The Scientific Basis of National Progress, Including that of MoralityGore, George
Philosophy
The Scientific Basis of National Progress, Including that of Morality
Gore, George
Ethics; Progress; Science
also carried on, the Research laboratories will compete with educational
institutions, established and carried on by private enterprize, and place
them at a disadvantage, and thus discourage voluntary effort in the
diffusion of science; but by limiting the functions of the professors
entirely to pure research, there will be no competition with any private
interests, because no persons gain a livelihood entirely by means of such
occupation.
That the practice of teaching is however of very great use in preparing the
mind of a scientific man for research is quite certain, because it compels
him to study all parts of his subject, and whilst doing so, many questions
for investigation occur to his mind. {204} Many of our most eminent
discoverers have also been teachers. But teaching is not a necessary
condition of success in research, nor even a necessary preparation for it;
the examples of various able discoverers prove this. In some cases
discoverers have devoted themselves to teaching, only after having attained
high repute in research; in others they have not been teachers at all.
Original research itself usually suggests plenty of new subjects of
investigation, without the additional ones suggested by teaching.
In order that self improvement in a man of science might never stagnate,
there should exist a continuous and complete series of steps of preferment,
by which the merest beginners in scientific knowledge, might be enabled to
attain to the highest scientific position; and finally become wholly
occupied in that kind of labour by which their scientific faculties would
be developed to their fullest extent, but this last step is wanting. By the
proposed plan however a student would become a teacher; the teacher
develope into a professor; and a professor might employ for a period a
portion of his time in research, and thus become qualified for entire
devotion to original investigation and discovery.
After a scientific teacher has acquired a thorough knowledge of his
subjects, and a high position in his profession, his occupation becomes to
him a species of intellectual routine, in which he is continually going
through the same courses of lectures and examinations over and over again,
and his personal improvement stagnates. But if there was remuneration for
research, {205} or there existed some post or employment, to which those
who had acquired the ability to investigate might be appointed, there would
be an inducement to continued intellectual improvement, and a sphere in
which the most valuable faculties of scientific men might be developed for
national benefit to their fullest extent.
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