Ehrlich, von Humboldt, Siemens, and others A shared belief among German scientists in the 19th century, as Alexander von Humboldt phrased it, was that science in all its forms has to serve the betterment of human condition. This volume in The German Library, a companion to volume 82 (German Essays on Science in the 20th Century, also edited by Schirmacher), represents the sciences in a comprehensive way: Natural History, Humanities, Social Sciences, Law, Economy, and Technology. Wolfgang Schirmacher teaches at the New School for Social Research.