Record

RefNoRR/16/356
LevelItem
TitleReferee's report by Sydney John Hickson, on a paper 'A biometrical study of conjugation in paramaecium' by Raymond Pearl
DateApril 1906
DescriptionSectional Committee: Zoology

In answer Hickson thinks the paper should not be printed in Philosophical Transactions. It contains a record of long and skillful investigations but he feels that it is open to so much adverse criticism as regards it methods and conclusions, that he cannot recommend it for publication as making a distinct step in the advancement of natural knowledge. Discusses the author's adoption of a view which he believes is fundamentally erroneous; that the essential feature of conjugation is the interchange of nuclear material. Explains that he thinks it quite possible that during conjugation there is a process of equalisation which Pearl thinks is improbable. Pearl seems unacquainted with Hickson's paper in the 'Quarterly Journal of Microbial Science' and some other recent literature which has an important bearing on this point.

Even if Pearl has proved his point that equalisation does not occur after conjugation has set in, the work is unsatisfactory from other points of view. Namely that all the measurements were made of specimens that were killed and preserved. Does not consider that the author has in any sense proved the existence of a definite conjugation type. Cannot understand that the result has any bearing on current views regarding the theoretical relation of Protozoa to evolutionary problems.

[Published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, 1906].

Endorsed on verso as received April 1906.
Extent4p
FormatManuscript
PhysicalDescriptionStandardised form (type A)
Digital imagesView item on Science in the Making
AccessStatusOpen
RelatedMaterialDOI: 10.1098/rspb.1906.0024
RelatedRecordRR/16/354
RR/16/355
RR/16/357
AP/77/2
Fellows associated with this archive
CodePersonNameDates
NA1402Hickson; Sydney John (1859 - 1940)1859 - 1940
Add to My Items

    Collection highlights

    Browse the records of some of our collections, which cover all branches of science and date from the 12th century onwards. These include the published works of Fellows of the Royal Society, personal papers of eminent scientists, letters and manuscripts sent to the Society or presented at meetings, and administrative records documenting the Society's activities since our foundation in 1660.

    The Royal Society

    The Royal Society is a Fellowship of many of
    the world's most eminent scientists and is the
    oldest scientific academy in continuous existence.
    Registered charity number 207043

    Website design ©CalmView



    CONTACT US

    + 44 207 451 2500
    (Lines open Mon-Fri, 9:00-17:00. Excludes bank holidays)

    6-9 Carlton House Terrace, London SW1Y 5AG

    Email Us →

    SUBSCRIBE

    Subscribe to our newsletters to be updated with the
    latest news on innovation, events, articles and reports.

    Subscribe →

    © CalmView