April 18, 1919] 



SCIENCE 



365 



his own field tlie most important, but if he 

 thinks other fields unimportant, he has blocked 

 his own progress, and is bound to move in 

 ever narrowing' circles. 



One of the demands upon us, therefore, is 

 to cultivate the synthetic attitude of mind; 

 to develop about our own specialty a penumbra 

 of the botanical perspective. In other words, 

 botanists must cease to be provincial; they 

 must not be citizens merely of one small 

 group, with no larger contacts, but citizens 

 in the world of science. We must not remain 

 persistently in the narrow valley in which 

 our work lies, but we must get on to the 

 mountain top often enough to realize the 

 perspective. 



2. The Practical Outlool:— The new oppor- 

 tunity demands this; in fact, it was this tliat 

 created the new opportunity. This means 

 that we are to see to it that botany is recog- 

 nized as the greatest field for universal serv- 

 ice. Medicine holds that position now in 

 public estimation, simply because it ministers 

 to the unfortunate, but they are in the minor- 

 ity. Botanical research underlies an essen- 

 tial ministry to all. Disarticulation of botany 

 from its practical applications has been most 

 unfortimate, and must not be continued. For 

 example, to segregate botany and agriculture 

 as two distinct fields is to damage both; a 

 mistake that our recent exi)erience has em- 

 phasized. The result has been that botany 

 has not contributed to agricultural practise as 

 it should; and agricultural practise has not 

 called upon botany as it should. The same 

 is true of the other industries that involve 

 plants. We must recognize that every investi- 

 gation is of possible practical service, and that 

 every practise is of possible scientific sug- 

 gestion. What we have failed to do is to 

 establish the contacts between science and 

 practise, to indicate the possibilities of every 

 advance in knowledge in the way of public 

 service. 



This is verj' far from meaning that every 

 investigation should have an obvious prac- 

 tical application. Research must be absolutely 

 free, stimulated only by its own interest in 

 advancing knowledge, but the importance of 



fundamental knowledge in solving practical 

 problems should be emphasized at every op- 

 portunity. 



Our recent experience in connection with 

 emergency problems has shown that no field 

 of botanical investigation is so remote from 

 practical needs that it can not make its con- 

 tribution if necessary. For example, taxon- 

 omy was called upon for information as to 

 new geographical sources and new plant 

 sources for raw products; vascular anatomy 

 was asked to contribute its experience in solv- 

 ing some very important timber problems ; 

 ecologists were urged to organize their knowl- 

 edge so as to be sen-iceable in relating the 

 suitable crops to soil and climate; physiolo- 

 gists were constantly contributing information 

 as to the possible control of processes essential 

 to plant production. Pathologists did not need 

 so much to demonstrate their usefulness, for 

 their results are obviously practical, and for 

 tliis very reason it is easier to secure op- 

 portunities for research in pathology than for 

 any other of these fields of research. It is not 

 a question of becoming practical, but merely 

 of establishing connections that are obvious to 

 the investigator. 



We must emphasize, therefore, the con- 

 nection between what have been called pure 

 science and applied science, which have too 

 long been pigeon-holed into separate compart- 

 ments. Upon a previous occasion I have em- 

 phasized this relationship as follows: 



All science is one. Pure science is often im- 

 mensely practical, applied science is often very 

 pure science, and between the two there is no di- 

 viding line. They are like the end members of a 

 long and intergrading series; very distinct in their 

 isolated and extreme expression, but completely 

 connected. If distinction must be expressed in 

 terms where no sharp distinction exists, it may be 

 expressed by the terms "fundamental" and 

 "superficial." They are terms of comparison and 

 admit of every intergrade. In general, a univer- 

 sity devoted to research should be interested in 

 the fundamental things, the larger truths that in- 

 crease the general prospective of knowledge, and 

 may underlie the possibilities of material progress 

 in many directions. On the other hand, the im- 

 mediate material needs of the community are to 



