SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLV. No. 1152 



tion for the Advancement of Science, feel that 

 it is timely to issue the following appeal to 

 the industrial research laboratories of the 

 country. 



In the course of work done in the numerous 

 industrial laboratories of America, many phys- 

 ical and commercial constants and data of 

 great scientific interest and value are doubt- 

 less arrived at, which may, for a certain 

 period of time, constitute an asset of consid- 

 erable commercial value to the particular cor- 

 porations in question. During this period, 

 every one recognizes the proprietary right of 

 the industrial laboratories to the retention of 

 this information. 



A time frequently arrives, however, when 

 such scientific information loses its commer- 

 cial value (often by being duplicated in other 

 laboratories), and just at this point we wish to 

 impress upon the industries their obligation 

 to enrich scientific literature with such facts 

 and data, which might otherwise be lost or 

 forgotten. 



Some of our industries have been reproached 

 with the suspicion of acting as sppnges, in that 

 they absorb an immense amount of useful in- 

 formation from scientific literature without 

 giving any return in kind. This suspicion 

 would be entirely removed if, from time to 

 time, scientific information which has ceased 

 to be of commercial value were contributed by 

 them to its appropriate channel and thus be- 

 came available to all scientific workers 

 throughout the world. 



If any doubt exists as to the appropriate 

 channel for the publication of such scientific 

 data and communications, the general secre- 

 tary of the American Association for the Ad- 

 vancement of Science, Dr. J. McKeen Cattell, 

 Garrison-on-Hudson, 'New York, will be glad 

 to act as intermediary and to forward such 

 communications to the proper scientific body. 

 A. E. Kennellt, 



J. W. ElCHAEDS, 



A. Saxtveur, 

 A. ]Sr. Talbot, 

 C. C. Thomas 

 CAMBEmGE, Mass., 

 January 18, 1917 



SCIENTIFIC BOOKS 



Lectures on Ten British Mathematicians of 

 the Nineteenth Century. By Alexander 

 Macfaklane. N"o. 1Y of the Mathematical 

 Monographs, edited by Mansfield Merriman 

 and Eobert S. "Woodward. John Wiley and 

 Sons, New York, 1916. 



This posthumous publication contains most 

 interesting biographies of ten of the leading 

 mathematicians of the nineteenth century in 

 Great Britain, namely, of George Peacock, 

 Augustus De Morgan, Sir William Eowan 

 Hamilton, George Boole, Arthur Cayley, 

 WiUiam Kingdon Clifford, Henry John 

 Stephen Smith, James Joseph Sylvester, 

 Thomas Penyngton Kirkman, Isaac Todhunter. 

 These sketches are a part of the lectures 

 given by Dr. Macfarlane at Lehigh Univer- 

 sity during the years 1901-04. " In a future 

 volume it is hoped to issue lectures on ten 

 mathematicians whose main work was in phys- 

 ics and astronomy." The author's personal 

 acquaintance with some of these men, and 

 with intimate friends of them, enabled him to 

 add personal touches which will be relished by 

 the reader. Particularly gratifying are the de- 

 tails about Boole and Eirkman, concerning 

 whom little had previously appeared in print. 

 The future historian of mathematics during 

 the nineteenth century will find the booklet 

 fuU of interesting material. The lecturer's 

 aim was evidently to set forth the personalities 

 whose scientific achievements were already 

 loiown to the listener. Hence the scientific re- 

 searches of these men are not described, but 

 merely mentioned. 



Illuminating information is given in several 

 of the biographies relating to Great Britain 

 as " an examination-ridden country," and re- 

 lating to the effects of the theological tests 

 formerly demanded of candidates for degrees 

 and competitors for certain prizes. The opin- 

 ions on the teaching of mathematics held by 

 some of the English mathematicians are valu- 

 able at the present time when in the United 

 States the mind-training-value of mathe- 

 matical study is called into question. 



The booklet is manufactured in attractive 



