612 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XI. No. 277. 



atomistics may be useful ; and a middle 

 field when the usefulness of atomistics is 

 doubtful, and to this last field only does 

 Boltzmann's contention apply that both 

 methods should be developed together. 



Whether or no we may agree with Boltz- 

 mann as to the atomistic basis of the calcu- 

 lus, or the propriety of Volkmann's classi- 

 fication, we shall be inclined to hold his main 

 contention as sound and conservative, albeit 

 on utilitarian grounds. Both the language 

 of mathematics, the medium of expression 

 of the phenomenologist, and that of the 

 atomisticist are but methods, after all, hu- 

 man instruments, ingeniously devised and 

 beautifully developed, but merely instru- 

 ments. 



Whether we shall obtain a theory for 

 observed phenomena which shall be as com- 

 prehensive as the atomic hypotheses with- 

 out its adherent drawbacks, as tiexible, as 

 labor saving, as suggestive as the calculust 

 without its complexity in certain desired ap- 

 plications, by the absorption of one method 

 by the other, it is not possible to say as yet. 

 Quite possibly the ideal theory is to come 

 from an entirely different direction. But 

 for the present we must use those instru- 

 ments which are at hand, and as long as 

 they prove useful each in itself is worth the 

 highest development we can give it. The 

 idea expressed by one of the previous 

 speakers this evening, that the coming gen- 

 eration will shake off the fetters of ' mechan- 

 ism ' and concern itself with ' parameters ' 

 may be true, but it seems to me a rather 

 bold prophecy. More likely is it that notions 

 of the 'atoms' and 'parameters' will develop 

 side by side, the distinguishing feature of 

 their study being a clearer view, a realizing 

 sense of their exact relationship to phenom- 

 ena. And with this it seems fair to assume 

 will come those new principles which Ost- 

 wald has prophesied to account for phenom- 

 ena, where the ' energistics ' has failed and 

 whose form it is futile to predicate at present. 



To this end the discussion was probably 

 necessary and should prove most useful. 

 It is to be regretted that the time allotted 

 me will not sufi&ce to call to your attention 

 the views of other thinkers on this most 

 interesting subject. I trust that what I 

 have been able to bring before you will at 

 least indicate the status and importance of 

 the subject. 



Feank K. Cameron. 



ON ARTIFICIAL PARTHENOGENESIS IN SEA 

 URCHINS. 



In the last October number of the Amer- 

 ican Journal of Physiology I published a pre- 

 liminary note on the artificial production of 

 larvse from the unfertilized eggs of the sea 

 urchin. I mentioned that unfertilized eggs 

 were able to develop into normal plutei 

 after having been in a solution of equal 

 parts of a 20/8 n MgCl, solution and sea 

 water for about two hours. The control 

 experiments by which the possibility of a 

 fertilization of these eggs through sperma- 

 tozoa had been excluded were briefly men- 

 tioned. In the April number of the same 

 journal a full description of my experi- 

 ments was published which I believe puts an 

 end to any doubt concerning the possibility 

 of an error. Nevertheless I decided to repeat 

 these same experiments with the additional 

 precaution of using sterilized sea water. 

 Through the kindness of the board of trus- 

 tees of the Elizabeth Thompson Fund I 

 was enabled to make further experiments 

 on artificial parthenogenesis at the Pacific 

 Coast. These experiments have led to a 

 number of new results which will be pub- 

 lished in the American Journal of Physiology. 

 Here I will confine myself to a description 

 of the precautions which were taken in 

 these experiments to exclude the possibility 

 of a fertilization of the eggs through sper- 

 matozoa. 



The sea water used for these experiments 

 was heated the day before, very slowly, to 



