318 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLI. No. 1052 



sueli suggestions as have been made in this letter 

 meet with your approval, and whether you would 

 be willing to join in such collaboration as has been 

 outlined. And furthermore, if you are favorably 

 disposed toward such action as that outlined in 

 this letter, this committee would be glad to know 

 whether you have at present any apulications for 

 grants for research which you care to send to it 

 for consideration. 



An early reply will be appreciated in order that 

 as complete a report of progress as is possible may 

 be made to the American Association at its forth- 

 coming meeting in Philadelphia. 

 I am 



Yours respectfully, 



Charles E. Cross, 

 Secretary of the Subcommittee 

 on Besearch Funds 



The replies received express approbation of the 

 plan set forth in the letter and indicate a willing- 

 ness to undertake such an intercommunication of 

 information as the letter suggests. 



Charles E. Cross, 



Secretary 



SUBCOMMITTEE ON THE SELECTION AND TRAINING 

 OP STUDENTS FOR RESEARCH 



In presenting a report from the subcommittee on 

 the selection and training of students for research 

 Professor E. W. Brown regretted that owing to 

 his absence until November very little had been 

 done. He gave, however, a brief account of some 

 of the ideas which the subcommittee had in mind. 

 One of the chief questions raised has been whether 

 the chief effort should not be made towards im- 

 proving the facilities for the abler men in their 

 undergraduate work. In two or three of the 

 American universities special courses have been es- 

 tablished for such men and it is proposed to find 

 out how much development has taken place in this 

 direction and what success has been achieved so 

 far. The subcommittee also proposes to find out 

 the methods used in other countries to advance the 

 interests of the abler students. Various methods 

 have been planned to achieve this object: 

 amongst them separate instruction, extra work, 

 less teaching in the classroom and more work ex- 

 pected outside, the recognition of scholarship in 

 various ways and more specialization in one or 

 two particular subjects have been suggested. In 

 the discussion which followed some valuable sug- 

 gestions were made. It was pointed out that in 

 some subjects far too much assistance was given to 

 the students, and consequently their faculties are 

 not properly developed. It was proposed that 

 some effort should be made in the direction of in- 

 ducing graduate students to go to some particular 



university because of the excellence of the depart- 

 ment in that university rather than on account of 

 the money rewards which it might offer. The com- 

 mittee hopes to undertake investigation of these 

 questions and to offer a report with suggestions in 

 due time. 



SUBCOMMITTEE ON RESEARCH IN EDUCATIONAL 

 INSTITUTIONS 



The chairman of the committee, Mr. Edward L. 

 Nichols, made a report of progress. The com- 

 mittee had had two meetings, and through its sec- 

 retary, Mr. J. McK. Cattell, had addressed letters 

 individually written and signed to the executive 

 heads of all institutions of higher education in the 

 United States, some 600 in number. The letter 

 made enquiry concerning the attitude of the insti- 

 tutions in the following respects: (1) In making 

 appointments and promotions, what weight is given 

 to scientific research and productive scholarship? 

 (2) Is research a part of the work expected from 

 instructors and professors, and, if so, how much of 

 their time can be devoted to it? Eeplies had been 

 received from most of the institutions and some of 

 them were read to the committee. In general they 

 emphasized the weight given to scientific research 

 and productive scholarship in making appointments 

 and promotions and stated that research work was 

 regarded as part of the function of the institution 

 and its instructors, but there was great variation 

 in different institutions. The committee plans to 

 prepare and publish an analysis of these letters. 

 It hopes later to make enquiries in regard to the 

 actual opportunities for research work in different 

 institutions. 



PROVISIONAL REPORT OP THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON 



THE PROMOTION OF APPRECIATION OP 



RESEARCH 



Tour committee believes that the main ideas 

 which it desires to present are already familiar to 

 those conversant with the situation. But the com- 

 mittee nevertheless believes that these ideas are so 

 important as to need further reiteration and 

 emphasis. 



In the first place a marked distinction may be 

 made between research concerning the fundamental 

 laws, principles and phenomena of any given sub- 

 ject, on the one hand, and research aiming to apply 

 these laws more efficiently to practical purposes on 

 the other hand. Happily, research in applied sci- 

 ence is being developed, each year in larger meas- 

 ure, on this side of the Atlantic. None the less, 

 there is danger of our overlooking the first type of 



