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

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Professor H. Cantril, .M ProfessorsyH. S. Taylor, C. E. Birchenall, G. Dougherty, Professor W. Feller, Department of Chemistry Department of Mathematics Professor Turkevitch, Department of Chemistry as the next man-more often if he has to deal with ofhcialdom. He is capable, clear, and happyg his science is systematic and imaginative, powerful for practical uses and delightful as an intellectual resource. He goes and tries things and abides honestly by his experimental results, which he codifies into lawsg he devises new ideas couraf geously, even outrageously, then he tests them experif mentally or uses them as language in expressing his knowledge. He dea.ls in knowledge of Nature, not witch' craft. His interest in art and politics and religion are as lively fand prejudicedj as those of his unscientific neighf bors. Though he tries to be extra critical and logical, he finds the effects of his scientiic training are mainly restricted to his own work, unless his science has given him heartfelt ideals-a love of accuracy, or a ruthless delight in logic, or a great faith in appeal to experiment. In his work, he is a happy man and a humble one. He enjoys using his curiosity and knowledge to pry into Nature. He is humble because he knows how little he knows. His combination of observing and extracting information with clever flexiblefminded thinking-extperif ment with theory-is science. The man who does this is a scientist. To him, the science already known and long since settled is, in a way, dead museumfstuff: the facts and ideas yet undiscovered, unformulated, are not yet Chairman, Department of Psychology -,...g,,

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NATURAL SCIENCES By Eric Malcolm Rodgers, M.A. Associate Professor of Physics Bending over his retort amid coils of wire with flashing sparks, the great scientist works on his mysterious theory . . . Gloomy bearded savant, heedless . . . shambles out to a belated meal . . . shattering explosion . . . This is the ustage scientist of the movies and cheap notion. We shall always have such artificial stage types, where there is a lack of understanding. Many of them are no longer acceptable. Two world wars have swept the ustage American from the European theater, replacing him by a thoughtful, important person. The stage Frenchman simply won't hold water any longer. But the stage scientist is still with us, an amusing joke for the audience, a nice job for the character actor, and a stricture on modern civilization. Can Prince-ton help to remove that slur? All over the civilized world we meet the same coils of wire and that same antique retort like a glass comma- automatic machines now turn them out 'by the hundred to maintain outworn tradition. Picturefmagazines wait till they catch a scientist with open mouth or with trailing beard, then print a picture with 'khuman interest. The contrast of this tradition with real. scientists is appalling. It :brings real scientists against prejudice and misunderf standing. Business heads dislike their own scientific experts, military distrust theirs, some educational heads regard them as queer and inferior, and the general public does not even recognize them or their work. Isn't this last an insulting lie? Surely the general public knows and respects science and scientists. No: What they think they know and claim to respect are sham shadows of their own imagination or myths of tradition-stage scientists and stage science. The real scientist is neither a gloomy dreamer nor an eilicient formulafmonger. He has 'his 'hair cut as of-ten Professor E. M. Rogers, Department of Physics Professor A. K. Parpart, Chairman, Department of Biology Professor A. G. Shenstone, Chairman, Department of Physics Chairman, D9Pf1flme'1f Uf Geology Professor H. H. Hess, Professors E. G. Butler, G. Fankhauser, Department of Biology

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Chalrman, Department of Chemistry Professor N. H. Furman, Professor A. W. Tucker, Chairman, Department of Mathema.tics science: the real science is the work now in progress on the frontiersof knowledge. Our Princeton scientists are happy explorers, feeling their way, settling new ground, enjoying a sense of conquest that is a sense of growing understanding. Where shall wisdom be found: and where is the place of understanding? Man knoweth not the price thereof . . . Job XXVIII We alLseek wisdom. We read the work of wise historians, consult wise humanists, study nature with wise scientists and we profit greatly as we thus 'build our own philosophy. Bu-t when we 'turn to text books and encyclopedias we are disappointed because we are wise enough to see that we are not gaining wisdom but only collecting information. The essential -difference between information fuseful but dullj and full knowledge or wisdom seems to be 'gunderf standing in the old sense that the Bible gave it. Humanf istis, historians, scientists, all educated men seek underf standing and delight- in it. So our happy scientists, who wants to share his interests with the next generation, writes and -teaches and welcomes students to join his club. Science specialists depend on him for information and knowledge-also for grades, though the good scientist can best write his own grade, pace the Deans. But these scientists are their own slavedrivers in Professors F. B. Van Houten, P. MacClintock, E. Dorf, Department of Geology Professor L. Spitzer, Jr., Chairman, Department of Astronomy