Worcester Democrat and the ledger-enterprise. (Pocomoke City, Md.) 1921-1953, 1924-01-12
SCIENTIST CALLS
man, STAR ALIKE
Harvard Professor Says People
Are Made of Nothing I'm
usual or Exotic

usual Ut EXUllC
Cambridge Mass.-Harvard profess
sors have started an interesting expert
ment, the first symposium Of a series
in which speakers, after finishing their
addresses in Emerson hall, repeated
them to another audience in an adjOin.
ing hall. 'The Origin of Life" was
the subject of the symposium. The
speakers were Prof. Harlow Shapley,
director of the Harvard observatory;
Prof. Edward c. Jeffrey, an authority
on botany, and Prof. Kirsopp Lake,
whose field is ecclesiastical history.
In opening Professor Shapley said:
Representing the diverse points OF
view of astronomy, biology, theology,
we three are here tonight to discuss
this fundamental problem, The Origin
Of Life with each other. You may
listen in if you care to. We are not
here to pretend that we know what Is
the origin of life-far from that. We
are here to confess that we do not
know,
1--WE are three of a kind; all inter-
ested in the relation of human life to
the universe Of things, each looking
at the problem from his own structure
Of study and training, and all hopeless
ly futile in getting to a final answer
But by discussing the subject we may
learn just what the problem is, we
may clear away some of the supersti-
lions, prejudices and weedy thoughts
regarding the origin of life. We may
show to each other and to you who
listen in that subjects such as these
gain by synthetic treatment.
1.-THE rapid progress of the natural
sciences during the last generation, or
even during the last decade, has sup
piled abundant reasons for restating
our views Of the Importance of life in
the universe. There is one reason, per.
haps, why we should consider that life
now has more significance than was
formerly assigned to it. The analyses
of the chemical constitution of man,
beast, rock and star by the chemist,
the geophysicist and the astrophysicist
have brought to light the remarkable
throughout the whole universe.
Not Chemically Unusual.
Little as we human beings are, so
temporary in time and space, yet the
chemical elements Of which we are
composed are also the predominant ele-
ments in the crust of the earth and are
prominent If not predominant compo-
nents in the structure of the fiery and
gaseous stars. We are, chemically,
made Of nothing unusual or exotic, we
are part of the general scheme OF
things, and we could ask for no higher
Immortality than to be, as we seem to
be, made Of the same stuff as the eter-
nal stars. - The knowledge that the
same kind of electrons and protons
and chemical atoms make up living or
ganisms and the remote stars and
nebulae in space seems to enhance the
significance Of life.
But on the other hand, there are at
least five modern products of scientific
research which seem to me to dimin-
ish, almost to the vanishing point, the
significance of life in the universal
scheme. One Of those developments Is
due to researches in physiology, and
the others, as might be expected, are
deductions from the studies Of stars
and planets.
1.-THE duration of various recogniza-
BILE stellar maneuvers has been found
by recent research to be incOnceivably
greater than we previously thought.
We no longer think the earth is COM
parable in age with the stars. We see
the origin Of the earth and its subse-
quent development of life as one de-
tail in the recent history of the evolu-
ton of stars, and now better recognize
the brevity Of organic existence.
Sun Placed lndifferently.
Astronomers now find that the solar
system is not centrally situated with
respect to the stars, but that the sun is
indifferently placed, far from the CEN
ter of the galactic system. Not only is
is casually situated, but it is ordinary
In size and brightness. In the same
way that we had to give up the geocen-
trio idea of the universe, we now give
up the heliocentric, and with that sur
render the significance of life de-
creases.
"But from the astronomers point of
view the most potent factor in decreas-
ing our respect for the problem of life
is the prevalent Interpretation of the
origin of the planetary system. The
nebular hypothesis has been aban-
doned, and in giving that up we give
up the idea that the birth of planets
(that may later bear life) is the nor
NAL process in the evolution of the