MEN GROW BIGGER

Taranaki Daily News, 4 September 1935, Page 7

MEN GROW BIGGER

ANTHROPOLOGISTS’ CONCLUSION, SLOWING NOW NOTICEABLE. Mankind has been increasing in size in the last century and as a result the men and women of to-day are two inches taller than those of 100 years ago, Dr. Edith Boyd, of the Minnesota University Department of Anatomy reported to anthropologists at one of the closing sessions of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, says the New York Times. There was an apparent slowing off, however, she said, and perhaps in the next hundred years human beings would recede to their average stature of 100 years ago. Dr. Boyd’s discussion was based on research by Dr. C. M. Jackson, of the Uni-; versity of Minnesota, Professor Bowles of Harvard, and by her own work in association with Dean R. E. Scammon of the medical science faculty at Minnesota. Research, she declared, had disclosed that the growth increase and decrease moved in cycles through succeeding generations. "Professor Bowles has demonstrated that the Harvard student on an average is two inches taller than his grandfather,” Dr. Boyd said. “That means a span of about 100 years.” "The same results have been found by investigation in women’s colleges. We find the same relative situation among army recruits and college students in England, Germany and Sweden. We find the same for Minnesota as demonstrated by Dr. Jackson. That growth has been true for about 100 years. Now there seems to be a slowing off. "The increases and decreases seem to run in cycles. We know, for instance that Roman and Scottish armour is too small for us of to-day.” Before the last meeting adjourned the scientists learned that the average man receiving public relief felt no inferiority complex and that his economic position bred radicalism. A report on attitudes by Dr. E. A. Rundquist of the Minneapolis public schools and R. S. Sletto, University of Minnesota sociologist, revealed attitudes of university students, high school seniors, and those on relief rolls to economic questions. Only 20 per cent, of the university students believed the Government should take over all large industries, but 40 per cent, of the high school seniors and 60 per cent, of the men on relief favoured such an act. The men on relief felt no inferiority and this suggested that the unemployed person did not consider himself to blame for inability to find work, the investigators said. While the typical university student was not radical, those who have been , subjected to severe economic pressure I, showed the same trend as the men on ’ relief, the investigators declared. Weather men, concluding a three-day \ convention, learned that “old-timers” reveal failing memories when they recall 'colder winters years ago. M. B. Millet, of the United States Airway Weather Service at St. Cloud, declared:— “There is no indication this locality is gradually becoming warmer or colder.” Dr. L. F. Miller, University of Minnesota psysicist, informed the meterologists that metropolitan residents got less sunshine than rural neighbours because of an industrial smoke pall over cities.