Evening star., 1942-02-01
Science in the Postwar
World
Bp Frederic J. Husktn.


When nations are through fighting and
begin q reconstruction Of national and
international policies, as they must II
any semblance Of civilization is to en-
dure, probably the one great effort will
be to widen the field Of science. That
may seem contradictory, fer it is science
that has made possible the present conr
flict and brought about conditions every
where that not even the wisest Of men
could foresee few years ago.
The submarine, the airplane, the
bomber. long-range guns and all the
other inventions that help to spread
war and endanger civilian populations
are the major accomplishments OF
science. The word science" to most
people is, seemingly. synonymous with
the word invention" and invention"
means machines" Thus, the world has
gone along evaluating science in terms
of inventions, and these make world
wars possible. In the present instance
science has made a greater war, but not
q better war. although the cause for
which the United Nations are fighting
is Of the greatest importance to hu-
manlty.
Germany Is a good example Of how
science can be used almost exclusively
in the preparation for and in the execu-
of
pared for an all-out war and did 1t on
a scientific basis. The German govern
ment modified its physicists, chemists,
engineers, biologists and psychologists
and trained them for a campaign OF
aggression. In not one instance were
efforts made to benefit any people ex-
cept the Germans, for other than that
the whole design was one OF destruction.
And science was never intended to be q
destroyer, except as an avenue to con-
servation.
Never in the history Of the world has
science been so prevalent; never before
has it been so universally applied. Ma
chimes and machine-mad goods are
available in almost every land Even
in the remote corners of the earth there
Is scarcely a person whose life has not
been touched in some way by the re-
suits of science. The governments Of
all nations give wide encouragement to
scientific projects, and almost every in
dustry spends vast sums in carrying on
scientific experiments. Thousands OF
scientists are constantly bringing out
an ever-increasing array of labor saving
machinery, synthetic materials and other
things which contribute to the public
welfare.
Science, then, has had its largest de-
velopment in the material field. For
in the fields Of art, government. ethics
and religion, it is often difficult to prove
that any appreciable progress has been
made In fact, in the case of art, some
critics say that it has deteriorated, and,
while governments have made many ad-
vances in political science and service,
there is no united opinion that they
are more efficient than they were 100
years ago, and certainly the service is
no better in proportion to the cost.
International disputes are more difficult
to settle today than in any previous
period of world history. Opinions on
the progress of morals and religion vary,
depending upon the viewpoint of the
individual. Religious bodies have in
creased their memberships, and made
great strides in developing their ma
terial resources, but when the world
IS viewed as a whole, religious progress
is not apparent. There never has been
united, international effort, and scarce
ly national one, to foster the aims Of
Christianity. 1t is often claimed that
If Christians throughout the world were
to unite, lasting peace could be estab-
lshed- Peace being major aim Of
Christianity, it is paradoxical that this
has not been done.
Scientific development in the United
States. while taking on the world pat
tern Of machines and gadget-making, is
designed to better the condition of the
people. For example, the motor-driven
bus has added materially to the public
school system, the criminal is more cas-
lily apprehended as result of host Of
instruments, and machines for manu-
featuring have taken back-breaking la
Dor from the shoulders of individuals and
given them goods at price within their
incomes. Science not only has raised the
standard Of living in these and other
ways, but it has eradicated many dis
eases and made a healthier people. But,
reduced to its final analysis, science in
America spells material progress, and it
Is through this that the hope lies of
ending the present conflict.
The least understood man is the SCI
enlist. He begins with a concept, de-
velops that into an idea and ponders it
for days, weeks or even years. Today,
many scientists seeing that their mental
product has been used almost exclusively
as material development, and in so
many instances as weapon of death,
are laboring with plans to swing the tide
Of human conduct in another and better
direction. They say there is no Utopia
on the scientific horizon. But they do
say that society must undergo a reor-
ganization so as to save civilization, for
as things now stand what is considered
civilization has become self-destruction.
Scientists also say that one of the
first things to be undertaken In the re-
organization of society is to change the
pattern Of thinking. As an illustration,
they pose this query: Shall chosen lead
ers be the ones who make the most pas