. The Popular science monthly . r are now in general use wherever civilized man is living, * From Smith and Karpinski, The Hindu-Arabic Numerals. THE HIXDU-ARABIC NUMERALS 613 except in some countries of the far east, near where they had their origin. Such is the story of the numerals, and such is one phase of thedevelopment of the mind of man. In the childhood of the race we seehim counting upon his lips, his fingers, or his toes. Then he assignsto his ideas symbols, and finally with prodigious difficulty gives to thema value of place. But when at last this has been done, and when heunderstan
. The Popular science monthly . r are now in general use wherever civilized man is living, * From Smith and Karpinski, The Hindu-Arabic Numerals. THE HIXDU-ARABIC NUMERALS 613 except in some countries of the far east, near where they had their origin. Such is the story of the numerals, and such is one phase of thedevelopment of the mind of man. In the childhood of the race we seehim counting upon his lips, his fingers, or his toes. Then he assignsto his ideas symbols, and finally with prodigious difficulty gives to thema value of place. But when at last this has been done, and when heunderstands what he has done, his mind can travel upon the wings oflight. In a twinkling he is able to make calculations which in physicalterms express aeons of time or stupendous distance along the pathway ofthe infinite. And all this he can do with ten little symbols, which canbe written upon a shred of paper, or told off upon the fingers of Copyright by brown Hrottiern,Dr. Alexis Carrel,Rockefeller Institute, New York City ; recipient of the Nobel prize in medicine. THE PROGRESS OF SCIENCE 615 THE PROGRESS OF SCIENCE THE AWABB OF THE NOBELBELIZE IN MEBICINE The Nobel prize in medicine hasthis year been awarded to Dr. AlexisCarrel, of the Rockefeller Institute forMedical Research, New York is an honor not only to the dis-tinguished investigator, but also to theinstitution which has given him oppor-tunity and to his adopted country. Itmay not. be altogether satisfactory toour national pride that among someforty Nobel prizes conferred in thesciences only two have come to America,and that the men in both cases havebeen born abroad. Professor Michel-son, who received the prize in physics,is, however, a graduate of the U. Academy, and Dr. Carrel hasdone his work here. It is doubtless thecase that obtaining a Nobel prize is agame in which to win skill and chancemust be combined. We have native-born investigato
Size: 1347px × 1855px
Photo credit: © Reading Room 2020 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, booksubjectscience, booksubjecttechnology, booky
