496 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLII. No. 1084 



I have listened to papers presented to tlie 

 Mathematical Society, which were wholly un- 

 intelligible to me, and I learned on inquiry on 

 one occasion that two of the foremost mathe- 

 maticians in the country, who were present, 

 were equally in the dark. Such exhibits are 

 often presented by men who are ambitious to 

 say something, and who have nothing of any 

 importance to say. It is difficult to give advice 

 to them, it is a somewhat delicate matter, but 

 they need advice. Many technical details 

 which are not only proper, but necessary in a 

 published paper, may be omitted in the oral 

 presentation of that paper. Any person of 

 ordinary good sense should know how to adapt 

 an oral presentation to an audience. 



There is a growing tendency among a certain 

 class of scientific men, to lose aU interest in 

 everything outside of their own narrow hori- 

 zons. This is much to be regretted. But such 

 men have their remedy in their own hands. 

 No one can object to the formation of physical 

 or chemical societies, but it is to be hoped 

 that we are not all so limited in our horizons 

 that we shall advise academies of science to 

 cease to exist. 



Francis E. Nipher 



a proposed ecological society 

 At the Philadelphia meeting of the Amer- 

 ican Association for the Advancement of Sci- 

 ence about twenty men interested in ecology 

 met informally on the evening of December 30, 

 1914, to consider the advisability of organizing 

 an American Ecological Society. The imme- 

 diate occasion for the conference was an ex- 

 pression of feeling on the part of Professor 

 E. H. Wolcott and Professor V. E. Shelford 

 to the effect that there is now no adequate 

 opportunity for plant and animal ecologists 

 to meet together, and also that there is for 

 ecologists an urgent need of summer field 

 meetings in addition to the present winter 

 meetings. 



The conference was attended by Messrs. 

 Adams, Bartlett, Blodgett, Bray, Cannon, 

 Oowles, Dachnowski, Griggs, Harshberger, 

 Hill, Jennings, MacDougal, Nichols, Pearse, 

 Shantz, SheKord, Shreve, Taylor and Wolcott, 



Professor Harshberger being selected chairman. 

 The opinion was practically unanimous that 

 the time is ripe for the organization of an 

 Ecological Society, and it was voted, in con- 

 nection with the Columbus meeting of the 

 American Association, to call a conference of 

 all ecologists interested in the formation of 

 such a society. A committee was appointed to 

 call such a conference and present a scheme of 

 organization, the committee consisting of Pro- 

 fessor J. W. Harshberger (chairman), Professor 

 V. E. Shelford (vice-chairman). Professor H. C. 

 Cowles (secretary-treasurer). Professor E. H. 

 Wolcott, Professor Charles C. Adams, Dr. 

 Eorrest Shreve. 



Announcement will be made later of the 

 exact time and place of the Columbus con- 

 ference, but it may be assumed that it will not 

 be earlier than Tuesday, December 28, nor 

 later than Thursday, December 30, 1915. The 

 purpose of this early announcement is to give 

 ample opportunity for full expression of opin- 

 ion. It is hoped that all working ecologists 

 will write to the undersigned, noting (1) 

 whether the proposed society is favored or dis- 

 favored and why, and (2) whether attendance 

 at the Columbus conference is to be expected. 

 Henry C. Cowles 



"Universitt or Chicago 



GREENE VARDIMAN BLACK 



To THE Editor of Science : Will you permit 

 me to call attention to the death of Dean 

 Greene Vardiman Black? He was a figure of 

 world-wide importance. Even before he was 

 called to the deanship of Northwestern Uni- 

 versity Dental School he had established an 

 international reputation as a man of science, 

 and I think it fair to say that no man in his 

 time — perhaps in any time — has done more to 

 advance his profession. 



He brought to his work a broad general and 

 sound scientific training. He had the natural 

 equipment of a man of science. It was his re- 

 search work which developed and practically 

 gave to the world the amalgam of to-day. He 

 was the inventor of one of the first cord driven, 

 foot power, dental engines. His scientific con- 

 tributions number nearly one thousand. 



