256 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. IV. No. 87. 



praiseworthy and its influence has been far 

 reaching. 



This scientific education notably differed 

 from the old classical education in two im- 

 portant respects : first, the principles of 

 science were regarded as principles of truth 

 whose study was ennobling because it at- 

 tempted to solve the mystery of the uni- 

 verse; and second, the laws of the forces 

 of nature were recognized as important to 

 be understood in order to advance the pros- 

 perity and happiness of man. The former 

 point of view led to the introduction of ex- 

 perimental work, it being recognized that 

 the truth of nature's laws could be verified 

 by experience alone; the latter point of 

 view led to the application of these laws in 

 industrial and technical experimentation. 

 Gradually the latter tendency became far 

 stronger than the former and thus the sci- 

 entific school developed into the engineer- 

 ing college. 



The very great value of laboratory ex- 

 periments, and of all the so-called practical 

 work of the engineering school of to-day, 

 is granted by all. Principles and laws 

 which otherwise may be but indistinct 

 mental propositions are by experimenta- 

 tion rendered realities of nature. The 

 student thus discovers and sees the laws 

 of mechanics, and is inspired with the true 

 scientific spirit of investigation. It should 

 not, however, be forgotten that if such 

 practical work be carried beyond the ex- 

 tent necessary to illustrate principles it 

 may become a source of danger. The stu- 

 dent of average ability may pass a pleasant 

 hour in using apparatus to perform experi- 

 ments which have been carefully laid out 

 for him, and yet gain therefrom little men- 

 tal advantage. Especially is this true when 

 the work assumes the form of manual 

 training, which, however, useful in itself, 

 is properly considered by many as of too 

 little value to occupj^ a place in the curricu- 

 lum of an engineering college. 



The tendency toward the multiplication 

 of engineering courses of study has been a 

 strong one, especially on the part of the 

 public. This has resulted in a specializa- 

 tion that, as a rule, has not been of the high- 

 est advantage to students. In some institu- 

 tions this has gone so far that the student 

 of civil engineering learns nothing of boilers 

 and machines, while the student of mechani- 

 cal engineering learns nothing of surveying 

 or bridges. The graduate is thus too often 

 apt to lack that broad foundation upon 

 which alone he can hope to build a success- 

 ful career. 



The development of the scientific school 

 into the engineering college has been char- 

 acterized throughout by one element of the 

 happiest nature, that of hard work and 

 thoroughness of study. The numerous 

 topics to be covered in a limited time, their 

 close interrelation, and the utilitarian point 

 of view, have required many hours per 

 week and earnest work by each student in 

 preparation for each exercise. The disci- 

 pline of hard and thorough work is one whose 

 influence can be scarcely overestimated as 

 a training for the duties of life, and in every 

 university it is found that the activity and 

 earnestness of the neighboring students is a 

 source of constant stimulus to those of other 

 departments. Thus scientific and engineer- 

 ing education has tended to elevate the 

 standard and improve the methods of all 

 educational work. 



The length of the course of study in engi- 

 neering colleges has generally been four 

 years, and whatever tendencies have ex- 

 isted towards a five-years' course have now 

 for the most part disappeared. With higher 

 requirements for admission, particularly in 

 English and in modern languages, a re- 

 duction of the length of the course to three 

 years may possibly be ventured in the future, 

 particularly if the long summer vacation be 

 utilized for some of the practical work, as in- 

 deed is now the case in several institutions. 



I 



