Scientific Research and Invention 125 
men—more than any university could equal. Indus- 
try has realized that the continued development of 
modern life, with its comforts and conveniences, 
depends upon scientific research. Inventions due to 
research are now the chief breadwinners of our 
industrial system. 
Already more than three hundred substances indis- 
pensable to our life today are produced as by-prod- 
ucts of the distillation of coal. Chemists have found 
hundreds of new uses for the former waste of the 
farm, which used to be so hard to dispose of. One 
of the chief topics of discussion today wherever 
employers, workers, engineers, scientists, bankers or 
educators gather together is scientific research. 
At a recent meeting of the New York State Cham- 
ber of Commerce, Dr. Robert A. Millikan, one of 
the world’s foremost physicists, took occasion to 
quote the words of Pasteur: “In our century science 
is the soul of the prosperity of nations, and the liv- 
ing source of all progress. Undoubtedly the tiring 
discussions of politics seem to be our guide—empty 
appearances. What really leads us forward is a few 
scientific discoveries and their application.” 
Edison as a Forerunner 
The fiftieth anniversary of the work of Thomas 
A. Edison, in bringing forth the incandescent lamp, 
was celebrated during the summer and fall of 1929. 
As an inventor and organizer of inventive research, 
Edison is the symbol of the entrance of science into 
the industrial renaissance. His latest announcement