OCTOBEK 21, 1921] 



SCIENCE 



367 



one dissertation has been presented by two 

 men working together. The big problems 

 of biology are already too large for individual 

 attack. We must have biologists, chemists, 

 geneticists, statisticians, bacteriologists, path- 

 ologists — all working together to adequately 

 solve them — and how much more rapidly 

 science would advance if we could secure 

 such cooperation ! A specialist for every phase 

 rather than a " Jack of all sciences " attack- 

 ing the problem alone. And what part is 

 Sigma Xi to play in it all? Sigma Xi if it 

 is to play any part must yield to the proc- 

 esses of evolution or be passed in the race. 



Sigma Xi was founded because scientists 

 felt the need for a bond to draw them to- 

 gether and to propagandize in favor of sci- 

 ence in the universities. In that day Latin, 

 Greek, the languages and literature, history 

 and philosophy, were the recognized collegi- 

 ate courses. Science had not come into its 

 own. What part Sigma Xi played in the 

 establishment of science courses will probably 

 never be accurately determined, but the day 

 is already past when science needs any assist- 

 ance in establishing its proper place in a uni- 

 versity curriculum. Science has arrived! 

 And with the evolution of science I am 

 afraid Sigma Xi is being left behind. We 

 no longer get together in scientific meetings 

 to discuss the individual researches of sci- 

 ence workers. Science has become too special- 

 ized. Many a university now has its chemical 

 society, its pathological society, its society of 

 clinical medicine, its physical society, its 

 mathematical society, its botanical society, its 

 physiological society, etc., etc. To be sure 

 we call them seminars in many instances, 

 but the result is the same. There are like- 

 wise new " Honorary " societies being formed, 

 such as Phi Lambda TJpsilon for chemistry, 

 which have a sjiecial attraction for a special 

 group. Where then is Sigma Xi's place in 

 this new order of things? 



If Sigma Xi is to live to fulfill the hopes 

 of its founders it must meet the challenge 

 of the new order with a definite mission. I 

 believe that there is a place for Sigma Xi in 

 the new order. It was created to foster sci- 



ence — why should its new mission not be to 

 coordinate science, to foster cooperation, to be 

 the guiding hand in establishing an esprit de 

 corps among science workers, to attract to 

 the universities noted lecturers in special 

 branches of science, especially those branches 

 which are the weakest in the university in 

 question, to assist in the securing of the 

 formation of special scientific bodies within 

 the university, especially the honorary scien- 

 tific societies of the special groups? For 

 after all, it is the specialist, not the scatterer, 

 who brings fame to a university. In short, 

 Sigma Xi should be the keystone of the scien- 

 tific structure and should devote all of its 

 energies to those means which will advance 

 the special sciences and which will draw 

 scientific workers into a union so that they 

 may attack the great problems of the future. 

 Eoss Aiken Gortner 

 DrvrsioN or Agricxjltukal Biochemistry 

 TJniveksitt op Minnesota 



THE RELATION OF CHEMICAL TRAIN- 

 ING TO INDUSTRY i 



The relation of chemical science to edu- 

 cation and industry is no new problem. Dur- 

 ing the last few years a quantity of opinion 

 and advice has been offered to us and, as one 

 result at least, the fact stands out that there 

 is need of adjustment between educational 

 institutions training scientific men and the 

 industries which these men are to serve. 



Looking back historically, it seems evident 

 that the present misunderstanding between 

 the two great parties concerned arose be- 

 cause of the different points of view as to how 

 (a) the results of scientific discovery, and (&) 

 the young graduates in science prepared at 

 our colleges and universities could best be 

 utilized in industry. The teachers of science 

 are often unfamiliar with the needs of in- 

 dustry in regard to the nature of the problems 

 to be solved and in regard to the kinds of 

 scientists needed in our highly organized 

 commercial enterprises. On the other hand, 

 manufacturers are often at a loss as to how 



1 President 's address before the Kentucky Acad- 

 emy of Science, Lexington, May 14, 1921. 



