 pressing and most likely to yield to scien- 

 tific experimental investigation, to seek out 

 the most competent men to whom such re- 

 search may be entrusted, and to provide 

 them with all the necessary appliances and 

 assistance. (2) To build up a bureau of 

 scientific and industrial information, which 

 shall be at the service of all concerned in 

 the industries and manufactures of the 

 commonwealth. (3) To erect, staff and 

 control special research laboratories, the 

 first of which will probably be a physical 

 laboratory somewhat on the lines of our 

 National Physical Laboratory. Other func- 

 tions of the institute are the coordination 

 and direction of research and experimental 

 work with a view to the prevention of un- 

 desirable overlapping of effort, the recom- 

 mendation of grants of the commonwealth 

 government in aid of pure scientific re- 

 search in existing institutions, and the 

 establishment and award of industrial re- 

 search fellowships. 



This admirable scheme is more compre- 

 hensive and more generous than that of our 

 government, but it could be rivaled without 

 much difficulty. "We already possess an im- 

 portant asset in the National Physical Labo- 

 ratory, and there now exists the advisory 

 council with its extensive powers and 

 duties. "What is lacking in our scheme, so 

 far as chemistry is concerned, could be 



made good, firstly, by providing the ad- 

 visory council with much larger funds, 

 and, secondly, by the establishment of. a 

 National Chemical Laboratory — an insti- 

 tute for research in pure and applied chem- 

 istry — or by assisting the development of 

 research departments in our universities 

 and technical colleges (as is now being done 

 in America), or, better still, by moving in 

 both directions. "With respect to the sec- 

 ond alternative, I do not mean to suggest 

 that research work is neglected in the chem- 

 istry departments of any of our higher in- 

 stitutions ; what I plead for is the provision 

 of greater facilities for the prosecution of 

 investigation not only in pure but also in 

 applied chemistry. As things are at pres- 

 ent, the professors and lecturers are for the 

 most part so much occupied in teaching and 

 in administration as to be unable to devote 

 time uninterruptedly to research work, 

 which demands above all things continuity 

 of effort. The ideal remedy would be the 

 institution of research professorships, but, 

 failing this, the burden of teaching and ad- 

 ministrative work should be lightened by 

 appointing larger staffs. 



It has been suggested by Dr. Forster that 

 the state could render assistance to chem- 

 ical industry in another way, namely, by 

 the formation of a Chemical Intelligence 

 Department of the Board of Trade, which 

 should be concerned with technical, com- 

 mercial and educational questions bearing 

 upon the industry. Under the first head 

 the proposed department would have the 

 duty (a) of collecting, tabulating and dis- 

 tributing all possible information regarding 

 chemical discoveries, patents, and manu- 

 facturing processes, and (6) of presenting 

 problems for investigation to research chem- 

 ists, of course under proper safeguards and 

 with suitable remuneration. The more 

 strictly commercial side of the department's 

 activities would be concerned with the 



