The British Association

Abstract

THE leading article in NATURE of September 16 directs attention to a matter which must have exercised the thought of most men of science. There is certainly a widespread feeling that the British Association might be better occupied than in listening to papers on special subjects, often given before very small groups of people. Speaking of my own section, that of Physiology, it has become more and more difficult to get promises of communications of this kind, and discussions on questions of interest at the time have been arranged. I am inclined to think, however, that the addresses of presidents of sections are useful when they present general aspects of the science which would be inappropriate in papers published in the proceedings of learned societies or in journals and describing original discoveries. The discussions would undoubtedly be of more value if the practice of joint meetings of several sections were more extensively made use of than is the case at present, since it is becoming less and less possible for a worker in any one branch of science to acquaint himself with advances in other branches, although these may have a very material bearing on his own work. There can be no doubt that the more he knows of other sciences the better equipped is the worker in any particular branch. If the Association were able to remove some of the dangers of the excessive specialisation into which modern science seems to be drifting, it would be a function useful to men of science themselves. I am inclined to think that the reading of original papers, and probably also discussions on subjects of interest, to one section only might well be given up.