ABSTRACT
The uniqueness of science in this respect should not be exaggerated. Any sort of work which rises a mechanical routine involves the solution of new problems as times and circumstances change; and in matured fields of science, extending the borders of the known can be done in a very straightforward and predictable fashion. But in science, the achievement and management of novelty do present problems which are nearly unique. A variety of suggestions have been offered by philosophers of science for the solution of these problems; but none of them have been able to stand up for very long against criticisms on the grounds of internal consistency and of agreement with accepted historical evidence. In Britain, the institutional structure for science and scholarship was weak indeed, but the tradition of independent amateur scholarship supplemented by a sprinkling of jobs, provided the base for excellent work through the century.
