ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 3115, 11 January 1911, Page 5

ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE.

THE AUSTRALASIAN ASSOCIATION.

[United press association-copyright.]

SYDNEY, Jan. 10

There was a brilliant gathering at the University last night to hear Professor Masson deliver his presidential address. Lord Chelmsford presided. Professor Masson exhaustively reviewed the progress of chemical science. Ho made congratulatory references to the work of Australian students, particularly Professors Rutherford and Bragg. He warned Australian universities against tendencies to devote attention solely to utilitarian objects. MUELLER MEMORIAL MEDAL.

The Science Congress awarded the Mueller memorial medal to Air Etheridge, curator at Sydney Museum, m recognition of his services to science. RECENT ADVANCES IN PHYSICS.

Professor La by, of New Zealand, delivered the presidential address of the mathematics, physics, and astronomy section on the subject of recent advances in physics. Professor Laby paid a high tribute to Professor Bragg. He declared that it was interesting to find that physicists trained -in Australian universities are advancing science in all parts of the world. He enumerated a list- of those prominent in recent discoveries. Dealing with the antiquity of the earth as measured by Professor Strutt's helium theory, he said: “AYe may safely conclude that the antiquity of the earth is at least, three million years without doing violence to geologists’ theories.” The second part of the paper dealt with Einstein’s newprinciple of relativity of bodies. MUSIC AND EDUCATION. Professor Sugden, of Alelbourne, in an interesting paper on the importance of music as a means of education, said that Australia would never become a musical country until there was a general diffusion of musical knowledge. ■ .