Show The Objectives IThe Of Our Ou Schools Schools- The following article is first In Ina Ina Ina a series that will be published from time to time in answer to the question What ARE the Objectives Objectives Objectives tives of Our Schools Andrew P. P Anderson of the Delta High School faculty writes this time to tell what are the objectives of Science which he teaches In the Progress November 28 Thomas A. A wrote on the Objectives of or Mathematics He began with the statement Today the biggest problem facing you is the business of living To live successfully successfully successfully suc suc- you must meet and answer answer answer ans ans- many challenging problems He then very ably proceeded to show how a knowledge of mathematics mathematics mathematics math math- may aid in solving these problems and serve as an aid to successful living It is my purpose to show how a knowledge of science as taught in our schools has helped to solve many of these problems and may render even greater service in the future Life is based upon the tripod of Nature Nurture and Culture Nature Nature Nature Na Na- ture is what we begin with at birth It is what we have inherited from our parents Nurture is what is added added added ad ad- ded by parental care and guidance Culture Iture is what results from reaction reaction reaction tion to family church and community community com com- influences Life LiCe is a constant constant con con- stant struggle and whether we go up or down in the social jostling will be determined by the strength in the legs of the Ute tripod upon which we grow I All animals inherit the physical characteristics of their parents But human beings may in addition to this inherit the past This is done through education It follows then that the most important objectives of all brances of learning is to preserve preserve preserve pre pre- serve the experiences and attainments attainments attainments attain attain- ments of the past so each succeeding succeeding succeeding succeed succeed- ing generation may have a a. higher base upon which to stand in order to reach greater heights of civil civil- We must then recognize the importance importance importance im im- im- im of the human mind in giving man his ascending over the rest of the world Most of this has come through scientific principles scientific methods and a scientific attitude We cannot separate science science science ence and mathematics because most advanced scientific thinking is done through mathematical equations and formulas Carlyle said The greatest civil civil- izer the world has ever known was the invention of gunpowder It shifted importance from brawn to brain A government which does not recognize this importance soon lags behind When the great scientist LavoIsIer Lavoisier Lavoisier Lavo Lavo- was caught in the French Revolution Revolution Revolution Rev Rev- and condemned to be executed executed executed ex ex- one of his friends pleaded with the revolutionists for his life on the grounds that he was a great scientist The Republic has no use for scientists was the cynical re reply reply reply re- re ply and one of the worlds world's greatest greatest greatest great great- est scientists was put to death We can read the depressing effect of such an attitude in French history since that time Through science the world has been opened up to us and given greater bounds through both seeing seeing seeing see see- ing and hearing Seeing involves both physics and chemistry Each eye has a lens just as an ordinary camera has and at the back of the eye a light- light sensitive screen upon which the Ute lens ens forms images of everything upon which we look The light- light sensitive screen responds chemically chemical chemical- ly and to this extent resembles the photographic plate late But in addition addition addition ad ad- each element of the screen is connected by transmission lines to the back part of the brain The signals which travel along these lines the fibers of the optic nerve are electrical More they must be described as electro chem ical But these remarkable livIn living cameras have their limitations Science has extended their limits by means of the and the telescope Mans Man's most powerful eye is described in Life December 8 1947 page 33 After nineteen years of preparation science i is about to open up another great unknown to us s Science e has has ar already ady magni- magni lied the 01 or Benzene Denzene two hundred million times and photographed photographed photographed photo photo- graphed it And now for a look at what science science science ence has done to extend the bounds of life through aids to hear hear- ing Many of you will remember Nathaniel Nathaniel Nathaniel Na Na- thaniel Baldwin who used to be behead behead behead head of the Physics Department at atthe atthe the Ute B. B Y U. U because he was born in Fillmore and grew up there Just before World War One broke out I in Europe in 1914 I rode from Provo to Salt Lake with him on the train He told me of an idea he was working whereby the train whistle would be replaced by the human voice for giving signals At that time he could talk into it and be herd a mile away with an ordinary ordinary ordinary ord ord- inary tone of voice He said he had to get to the point where it could be heard five miles away before before before be be- fore the railroad company would accept it It was but a short time after aCter that when I saw the following following following follow follow- ing headline in a daily dally paper heading heading heading head head- ing an eight inch column Utahn s Invention Wins World-Wide World Recognition Recognition in War The following is the first part of the article While Utah's Utah famous gun maker mak mak- er has been turning out war weapons weapons weapons ons for the nation a Salt Lake man has been gradually gaining international international international inter inter- national fame with an equally important important important im im- im- im invention Members of a distinguished eastern party stopped over in Salt Lake today to conduct further business deals with Nathaniel Nathaniel Nathaniel Na Na- thaniel Baldwin maker of the famous telephone which i has not only been adopted by he the United States government for wireless use but by England France and other foreign nations Col John Firth an English officer and Walter J. J Schmidt one of oC New Yorks York's most prominent brokers consulted with Mr Baldwin at the Hotel Utah Wednesday in regard to fresh contracts contracts contracts con con- tracts with the now famous Utah inventor who lives in the foothills of ot Cottonwood Canyon It could no not be be ascertained the exact nature of the contract but it became clear that the modest Utahn is even better better better bet bet- ter known in the big world outside outside outside out out- side of this valley for his invention than in his home city Little did Baldwin realize at the time I talked to him that what he was working on would be the means of our enjoying the radio and the public address systems Likewise when Michael Faraday was toying with an electric motor that he had constructed and would never amount to any more than a toy little did he realize that he was pion pioneering ering the way to the construction of an electric raz raz- or When James Watt demonstrated ed his steam stearn engine in Edinburgh in 1765 he could not visualize a Century Limited flashing thru the night The future of the steam stearn engine he felt lay in pumping dumping water out of the mines Thomas Edison could not see the future of his phonograph Its greatest usefulness usefulness usefulness use use- he felt would be as a sort of adjunct to the undertaking busi- busi nes nes- nes in recording the last words of prominent people Theodore Roosevelt said Get Ge prepared for things to happen and then let them happen Changing conditions create new demands People with scientific training can readily make adjustment to changing changing chang chang- ing conditions One of the objectives of science teaching in the schools is to give the boys and girls a. a scientific background background background back back- ground that they may have that tha feeling of security and a readiness for anything that might happen Lightning primitive manNow man Now modern man stands in awe a at atomic power But fear is as unreasonable unreasonable unreasonable un un- un- un reasonable in one case as in the other As we now think of lightning lightning lightning light light- ning in terms of th the many services we get from electricity so also we should think of atomic power in terms of its possibilities in serving us when a slow regulated discharge discharge discharge dis dis- dis- dis charge of energy can be obtained from it We may use it to blast enemy cities in war or we may mayuse mayuse mayuse use It to give the human race a I ne new concept of peace plenty and leisure The atom offers an enormous range of choice One of the objectives objectives objectives tives in science teaching should be bethe bethe bethe the formation of ideals such as asto asto asto to result in the right choice |