Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-11-02
SMITHSONIAN GIFT
FOR RESEARCH TO
PRESENT PROBLEM
100000 Left for Expert
ments With "Mother Stuff
of Universe"
QUALIFICATION TO AWAIT
EXACT TERMS OF WILL
Secretary of Institution Withholds
Comment Pending Official
Notification.
BY THOMAS r. HENRY.


What is the mother stuff of the uni
verse?
This difficult philosophical problem
may confront the Smithsonian Institu-
ton because of the will of William H.
Rollins of Boston, filed for probate this
week. bequeathing it 100000 for Tex
periments with the mother stuff of the
universe to find out how to handle its
manifestations for the benefit Of man"
DR.. Charles G. Abbot, secretary of
the Smithsonian, said he had not yet
received official notification of the gift
and could not comment until he knew
the exact terms Of Mr.. Rollins will. 1t
is the policy of the institution to ad-
minister such legacies so far as pos
Sible to meet the intention of the
testator. without subjecting the terms
to strained meanings.
Unless the intent is defined more
specifically in some other part Of the
will. 1t was pointed out at the Smith
sonian, the term mother stuff Of the
universe" probably would be interpreted
to mean the ultimate constituents OF
matter as now generally accepted by
physics and chemistry, since the path
backward to the first beginnings OF
things lies through q clearer under
standing of these.
Present Mystery.
Beyond the infinitely small protons
and electrons. which presumably make
up the material atoms, science enters
| realm of mathematical mysticism,
where there Is little possibility of GER
| tainty in the present state of knowl-
edge. 1t is not even known whether
| the electrons and protons are material
or not, since they lie so far below the
Threshold of the human senses and
are demonstrable only by mathematical
| formulate applied to the phenomena
| of nature. It is being held more and
more, it was pointed cut, that they are
not material, although all matter Is
made out of them, but merely inn1a-
| terial particles OF positive and negative
electricity
The strange bequest of Mr.. Rollins
may be so interpreted as to carry the
Smithsonian investigators along unex-
plored trails through these Infinitely
little particles, billions Of which would
be required to cover the point of q
pin, but each of which Is supposed to
be roughly like the solar system with
from l to 90 planets revolving around
a central sun" Much work to de-
| termine the nature of atomic systems
now is under way both at the Bureau
of Standards here and at university
| physical laboratories throughout the
country.
But during the past few years there
has been a great flood of mathematical
philosophy. incomprehensible to laymen
and to most scientists. which seeks to
60 even farther than these immaterial
particles CT electricity for "the mother
stuff of the universe" For they them
| selves must have a beginning out OF
something underlying all nature.
First matter and energy have been
eXperimentally determined to be Diff
ferent forms of the same thing-that
is, matter giving off energy. as by burn
ing, is giving off part of itself. The
old law of the conservation Of matter
holds within the finest limits detachable
to the human senses. The sun and
stars continually are giving OF energy
in the form of radiation and In the
process losing some of their masses.
Two years ago at the annual meeting
of the National Academy of Sciences
here Prof r. A. Milliken Of the Cali
fornia Institute of Technology presented
the mathematical hypothesis that some
where in outer space the energy Of
radiation was re-created into matter
again. stars expiring as energy and be-
ing reborn as matter over intellectually
great periods of time.
Then the various theories of the Ger.
man physicist Einstein. theoretically de-
StLOy thC iNollby VA tIlC ullIfCIcC Va
the human senses, implied that all the
ultimate realities known to man-space,
time. and energy-were really forms of
the same thing, existing as relative phe-
nomena OF structure of creation which
could not be comprehended since it
transcribed human senSory experience,
but which could be demonstrated math-
ematically. Since Einstein even more
radical pictures have been presented by
Tho u,Orld'c fOrouoncf fhoraofinfovae
Matter Called State Of Mind.
The whole may nave been summed up
by Sir Arthur Eddington, one of the
foremost living mathematical physicists.
at the meetings of the British Associa-
ton for the Advancement of Science
last year, in which matter was defined as
a state OF Mind, its existence depend
ing on the peculiar relation of the hui
man sensory system to the real structure
of the universe.
But these philosophical concepts are
not likely to enter the Smithsonian
studies If the bequest can be interpreted
as being intended for further investiga-
tons of the laws of atomic systems. A
few years hence, it was pointed out,
the practical conception of the mother
stuff of the universe" may be quite Diff
ferent than at present. since the prog
ress of science is to follow mathemati-
cal theory with supporting facts.
The probable procedure would be to
consider the problem as scientific rather
than philosophical. since the Smith
Sonian is a scientific institution
1T is gratifying" DR.. Abbot said, "to
learn that people are turning to the
Smithsonian with such requests. The
institution is in a position to produce
worthwhile results in the investigation
of scientific problem"
The Investigations involved probably
come under DR.. Abbot's own depart
ment. He has made notable contribu-
tions to the sum total of knowledge con-
corning the structure of the stars. their
evolutionary processes, and their rela-
tiOf1c RI life