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The Pragmatic and the Dogmatic Spirit in Physics

By Prof. J. Stark, President of the Physikalisch-Technischen Reichanstalt,
Berlin-Charlottenburg
THE aim of physical science is the investigation phenomena investigated. The mathematically
and formulation of the laws which govern the formulated theory is to physicists of the pragmatic
properties and processes observed with objects of spirit not an end in itself, but solely a method for
inanimate Nature. These inherent laws are inde- the purpose either of presenting the knowledge
pendent of human existence, action, and thought, gained from experience in a quantitative manner
and are the same all over the world. For this and as briefly and simply as possible, or of deriving
reason, the object of physical science is inter- mathematically for special cases results which
national. But the manner in which physical re- follow from general laws obtained from experi-
search is carried out and described depends on the ment.
spirit and character of the men of science engaged The physicist of the dogmatic school operates in
upon it, and this spirit and character differ indi- quite a different manner in the field of physics. He
vidually, as do men, nations and races. starts out from ideas that have arisen primarily in
When in what follows I speak of two principal his own brain, or from arbitrary definitions of
types of mentality in physics, my observations relationships between symbols to which a general
are founded on experience. I have inquired into and so also a physical significance can be ascribed.
the mental characteristics that have led the great By logical and mathematical operations com-
physicists of the past to their discoveries, and in bines them and so derives results in the form of
the course of the forty years of my scientific life mathematical formulre. He then seeks to give
I have observed very many more or less successful these a physical meaning by applying them to the
contemporary physicists and authors of theories results of experience. In so far as they are found
and of books, in an endeavour to discern the main- to be in accord with experience, he underlines this
spring of their work. On the basis of this wide agreement with the greatest of emphasis, and
experience I have come to recognize that there are makes it appear as though the results of experience
two main types of mental attitude among workers have been established and have gained scientific
in the field of physics. importance only by virtue of his theory. If there
The pragmatic spirit, from which have sprung are any experimental results available that are
the creations of successful discoverers both past not embraced by this theory or which stand in
and present, is directed towards reality ; its aim is contradiction to it, he doubts their validity or
to ascertain the laws governing already known considers them so unimportant that he does not
phenomena and to discover new phenomena and deign to mention them. Dogmatic physicists
bodies as yet unknown. Even before they tackle further present things as though their theories
a particular problem, physicists of this school of and formulre exhaustively covered the whole range
thought have acquired a certain feeling of the of phenomena treated by them ; they can see no
reality of the phenomena to be investigated, by further problems in this field, and thought and
giving careful attention to all previously ascer- inquiry are ice-bound in their formulre.
tained facts connected with their problem. On the The aim of the pragmatic spirit is reality, and
basis of this feeling they form a conception as to his way to this goal is appropriate and careful
what the body or process to be investigated may observation; the goal of the dogmatic spirit is
be like in reality. For them, however, such a con- the dogmatic formula, and his way is one of logical
ception is solely the means to the end of devising mathematical construction. For the pragmatic
experimental arrangements for the empirical spirit physical research is a process of evolution
formulation of their question to reality itself. If from what has been established to new experi-
the observations made with the apparatus chosen mental knowledge ; for him there is no such thing
do not confirm the initial conception, as very as classical physics or modern physics, but only
frequently happens, they reject it without hesita- physics. For the dogmatic spirit physics is a field
tion and seek stimulation from experience for a for his logical formalistic activity towards revolu-
new conception for the purpose of new experi- tion against existing principles and towards the
ments. Their final goal is always to establish accomplishment of general acceptance of his
reality, whether they gain new knowledge or are theories or, indeed, of his new 'world-picture'
led to obscure and still unexplored features of the (Weltbild). The pragmatic spirit advances

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continuously to new discoveries and new know- fashioned theories may perhaps prove to be
ledge ; the dogmatic spirit leads to the crippling of inadequate or erroneous when examined in the
experimental research, and to a literature which light of experience. On the contrary, almost before
is as effusive as it is unfruitful and tedious, they have been published, a flood of propaganda
intrinsically akin to the theological dogmatism of for them is started by articles in journals and
the Middle Ages, which was opposed to the intro- newspapers, by text-books and by lecture tours,
duction of pragmatic natural science. if possible right round the world. So far as I am
The researches of Lenard and of Rutherford aware, Rutherford never undertook lecture tours
present us with obvious recent examples of the to make known the results of his researches. Of
manner in which the pragmatic spirit works in Lenard I know that he detested speaking about
physics. By his experimental investigations on his researches before a wide public, and that he
cathode rays, Lenard paved the way for the only twice took part in the German Congress of
greatest discovery of the last fifty years, that of Natural Science (Naturforscherversammlung). On
the electron, and furthermore, in the photo-electric the other hand, older physicists will probably still
effect, he revealed careful measurements the remember with what pertinacity propaganda was
connexion between the electron and light. From carried on all over the world and before the widest
his intuitive sense of reality and by convincing public for Einstein's theories of relativity. Matters
experiments and measurements, Rutherford de- have not been quite so bad with the newer dog-
rived our knowledge of the radioactive transforma- matic theories which have been advertised under
tion of chemical atoms and of their nuclear such terms as quantum theories, quantum me-
structure, knowledge which could never have been chanics, and so on ; nevertheless, for the purpose
derived by dogmatic methods. The relativistic of propaganda on their behalf, innumerable
theories of Einstein, which are based on an lectures have been held throughout the world, and
arbitrary definition of space and time co-ordinates very many text-books have been written about
or their differentials, constitute an equally obvious them.
example of a product of the dogmatic spirit. In so far as the task of physics is the investiga-
Another example of this kind is the wave-mechan- tion of bodies and of laws concerning the reality
ical theory of Schrodinger. By an amazing feat of of Nature, only the pragmatic attitude of men of
physico-mathematical acrobatics he obtains as a science is qualified to solve them, and hence also
final result first a differential equation. He then alone entitled to do so. When the dogmatic spirit
asks what sort of physical significance the function does not confine itself to theology and sociology,
that occurs in his equation may have, and for this but also chooses physics as an arena for its intel-
he makes a suggestion, according to which the lectual gymnastics, one might tolerate this, but
electron is arbitrarily smeared in a large spatial only under the condition that physical research of
region round about the atom. In characteristic the pragmatic school of thought does not suffer in
fashion, however, other dogmatic physicists (Born, consequence. But for about three decades this
Jordan, Heisenberg, Sommerfeld) give to the condition has not been satisfied, at any rate not
Schrooinger function another dogmatic signifi- in Germany, where during this time the repre-
cance, contrary to fundamental laws of experience. sentatives of the dogmatic spirit have gained a
They make the electron dance round the atom in dominating influence. By their collective action
an irregular manner, and allow it to act externally and their connexion with earlier Ministries they
a.s though it were simultaneously present at every were able to acquire numerous chairs in physics,
point round about the atom with a charge corre- and above all in theoretical physics. In conse-
sponding to the statistical duration of its sojourn quence of this, and because of the lively propaganda
at each point. for modern dogmatic theories, academic youth was
There is still another important difference predominantly educated in the scientific ideal of
between the pragmatist and the dogmatist in the dogmatic spirit. Not men like Lenard and
physics, which has to do more with the characters Rutherford, but Einstein and his dogmatic
of these two types. The physicist of the pragmatic imitators were held up to them as models for
spirit does not conduct propaganda for the results scientific thought and work. I have taken the
of his research in order to gain authority and field against the dogmatic spirit in Germany
influence ; he finds his satisfaction in obtaining because I have been able to observe repeatedly
new knowledge and trusts that it will receive its crippling and damaging effect on the develop-
recognition from the expert as a representation of ment of physical research in this country. In this
reality, and that it will serve as a step towards conflict I have also directed my efforts against the
new advances. How different are the protagonists damaging influence of Jews in German science,
of the dogmatic spirit ! They do not first wait for because I regard them as the chief exponents and
at least five years to see whether their revolutionary propagandists of the dogmatic spirit.

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This reference brings me to the national aspects maintain that there are no Aryan men of science
of the mental outlook of men of science in research. who are actively engaged in the dogmatic spirit in
It can be adduced from the history of physics that the realm of science; nor do I maintain that Jews
the founders of research in pnysics, and the great cannot produce valuable experimental work carried
discoverers from Galileo and Newton to the out in the pragmatic spirit. I wish solely to make
physical pioneers of our own time, were almost a statement on the frequency of occurrence of the
exclusively Aryans, predominantly of the Nordic natural tendency to pragmatic or to dogmatic
race. From this we may conclude that the pre- ways of thinking. It must also be taken into con-
disposition towards pragmatic thinking occurs sideration that, by training and practice, Aryans
most frequently in men of the Nordic race. If we can become accustomed to the dogmatic and Jews
examine the originators, representatives and pro- to the pragmatic habits of thought. I acknowledge
pagandists of modern dogmatic theories, we find scientific achievement in new discoveries irre-
amongst them a preponderance of men of Jewish spective of the nationality of the discoverer, and
descent. If we remember, in addition, that Jews I combat the harmful influence of the dogmatic
played a decisive part in the foundation of theo- spirit in physics whenever I encounter it in my
logical dogmatism, and that the authors and scientific work, and regardless of whether the
propagandists of Marxian and communistic dogmas culprit is a Jew or not. Moreover, I have been
are for the most part Jews, we must establish and engaged in this fight not only since 1933, for as
recognize the fact that the natural inclination to long ago as the year 1922 I denounced in the
dogmatic thought appears with especial frequency strongest terms the formalism and oogmatism in
in people of Jewish origin. German physics in one of my publications entitled :
In establishing these facts, of course, I do not "The Present Crisis in German Physics".

Problems in the Oceanography of the North Atlantic

By C. OtD. Iselin, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Mass.
pROGRESS in our understanding of ocean relation to fluctuations in the circulation of the
circulation has generally been even slower water masses off the European coast.1 Not only
than in some of the other branches of oceanography, are such questions of considerable economic
in spite of the fact that in nearly every marine importance in some parts of the world, but also
problem, both biological and physical, the current if the answers were known, it would be much
system plays a basic part. easier to secure the necessary financial support to
At first the study of ocean currents was held develop fully the science of oceanography.
back by the lack of accurate and convenient For these reasons it is very encouraging that
instruments. In more recent times, the expense arrangements have been made during the past
of securing the observations has delayed the year for a. co-operative programme of broad scope.
accumulation of adequate subsurface data on the The programme is to be undertaken jointly by the
distribution of temperature and salinity. If this Bermuda Oceanographical Committee of the Royal
were known in sufficient detail, it would probably Society and by the Woods Hole Oceanographic
not be a difficult task to settle several of the main Institution. The Royal Society has obtained a
problems which now confront physical oceano- generous grant from the British Government for
graphers. the promotion of the scheme, and the Bermuda
In particular, physical oceanographers have Biological Station is being developed as a base for
been unable to supply the climatologists and the oceanographic work. The plan, which will
fisheries experts with the much-needed data on shortly be in actual operation, involves the co-
the variability of oceanic currents. Do ocean operation of the American oceanographers with
currents transport about the same amount of heat the now increased staff of the Bermuda Biological
year after year, and are they, therefore, unim- Station ; and the British grant, which covers a
portant from the point of view of long-range five-year period, also provides the Station with a
weather forecasting ? It is now known that much-needed research vessel.
changes in oceanic circulation have, on occasions, The programme which has been suggested and
affected the fisheries of Great Britain ; but it is on which work has already begun (June 1937) is
not yet known if fluctuations in the strength of essentially a continuation of modern oceanographic
the Gulf Stream off the American coast bear any development, but it is hoped that it will be

© 1938 Nature Publishing Group