Abstract
THIS book is addressed to the student about to specialise and to the general reader. It consists of twenty-five essays by eminent authorities in their own fields, and is divided into five parts leading from the origin of man to a consideration of his destiny. The contributions maintain a high scientific level and nevertheless are so written as to be easily understood by those not acquainted with technical terms. This is a somewhat remarkable achievement. But it may be asked whether the editor has not set himself'an impossible task. Though care has been exercised in arrangement, the effect cannot be other than to give the impression of a collection of scraps. The field is vast and those parts of it which are touched upon are briefly, sometimes very briefly, treated. There seems to be no reason why some problems are included and others omitted. The reader finds himself setting off on a number of journeys, and before he has got accustomed to the scenery he is off again in a new direction. Integration, which is presumably one of the objects of the book, is not achieved. Those to whom the book is addressed require a guiding thread, which perhaps could be given if the book was the work of one hand; but no one with a reputation to lose would attempt the task single-handed. A worthy attempt has been made to fill a gap which undoubtedly exists by the alternative method, but with a degree of success that is necessarily limited by the defects of that method.
Human Biology and Racial Welfare.
Prof.
Edmund V.
Cowdry
. Pp. xviii + 612. (London: H. K. Lewis and Co., Ltd., 1930.) 28s. net.
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Human Biology and Racial Welfare . Nature 126, 396 (1930). https://doi.org/10.1038/126396b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/126396b0