Chemistry Reference
In-Depth Information
you retained my interest in science and have done what I could to spread
a knowledge of scientific achievements among the reading public.
11
In New York, Slosson built a reputation as one of the premier science
popularizers, combining a reverence for technical accuracy with literary
flourishes. He regarded dramatization as essential in attracting readers,
and so he immediately began 'hunting' for writers who could 'sense the
dramatic elements' in basic scientific principles. “Dehydrated potatoes
are convenient for conveyance but they have to be soaked up before they
are palatable,” he wrote (Slosson 1922, p. 482).
Slosson's interests and expertise lay more in the creative than mana-
gerial side of the news business. His first employees were a managing
editor and a part-time news writer. When the managing editor quit, Slos-
son took the title of Director, promoted the part-time writer to full-time
manager, and returned to making money by writing books and articles
and delivering lectures around the country.
12
That first writer hired by Slosson in 1921, Watson Davis (1896-
1967), effectively ran the organization for the next 45 years. A native of
Washington, D.C., Davis had earned a civil engineering degree at George
Washington University and worked on the research staff at the National
Bureau of Standards from 1917-21. He also began contributing science
articles to a local newspaper. Although his literary skills paled in com-
parison to Slosson's, Davis had the instincts of a journalist and an engi-
neer's ability to organize tasks. He could ferret out news and glean the
essence from dull research reports, and proved to be a skilled manager.
When Slosson died in October 1929, he was not replaced for over
three and one-half years, even though Davis was the logical successor.
The struggle over that appointment emphasized differences in how scien-
tists and journalists were still perceiving popularization. To scientists, the
best popularizer was always another scientist; no journalist or other pro-
11
E.E. Slosson to Thomas T. Coke, February 7, 1921; SIA RU7091, Box 7, Folder 1.
Coke had taken a degree in chemistry from Cornell University but had decided to
shift careers and was then studying law at Yale University.
12
Slosson had originally been hired as 'Editor' of Science Service. He delivered hun-
dreds of paid lectures every year. Income from those lectures was essential to Science
Service. As a result, Slosson spent considerable time traveling and appears to have
left the management of day-to-day operations (and therefore most news decisions) to
Watson Davis.
