The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1906-08-31
HOSTILETO SCIENCE GROWTH
PROF. LANCASTER SPEAKS ON
OFFICIAL INDIFFERENCE.


Years. the Chief of Which is Radiunn
The Earth not Selfcoolina He
Says-Wants Millions Spent to Pre-
vent Disease.
At the seventy-ffth annual meetlng
of the British Association, at York,
writes the London correspondent CT
the New York Sun, Prof Lancaster In
his presidential address reviewed the
remarkable progress made in science
in the last quarter of century. II
would, he said, stand out foreTe" IN
human history as the period in Wnlch
new chemical elements of astounding
properties were revealed with extra
ordinary rapidity.
The discovery Of radio-activity ana
radium so far exceeded all others III
importance that it might be accounted
supreme. 1t was privilege to nave
lived when the discovery was maae
Dr. Lancaster summarized the Won
derful properties of radium as re-
vealed by the late Prof. Curl and oth-
ers. He dwelt particularly upon the
apparent facts that small quantity
of radium diffused through the eartn
will maintain its temperature against
all loss by radiation, while if the sun
consists of fraction of 1 per cent.
of radium this would make good the
heat annually lost by the sim.
These, he said. were tremendous
facts and upset all the calculations
of physicists concerning the duratloh
in the past and in the future OF the
suns heat and the earth's surface
and the estimates of geological time
based ON the assumption that the ma
terial of the earth is self cooling.
Within five years it had become EVIL
dent that the material was not self
cooling. On the contrary it was sell
heating, and away went the rrestric-
tions imposed by biologists and dol
ogists, who are now willing to glve'
not merely a thousand million years.
but as many more as are wanted.
Referring to psychology, DR.. Lank-
ester said the most important general
advance seemed to be the realization
that the mind of the human adult IL
a social product, and he paid a tri-
butte to the important work on thls
subject by Prof Baldwin OF Prince
ton University A review of twenty
1--WE years led him to the convection
that Darwin's conclusions as to the
origin of species were more nrmiy
established than ever despite the at
tempt to controvert them.
Dealing with human health the
speaker urged that more public en-
couragement should be given to Une
study of preventable diseases. Far
more money than is spenS now ought
to be expended in this study. Taxing
Great Britain alone It was necessary
to spend $1,000 of public money
where Ell is spent now. 1t wouid
be reasonable and wise to lay out
g1O,00O,O0O of the public revenue
yearly in investigating and combat
ing disease. For want of such poi
lev thousands were dying Of prevent
able disease.
Political administrators, as we'll as
permanent officials, were as unaware
today as LuGy were tWCAsJ AA'S 49,
ago OF the vital Importance OF SCI
ence. Whole departments in which
scientific knowledge was the one
thing needful were carried ON by Min
listers, secretaries AMI clerks VINO
were not only wholly ignorant OF SCI
ence but disliked it because In many
cases it was a condemnation OF their
official employment. Dr.. Lancaster
added:
The reason is to be found in the de-
fective education, both in the scnool
and the university, of our governing
class. as we'll as in q racial dislike OF
all classes to the establishment ana
support by public funds of posts
which the average man may not ex-
pect, by popular clamor or class PRIV
ilege, to gain for himself. The only
remedy is improved education for the
upper classes and a continued effort
to spread knowledge of the results
of science and love of 1t among All
members of the community.