University of the Pacific School of Dentistry - Chips Yearbook (San Francisco, CA)

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strator to proceed with a discussion or an experiment without understanding every detail. The result is that he sees little or no connection between the subjects treated in the textbooks and the things which he works with in the laboratory. The first object of a course in the study of Chemistry is to develop a scientific habit of thought. Neither the studying of the bare theories nor the performance of random experiments can do this. The characteristic phenomena should be thoroughly understood and the relation between the theories and these phe- nomena recognized. The study of Chemistry should not be made to consist in storing a mass of disjointed facts to be used when called upon, but rather a series of interdependent ideas resulting as a matter of logical sequence. It is hardly necessary to emphasize the importance of lab- oratory work as a part of a course in the study of Chemistry. A good student never fails to question the demonstration on any point of doubt, and one experiment well done does far more good than being told about it half a dozen times. It is well to note that a badly performed experiment should be done over again at the earliest opportunity, and cleanliness be scrupulously ad- hered to. By adherence to the suggestions mentioned and by a consci- entious application to the subject, the study of Chemistry can be made to be one of the most interesting of studies rather than the bete noir which it appears to be to the majority of stu- dents. The great advantage in the knowledge of the subject is readily observed in the studies allied to Medicine and Dentistryg for example, one cannot obtain a thorough knowledge of Physi- ology without a knowledge of Chemistry. The physiology of digestion is purely and simply a study of the chemistry of the enzymes and of the protein molecule, etc. Materia Medica is. essentially Medical Chemistry. One can proceed along these lines of argument with other subjects too. Moreover, by the study of Chemistry the student familiarizes himself with things. he uses, and therefore cannot help but be beneficial in numerous. ways. So it is to be hoped that students in future will not be so ready to propound that ever-ready question, What good is Chemistry in the study of a profession ? The desire and Search for knowledge in themselves should be sufficient to avoid the presentation of any arguments. 20

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In order to obtain proof of this theory I have oxidized hydro- quinone by exactly the method used for tyrosine. Two' grams of hydroquinone suspended in 75 cc. of water were treated with 600 cc. of a mixture containing 32.2 grams of potassium permanganateg after standing for two days at room temperature decolorization of the permanganate was almost com- plete, the mixture was heated for half an hour in the water bath to obtain complete reduction. In this way I obtained 2.56 grams of oxalic acid, 2.52 grams of carbon dioxide and on dis- tilling after acidifying the solution a small amount of a white crystalline substance condensed in the receiver, which had the same properties as the substance obtained in a similar way on the oxidation of tyrosine, no volatile fatty acids could be detected in the distillate. THE STUDENT OF CHEMISTRY. H. Klein, Dept. of Chemistry. One of the greatest dangers the student of Chemistry should avoid is the accumulation of a large number of facts and com- mitting the mto memory. Perhaps, it should be added before proceeding further, that the above caution is chiefly intended for the beginners in the study. Usually, in a course of the sub- ject, such as is set forth in the I-Iigh Schools or Colleges, the mind is not allowed to dwell for any length of time upon any one thing, and so become thoroughly acquainted with it, but is hurried on and is soon bewildered in the effort to comprehend what has been discussed, what is presented and dreading what is yet to come. It is far better to dwell longer on a few subjects, provided these subjects are properly selected. A study, such as that of Chemistry, should not be swallowed piecemeal, rather masticated thoroughly and digested slowly and at leisure. The student generally learns a little about oxygen, a little about hydrogen, a little about nitrogen, etc., then a little about sodium, a little about calcium, etc., and particularly, when he comes across a Cto himj wonderful looking formul, immediately envelopes himself around it, and considers himself quite clever to be able to do so. In the study of Chemistry two mistakes are commonly made. The first is that of attempting to absorb the profoundest theories of the science before being prepared for them. They make but little impression upon the mind, and one only learns to repeat words about them, without having a true comprehension of their significance. It may be added here that one can readily observe how much more prepared is a student who has a knowledge of the subjects allied to Chemistry-Physics, for example, it being too obvious to mention how interdependent are the two subjects. The second mistake is that of allowing the lecturer or demon- 19

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AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE DENTISTRY VERSUS ORAL SEPSIS. jackson H. Smith, Dental Senior. Fear of open discussion implies feebleness of inward con- viction, and great sensitiveness to the expression of individual opinion is a mark of weakness. -Oliver Weimclell Holmes. CBeing an objection to an article on Oral Sepsis, deliv- ered at McGill University, Montreal, Canada, by Wm. Hunter, M. D., F. R. C. P., on October 3, 1910, and which was reproduced in the London Lancet, January, 1911.j In commencing these comments on behalf of American Conservative Dentistry the writer fully realizes that it would be far more satisfactory should the reader be able to study Dr. I-Iunter's article in its entiretyg but, owing to its length, the editor-in-chief of our estimable annual considers it would be a waste of good paper to reproduce it in full, and consequently we will have to content ourselves with the quotation of the more salient of these pointed remarks of this learned English physi- clan. Although there has been much discussion of Dr. Hunter's remarks among professional circles, and in dental journals and the daily press, there does not seem to have been brought out, in these discussions, appropriate judgments of the details of the doctor's criticismsg and no moral has been drawn for the good of dental practitioners in general and students of dentistry in par- ticular. Discussion, without reason and result, is merely a waste of time and energy. Dr. I-Iunter's article, as a whole, no doubt has great value as a contribution to the cause of oral hygiene, but there are many objectionable featuresg which, if allowed to go unrepudiated and unassailed, would stand as truth, and would, as a consequence, be harmful, to a degree, to American Con- servative Dentistry--that genuine and highly meritorious article. To quote Dr. Hunter in part: The title 'Oral Sepsis' was first introduced into medical literature in a paper entitled, 'Oral Sepsis as a Cause of Dis- ease.' My object in seeking for a special name, and after con- sideration in creating this one, was to emphasize the great fact that it is not the absence of teeth, but the presence of sepsis, that it is not dental defects, but septic effects, that it is not de- fective mastication, but the effective sepsis associated with such dental defects or often present in conditions of gingivitis apart from such defects, that are responsible for the ill health asso- ciated with 'bad' mouths. The subject of 'oral sepsis,' as I designated and defined it- namely, the septic lesions of streptococcal and staphloeoceal infection found in the mouth-belongs to no one department of medicine or surgery. It is common ground on which the gen- - 21