October 21, 1921] 



SCIENCE 



369 



better devoted to other subjects such, for ex- 

 ample, as instruction in the use of a chemical 

 library. There is no doubt but that many of 

 our gi-aduates do not fully appreciate the fact 

 that the final source of chemical knowledge 

 is the chemical literature and they are not 

 over familiar with methods for its use which 

 assume a reading knowledge of scientific 

 French and German together with required 

 courses in chemical literature such as are now 

 being given at the University of Pittsburgh. 

 Surely such training can rightly be, and is, 

 demanded of educational institutions by in- 

 dustry. Industry asks further that the college 

 graduate be so trained that he can quickly 

 comprehend the essential points in any 

 research problem and separate the significant 

 from the unessential. He should have a 

 good grasp of experimental technique and 

 detail and, paradoxical as it may seem in con- 

 nection with commercial' work, be able to 

 work with small quantities as well as with 

 large amounts of material. Since the success 

 of most industries is dependent upon physical 

 factors such as pressure and temperature, 

 the research worker should be trained to watch 

 for and detect the variable factors which are 

 present and entering into his experiments. 

 It is not an easy matter to place the blame 

 for the fact that the graduate does not meet 

 the requirements stated above. The second- 

 ary school must be held accountable for some 

 and the college for others. The secondary 

 school does not sufficiently train the senses, 

 so necessary to the scientist, but tends to 

 develop the memory. Furthermore, the boy's 

 curiosity is dulled even though this charac- 

 teristic and the all important imagination go 

 hand in hand. In college, often, the memory 

 training continues instead of developing 

 reasoning ability. The student relies implicit- 

 ly and blindly on his text-book; without it 

 he is lost. Hd is unable to stand on his 

 own feet and replies, when given a reasoning 

 question, that " it is not in the book." This 

 is not a plea for the lecture system but is 

 directed against the all too popular custom 

 of memorizing printed pages. The technical 

 school, also, is open to criticism because 



technical courses are often taught by those 

 not in touch with industry. 



The remedies for these conditions suggest 

 themselves and no further comment on most 

 of them is necessary except to state that 

 even routine laboratory work may be made 

 of value for research training by considering 

 each preparation by itself as a research 

 problem and treating it accordingly. Theories 

 and principles may well be emphasized to the 

 exclusion of some descriptive matter and their 

 industrial application in many fields be pointed 

 out. 



To meet the objection that graduates have 

 had no practical experience in industry the 

 so-called cooperative courses of study have 

 been organized in several institutions, notably 

 the University of Cincinnati and the Mas- 

 sachusetts Institute of Technology. Under 

 this plan the student divides his time between 

 the university and some industrial plant, 

 securing the theory at the former and the 

 practical experience and handling of industri- 

 al apparatus at the latter. These courses are 

 of five years' duration ordinarily and, being 

 open only to students of ability, are fulfilling 

 their mission successfully. This is one ex- 

 ample of real cooperation between industry 

 and educational institutions which is of direct 

 advantage to the former. Another phase of 

 this matter is that commercial organiza- 

 tions could, to their ovrai benefit at a later 

 date, employ high-grade college students dur- 

 ing the summer vacation. These men, often 

 of high ability, are many times prevented 

 from graduating because of financial difficul- 

 ties. Employment during the summer would 

 furnish the necessary means for completion 

 of the university work and the graduate 

 would, upon taking his place in industry, more 

 than repay it for the assistance rendered him. 

 Thus the Standard Oil Company not only 

 gives selected students employment during the 

 summer months but, after the college course 

 is completed, places them on salary in special 

 schools where training for the future work 

 is secured. Other large organizations have 

 adopted the same plan with benefit resulting 

 to both parties concerned. 



