Chapter XI

) by investigations regarding the organization of the egg and the analysis of chromosomes. Boveri, Conklin, Wilson, and others have shown that there are recognizable areas within the protoplasm of the egg that have a definite historical relationship to certain structures in process of development. This is the basis upon which rests the doctrine of pre-localization of tissue-forming substances within the protoplasm of the egg.

Anatomy of the Nervous System.--In another direction the progress of anatomical studies is very evident, that is, investigations of the nervous system and the sense-organs. The wonderfully complicated relations of nerve elements have been worked out by Ramon y Cajal. The studies of Hodge and others upon optical changes occurring within the cells of the nervous system owing to their functional activity have opened a great field for investigation. The studies of Strong, Herrick, and others upon the distribution of nerve-components in the nerves of the head and the investigations of Harrison on the growth and the regeneration of nerve-fibers give illustrations of current tendencies in biological investigation. The analysis of the central nervous system into segmental divisions on the basis of functional activity (Johnston) is still another illustration.

The Application of Biological Facts to the Benefit of Mankind.--The practical application of biology to the benefit of mankind is a striking feature of present-day tendencies. The activity set on foot by the researches of Pasteur, Koch, and others has created a department of technical biology of the greatest importance to the human race.

Under the general heading should be included the demonstration of the connection between insects and the propagation of yellow fever, malaria, and other disorders; and as an illustration of activity in 1907, we think of the commission recently appointed to investigate the terrible scourge of the sleeping-sickness which has been prevalent in Africa. Here also we would group studies of a pathological character on blood-immunity, toxin and antitoxin, also studies on the inoculation for the prevention of various diseases that affect animals and mankind. Very much benefit has already accrued from the practical application of biological researches of this nature, which, in reality, are still in their infancy.

We find the application of biological facts to agriculture in the form of soil-inoculation, in the tracing of the sources of nitrates in the soil, and studies of the insects injurious to vegetation; their further application to practical forestry, and in sanitary sciences. This kind of research is also applied to the study of food-supply for fishes, as in the case of Plankton studies.

The Establishment and Maintenance of Biological Laboratories.--The establishment of seaside biological observatories and various other stations for research have had a great influence on the development of biology. The most famous biological station is that founded at Naples (Fig. 123) in 1872 by Anton Dohrn, and it is a gratification to biologists to know that he still remains its director. This international station for research has stimulated, and is at present stimulating, the growth of biology by providing the best conditions for carrying on researches and by the distribution of material which has been put up at the sea-coast by the most skilled preservators. There are many stations modeled after that at Naples. The Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods Holl, Mass., is of especial prominence, and the recently reorganized Wistar Institute of Anatomy at Philadelphia is making a feature of the promotion of anatomical researches, especially those connected with the anatomy of the nervous system.

Laboratories similar to those at the seaside have been established on several fresh-water lakes. The studies carried on in those places of the complete biology of lakes, taking into account the entire surroundings of organisms, are very interesting and important.

[Illustration: Fig. 123.--The Biological Station at Naples.]

Under this general head should be mentioned stations under the control of the Carnegie Institution, the various scientific surveys under the Government, and the United States Fish Commission, which carries on investigations in the biology of fishes as well as observations that affect their use as articles of diet. The combined output of the various laboratories and stations of this nature is very considerable, and their influence upon the progress of biology is properly included under the head of present tendencies.

The organization of laboratories in our great universities and their product exercise a wide influence on the progress of biology, that science having within twenty-five years come to occupy a position of great importance among the subjects of general education.

Establishment and Maintenance of Technical Periodicals.--It is manifestly very important to provide means for the publication of results and, as needed, to have technical periodicals established and properly maintained. Their maintenance can not be effected on a purely commercial basis, and the result is that some of our best periodicals require financial assistance in order to exist at all. The subsidizing and support of these periodicals aid materially in the biological advance. A typical technical periodical is Schultze's famous _Archiv für Mikroscopische Anatomie_, founded in 1864 by Schultze and continued to the present time. Into its pages go the highest grade of investigations, and its continued existence has a salutary influence upon the progress of biology. The list of technical periodicals would be too long to name, but among others the _Morphologisches Jahrbuch_ of Gegenbaur, and Koelliker's _Zeitschrift für Wissenschaftliche Zoologie_ have had wide influence. In England the _Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science_ is devoted to morphological investigations, while physiology is provided for in other journals, as it is also in Germany and other countries. In the United States the _Journal of Morphology_, edited by C.O. Whitman, passed through seventeen volumes and was maintained on the highest plane of scholarship. The fine execution of the plates and the high grade of typographical work made this journal conspicuous. It represents in every way an enterprise of which Americans can be justly proud. The _American Journal of Anatomy_ is now filling the field left unoccupied by the cessation of the _Journal of Morphology_.[9] In the department of experimental work many journals have sprung up, as _Biometrica_, edited by Carl Pearson, Roux's _Archiv für Entwicklungsmechanik_, the _Journal of Experimental Zoology_ recently established in the United States, etc., etc.

Exploration of the Fossil Records.--Explorations of the fossil records have been recently carried out on a scale never before attempted, involving the expenditure of large sums, but bringing results of great importance. The American Museum of Natural History, in New York City, has carried on an extensive survey, which has enriched it with wonderful collections of fossil animals. Besides explorations of the fossil-bearing rocks of the Western States and Territories, operations in another locality of great importance are conducted in the Fayûm district of Egypt. The result of the studies of these fossil animals is to make us acquainted not only with the forms of ancient life, but with the actual line of ancestry of many living animals. The advances in this direction are most interesting and most important. This extensive investigation of the fossil records is one of the present tendencies in biology.

Conclusion.--In brief, the chief tendencies in current biological researches are mainly included under the following headings: Experimental studies in heredity, evolution, and animal behavior; more exact anatomical investigations, especially in cytology and neurology, the promotion and dissemination of knowledge through biological periodicals; the provision of better facilities in specially equipped laboratories, in the application of results to the benefit of mankind, and in the investigation of the fossil records.

The atmosphere of thought engendered by the progress of biology is beneficial in every way. While its progress has dealt the death-blow to many superstitions and changed materially views regarding the universe, it is gratifying to think that it has not been iconoclastic in its influence, but that it has substituted something better for that which was taken away. It has given a broader and more wholesome basis for religion and theories of ethics; it has taught greater respect for truth and morality. However beneficial this progress has been in the past, who can doubt that the mission of biology to the twentieth century will be more important than to the past, and that there will be embraced in its progress greater benefits than any we have yet known?

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 9: It is a source of gratification to biologists that--thanks to the Wistar Institute of Anatomy--the publication of the _Journal of Morphology_ is to be continued.]

READING LIST

The books and articles relating to the history of biology are numerous. Those designated below embrace some of the more readily accessible ones. While some attention has been given to selecting the best sources, no attempt has been made to give a comprehensive list.

I. GENERAL REFERENCES

Cuvier. Histoire des Sciences Naturelles. 5 vols., 1841-1845. Excellent. Written from examination of the original documents.

Carus. Geschichte der Zoologie, 1872. Also Histoire de la Zoologie, 1880. A work of scholarship. Contains excellent account of the Physiologus.

Sachs. History of Botany, 1890. Excellent. Articles in the _Botanical Gazette_ for 1895 supplement his account by giving the more recent development of botany.

White. A History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom, 2 vols., 1900. Good account of Vesalius and the overthrow of authority in science.

Whewell. History of the Inductive Sciences, vol. II, 1863. Lacks insight into the nature of biology and the steps in its progress. Mentioned because so generally known.

Williams. A History of Science, 5 vols., 1904. Finely illustrated. Contains many defects in the biological part as to the relative rank of the founders: Vesalius diminished, Paracelsus magnified, etc. Also, the Story of Nineteenth Century Science, 1900. Collected articles from _Harper's Magazine_. Good portraits. Uncritical on biological matters.

Thomson. The Science of Life, 1899. An excellent brief history of biology.

Foster. Lectures on the History of Physiology, 1901. Fascinatingly written. Notable for poise and correct estimates, based on the use of the original documents.

Geddes. A Synthetic Outline of the History of Biology. _Proc. Roy. Soc. Edinb._, 1885-1886. Good.

Richardson. Disciples of Æsculapius, 2 vols., 1901. Collected papers from _The Asclepiad_. Sympathetic accounts of Vesalius, Malpighi, J. Hunter, and others. Good illustrations.

Lankester. The History and Scope of Zoology, in The Advancement of Science, 1890. Good. Same article in Ency. Brit. under the title of Zoology.

Spencer. Principles of Biology, 2 vols., 1866.

Hertwig. The Growth of Biology in the Nineteenth Century, _Ann. Rept. Smithson. Inst._, 1900.

Buckle. History of Civilization, vol. I, second edition, 1870.

Macgilivray. Lives of Eminent Zoölogists from Aristotle to Linnæus.

Merz. A History of European Thought in the Nineteenth Century, vol. II, Scientific Thought, 1903.

Routledge. A Popular History of Science. General and uncritical as to biology.

Hoefer. Histoire de la Zoologie, 1873. Not very good.

Encyclopædia Britannica. Among the more excellent articles are: Biology by Huxley; Protoplasm by Geddes; History of Anatomy by Turner.

Chambers's Encyclopædia. New Edition. Discerning articles by Thomson on the Cell-theory, by Geddes on Biology, Evolution.

Nouvelle Biographie Générale. Good articles on the older writers. Often unreliable as to dates.

Haeckel. The historical chapters in The Evolution of Man, 1892, and Anthropogenie, fifth edition, 1903. Good.

Haeckel. The History of Creation, vol. I, 1884.

Hertwig. The General Survey of the History of Zoölogy in his Manual of Zoölogy, 1902. Brief but excellent.

Parker and Haswell. Text-book of Zoölogy, 1897. Historical chapter in vol. II.

Nicholson. Natural History, its Rise and Progress in Britain, 1886. Also Biology.

Pettigrew. Gallery of Medical Portraits, 5 vols. Contains many portraits and biographical sketches of men of general influence, as Bichat, Galen, Malpighi, etc.

Puschmann. Handbuch der Geschichte der Medizin, 3 vols. Good for topics in anatomy and physiology.

Baas. The History of Medicine, 1889.

Radl. Geschichte der Biologischen Theorien seit dem Ende des Siebzehnten Jahrhundert, 1905.

Janus. A Periodical devoted to the history of medicine and natural science, founded in 1896.

Zoologische Annalen. Founded by Max Braun in 1904 in the interests of the history of zoölogy.

Mitteilungen zur Geschichte der Medizin und Naturwissenschaften, founded 1901.

Surgeon General's Library. The Catalogue should be consulted for its many biographical references to biologists. The Library is especially rich in historical documents, as old anatomies, physiologies, zoölogies, etc.

Evolution. The bibliography of Evolution is given below under the chapters dealing with the evolution theory.

II. SPECIAL REFERENCES

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