Abstract
IN a recent address on “Ultimate Values of Science” before the Commonwealth Club of San Francisco, Dr. J. C. Merriam, president of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, discussed the question whether, by reason of science or research, the world has been made a better place in which to live, or life has become more worth while. Referring first to the way in which better use is being made through science of natural resources, Dr. Merriam pointed out that though we have still a long way to go in learning to control the living world, the way has been marked out, and mankind may be expected to follow it. Moreover, organisation of society has made possible the transmission of knowledge from one generation to another, and science in particular has made possible the recording and continuous development of knowledge in a way which no one generation could achieve alone. The whole capacity for constructive work has been increased, and science is gradually giving us a new outlook over the universe, with ampler opportunity for appreciation of life and a new attitude towards its problems. The scientific point of view and the humanistic point of view require adjustment, if the full value of science, art, philosophy and religion is to be secured for mankind.
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The Ultimate Value of Science. Nature 136, 944 (1935). https://doi.org/10.1038/136944b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/136944b0