Princeton University - Bric A Brac Yearbook (Princeton, NJ)

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SCIENCES By Arthur Kemble Parpart. Ph.D., George M. Moffet Professor of Biology, Chairnniu of Departvient of Biology Two of the most prized of the human vakies are truth and understanding. These are what the scien- tist is seeking when he endeavors to formulate the fundamental laws that underlie natural phenomena, whether these be the movement of celestial bodies in space, of the earth ' s crust, of molecules in the cells of an organism, or of protons and electrons in an atom. The theories that knit together various fundamental laws are the best approximations that a scientist can make at the moment, whether he deals with the concept of an expanding universe or evolu- tion of animal life. The base on which the funda- mental laws and theories promulgated by the scien- tist rest is the measurements which he makes in the course of experimentation or observations upon natural phenomena. This process is usually desig- nated as the scientific method. Professors E. G. Butler, W. W. Swingle, and E. H. Harvey, Biology Teaching at all levels in the sciences has as its primary aim an understanding of all the aspects of Professor A. K. Parpart. Chairman oj Biology Department Professor H. H. Hess, Chair in an of Geology Department Professor A. G. Shenstone. Chairman of Physics Department this scientific method. Each of the departments within this broad designation of Natural Sciences has its distinctive program of demonstrating this method. In the Biology Department the plan has

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THE FACULTY From time immemorial Princeton lias been a stronghold of the liberal arts and sciences, a fortress of the all-around, liberally-educated man. With the exceptions of engmeermg and architecture, little emphasis has ever been placed on pure vocational training. On the basis that the only true education is self-education, Princeton has endeavored to in- duce its students to find out for themselves — to carry their educations as far as their own inclina- tions and abilities will take them . . . Princeton ' s plan of study is the result of continuous experi- mentation. It has taken the role of the pioneer with such radical innovations as the preceptorial method of instruction and the independent program of study for upperclassmen ... In an effort to more ade- quately portray Princeton ' s liberal arts system, we have this year divided the faculty section into the four divisional programs of study, as interpreted by four well-known professors in those divisions. They are individual interpretations and will, we hope, add an interesting and human insight into that vague anomaly known as a Princeton education.

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fROFESbOR N H I ' URMAN. Chairman of Cheiiinti) Depart iie»t Professor L. Spitzer, Jr.. Chairman of Astronomy Department pROiLSSOR h Artin, . I Professor S. Lefschetz, Chairman of Mathematics Department three stages. During the fall semester, the Junior students hear a series of lectures by the faculty members dealing with the specific problem under investigation by that professor. The lecture defines the problem and research, explains the experimental technique, and presents the results. In the spring semester, the departmental student writes a mono- graph based upon the literature of a pertinent bio- logical topic. The senior thesis may be the customary library research project or it can be in the form of the findings of a laboratory research experiment. These experiments are often done in conjunction with the faculty. Within the Chemistry Department the plan of study is essentially the same as that of the Biology Department. The Junior Departmental lectures, however, are designed to present interest- ing and important advanced chemical concepts drawn from faculty research which is progressing along many diverse paths. The department also attempts to instill the scientific method in the elementary student in its underclass courses by means of the highly successful lecture-experiment method. In Astronomy, Mathematics, and Physics, the plan is altered because of the highly theoretical and tech- nical nature of the subjects. The primary function of the Astronomy Department is graduate instruction and research. An interesting feature of some of the research is that it is prepared with the observations secured with the great California telescopes which the faculty members and their graduate students enjoy by continuing arrangement. The small but Associate Professors C. E. Bricker, J. Turkevich, H. N. Alyea, Professor E. S. Wallis. Chemistry