What is Science ?



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WHAT IS SCIENCE?


By Dr. A. G. Butlek.


Our Editor says that we make no claim to be a Scientific

Society, but that we strive not to be unscientific. I think there is a

misconception in the minds of many, and especially in those of

generally accepted scientific men, as to the real meaning of the term.


As all educated persons are well aware the word science

comes from the Latin scientia derived from the verb scio, and it

simply means knowledge: that being the case, every addition to

knowledge is a scientific attainment and any Society which is the

means of enlightenment by revealing new facts is in reality a

Scientific Society.


The man who names and describes new species has far less

claim to be called scientific than his brother who describes for the

first time the whole process of nidification of a rare bird ; indeed he

is little better than the reporter who accurately describes the dresses

at a wedding : he is a little better, because he has to look up and

read over all the descriptions in various languages of other species

in the same genus of which he does not possess named examples,

in order to be sure that the animal before him actually is new ; but,

when he knows the names of the different parts of the body, the

actual description can be made by anybody with an eye for form

and colour.


Now breeding birds is by no means the only method in which

our society has advanced science, although thereby interesting facts

have been revealed which previously were unknown even when sus¬

pected. Much light has been thrown upon the fertility of hybrids

by Mr. Bonhote and others, the eclipse plumages of birds have been

studied and described, as well as seasonal changes in the colouring

of the soft parts, with many other facts of far greater scientific

value than quibbles over unsatisfactory problems touching the

orthodox naming of a bird, or as to its claim to be accounted a

species or subspecies. These points never will be satisfactory settled

in the minds of all zoologists alike so long as the world lasts.


Formerly students of Zoology were content with the binomial

system and Motcicilla flava for instance was considered sufficient for

all the slightly varied local races of the Blue-headed Wagtail; but



