Misrepresentation in yesterday's New York Times of current trends in scientific education did a dis-service to the nation by creating false impressions, Paul M. Doty, associate professor of Chemistry, said last night.
The article by Benjamin Fine said that America's universities were emphasizing science at the expense of the liberal arts. Doty stated that Fine's figures represented the overall trends of the last decade, and not recent developments, because the number of science students has dropped almost one-third in the past few years. Fine failed to emphasize the tremendous demand for scientists at the present time, Doty declared.
In his article, Fine noted that universities were making large cuts in their liberal arts faculties. Doty said that Fine failed to take into account the large number of research projects that are being financed by government funds. When the universities are forced to drop men for economic reasons, they drop those whose salaries come from university funds, not from government sources.
Read more in News
Chemistry Professors Speak on Field Today