Properties of a silica-reinforced polymer
for dental restorations
R . L . Bowen * D .D .S ., Washington, D .C .
T h e incorporation of vinylsilane-treated
silica powder into an organic polymer
reinforced the material. This reinforce­
ment gave a number of properties re­
sembling more those of hard tooth tissues
than those obtained with unreinforced
dental resin. T h e same resin filled with
silica not having the vinylsilane surface
treatment had inferior properties after
equivalent immersion in water.
A n esthetic and permanent restorative
material that could be placed directly
into the cavities prepared in anterior
teeth would be an important contribution
to dental practice and public well-being.
Such a material, which would have less
solubility, sensitivity to desiccation, and
brittleness than the silicate cements,1,2
and have greater dimensional stability
than do the methyl methacrylate direct
filling resins,3’ 4 has been in demand for
many years. T h e present lack of a mate­
rial complying with these requirements is
a problem worthy of extensive investiga­
tion.
T h e tests reported here were under­
taken to determine whether the desired
properties could be obtained with a re­
inforced organic polymer. In industry,
plastics are commonly reinforced with
fibers, particles, or a combination of
these. T h e term “ reinforcement” usually
is reserved for instances where the physi­
cal properties are improved; the term
“ filler” often implies no improvement of
physical or chemical properties. Particles,
rather than fibers, were selected for use
in the material described iiere.
Irregular shaped particles of vitreous
silica (General Electric C o .’s Clear Fused
Quartz Powder), with special surface
treatment, were used for the reinforce­
ment. Except where otherwise specified,
the particles were vinylsilane-coated and
were fine enough to pass through a no.
100 sieve of the United States standard
sieve series, having dimensions of ap­
proximately 150 microns (about 0.006
inch) and smaller.
T h e organic binder for this reinforce­
ment was specially prepared for this
study, because the commercially available
monomers and comonomers did not ap­
pear to be as promising, with respect to
polymerization shrinkage, as the comono­
mer system to be described. This system
was especially designed to have low
polymerization shrinkage.
P R E P A R A T IO N O F M A T E R IA L S
Surface Treatment of Silica Powder • It
is well known in the reinforced plastics
72/58 • THE J O U R N A L O F THE A M E R IC A N DENTAL A S S O C IA T IO N
industry that vinylsilane treatment of
glass reinforcements, used with appropri­
ate resin systems, gives improved water
resistance to laminates.5 The silica pow­
der was surface treated as follows: The
powder was sifted into a 1.0 per cent
aqueous solution of tris(2-methoxy ethoxy)
vinylsilane to which sodium hydroxide
was added sufficient to give a pH of 9.3
to 9.8. One half per cent of the silane
was used per weight of the fused silica.
This slurry was dried at approximately
125°C . (2 6 0 °F .), with occasional stir­
ring, and cooled. Benzoyl peroxide, 1.25
per cent per weight of treated powder,
was added. The peroxide was dispersed
in the powder as an acetone solution. This
solvent was removed by evaporation with
the aid of a vacuum pump and intermit­
tent stirring. T h e dry powder was again
sifted through a United States standard
sieve no. 100, except where otherwise in­
dicated below. T h e silica powder before
treatment was hydrophilic; after treat­
ment it was organophilic, as defined by
a test method described by Iler.6,7
Preparation of Com onomer Solution
T o serve as the organic binder for the
silica reinforcement, a cross-linking, co­
monomer solution was prepared. This
liquid was primarily the addition reac­
tion product of bis(4-hydroxyphenyl) di-
methylmethane and glycidyl methacrylate.
T h e addition reaction between the bis-
phenol and the glycidyl methacrylate was
catalyzed with 0.5 per cent A^iV-dimethyl-
p-toluidene at 6 0 °C . (1 4 0 °F .) for about
13 hours in an inert atmosphere, with
continuous stirring, until the reaction was
essentially complete. This addition reac­
tion was followed by observing the in­
creasing absorption of the aromatic ether
groups in the infrared at approximately
1,040 cm .-1 (9.6 microns wavelength).
Th e reaction product was washed with 5
per cent aqueous sodium hydroxide and
then with water to remove the (20 per
cent) excess bisphenol used in the syn­
thesis. The product was dried under
vacuum and was reduced in viscosity by
the addition of 10 per cent methyl metha­
crylate and 10 per cent tetraethyleneglycol
dimethacrylate monomers. This comono­
mer solution was stabilized with 0.01 per
cent hydroquinone.
A d d itio n a l N ,N -dimethyl-p-toluidene
(approximately 0.5 per cent) was added
as needed to give the desired hardening
time. For convenience, this comonomer
solution or its polymer will be referred to
as “B IS -G M A .”
M eth od of M ixing Material • Specimens
for testing were prepared by mixing the
powder into the B IS -G M A liquid using
a dental agate spatula on a glass slab, in
much the same way that dentists mix
silicate cements in practice. A practical
consistency8 was obtained when approxi­
mately 70 per cent of the treated silica
powder (1.0 G m .) was mixed with 30
per cent of the liquid comonomer solu­
tion (0.4 m l.; the density of the liquid
was approximately 1.1 Gm . per milli­
liter) . This ratio of powder to liquid was
used throughout the testing procedures.
• Seventy per cent silica by weight gave a
material with approximately 55 per cent
silica by volume.
R E S U L T IN G P R O P E R T IE S O F M A T E R IA L S
Hardening Tim e • The mixed material
hardened in three to eight minutes when
tested at 3 7 °C . (9 9 °F .) according to the
American Dental Association Specifica­
tion No. 9 for Dental Silicate Cement.9
T h e certified silicate cements and the di­
rect filling resins tested fell within this
range.
Hardening Shrinkage • T h e average vol­
umetric polymerization shrinkage was
measured by the dilatometer method of
Smith and Schoonover,10 except that the
density was determined individually for
each specimen to obtain specimen vol­
ume. T h e average apparent densities of
the silica-reinforced B IS -G M A resin, the

T a b le 1 • V olum etric hardening shrinkage o f the silica -rein fo rce d BIS-G M A resin and o th e r filling materials
N um ber
M a te ria l
specimens
BIS-G M A resin re in fo rce d w ith vinylsilane-coated
silica th a t passed through a no. 325 sieve
(shrinkage measured fo r 60 minutes)
M ethyl m ethacrylate (m onom er-polym er solution)
reinforced w ith vinylsilane-coated silica that passed
through a no. 325 sieve (shrinkage measured fo r
30 minutes)
Silicate cement (shrinkage measured fo r seven days)
U nreinforced d ire c t fillin g resins, tw o different
brands (shrinkage measured fo r 30 minutes)
*Standard deviation = / Six —x)2
\ n —1
fC oefficient of variation = Standard deviation
average
silicate cement, and a commercial direct
filling resin were approximately 1.6, 2.0,
and 1.2 G m . per milliliter, respectively.
T h e volumetric shrinkage data are given
in Table 1. Smith and Schoonover re­
ported volumetric shrinkage of 6 to 8
per cent for direct filling resins, which
is in agreement with the present data.
This is at least twice the dimensional
change of the reinforced resin (2.7 per
ce n t).
It should be emphasized that part of
the shrinkage measured by this method
occurs before the material hardens. In
dental practice, only after the material
has reached a critical stiffness and
strength does the continued shrinkage ex­
ert significant forces tending to pull the
material away from the cavity walls. A
test method for measuring hardening
shrinkage that excludes volumetric shrink­
age of the material still in the fluid state
would have more meaning from the clini­
cal viewpoint.
Solubility and Disintegration • Solubility
and disintegration were tested according
to the American Dental Association Spec­
ification No. 9 for Dental Silicate C e­
BOWEN . . . VOLUME 66, JANUARY 1963 • 73/59
Average C oefficient
Standard
of volum etric of
d e v ia tio n *
shrinkage v a ria tio n f
per cent per cent per cent
6 2.7 1.1 41
5 2.8 1.0 36
3 3.3 0.5 15
4 6.2 3.1 50
ment9 except that the weighing bottles
were weighed after drying at 9 9 °C .
(2 1 0 °F .) and 110°C . (2 3 0 °F .) to detect
organic leach products which might have
been volatilized at the standard drying
temperature of 149°C . (3 0 0 °F .). The
solubility and disintegration value for the
reinforced polymer was 0.04 per cent by
weight. The values for silicate cements
normally range between 0.4 and 1.3 per
cent.
W hen the solubility of the synthetic
resin, reinforced with vinylsilane-coated
silica, was tested by the method used for
denture base resins,11 the average loss of
weight of the specimens was 0.01 per cent
or 0.003 mg. per square centimeter of
surface area. T h e average solubility was
one tenth that of specimens which were
made with silica that did not have the
vinylsilane coating, but were otherwise
identical.
Comparative values for the anterior
direct filling resins are not presently avail­
able, but two self-curing denture base
resins lost an average of approximately
0.10 per cent by weight or 0.03 mg. per
square centimeter of surface area in this
test. Silicate cements were too sensitive
7 4 /4 0 • TH E J O U R N A L O F THE A M E R IC A N DENTAL A S S O C IA T IO N
to desiccation and were too frangible to
be compared by this test method.
W ater Sorption • T h e uptake of water
by the silica-reinforced polymer was
tested according to the method for den­
ture base resins.11 T h e average water
sorption was 0.9 per cent by weight or
0.3 mg. per square centimeter of surface
area of the specimen during 24 hours
immersion. Identical specimens, except
that untreated silica was used in their
preparation, had an average water sorp­
tion twice that of specimens utilizing the
vinylsilane-treated silica. T w o self-curing
denture base resins, tested in like manner,
showed an average increase in weight of
2.1 per cent or 0.4 mg. per square centi­
meter. Silicate cements are too fragile to
test by this method for comparison.
Coefficient of Thermal Expansion • A n
interferometric method similar to that
described by Saunders12 was used to
measure the linear coefficient of thermal
expansion of the silica-reinforced resin.
T h e average value for six measurements
on three specimens was 22 ppm per de­
gree Celsius between 3 0 °C . (8 6 °F .) and
4 0 °C . (1 0 4 °F .) on dry specimens. The
comparable values reported in the litera­
ture are: silicate cement, 7 .6 ; dry poly
(methyl methacrylate), 8 1 ; hard tooth
tissues, 7.8 to 11.4; and silver amalgam,
22.1 to 28.0.13
Color Stability • O ne half of the flat sur­
face of prepared disks of the silica-rein-
forced polymer, between 0.5 and 1.0 mm.
(0.02 and 0.04 inch) thick, was covered
with an opaque, reflective aluminum foil
tape. T h e other half of the surface was
exposed to the light and ultraviolet emis­
sions of the source described in the
American Dental Association Specifica­
tion No. 12 test for color stability.11 After
24 hours, the exposed portion, compared
by visual inspection in daylight with the
unexposed portion, showed a slight
change in color. This was to be expected
with the polymerization initiated by
benzoyl peroxide accelerated by an aro­
matic amine.
Even with the slight color change in­
duced by the sun lamp and probably by
subsequent aging, as was demonstrated
by Caul and Schoonover14 for direct fill­
ing resins, the shade and color of the un-
pigmented specimens matched the shade
and color of normal teeth. It is known
that this type of color change can be
diminished or eliminated by the use of
ultraviolet absorbers and by other means.
Visual Opacity • Specimens 1 mm . thick
were compared with opacity standards
against a variegated black and white
background according to Specification
No. 9. The visual opacity was between
35 and 55 per cent ( C 0 .7 0 ) which is
within the range specified for certified
silicate cements.9 T h e silicate cements
and direct filling resins tested fell within
the same range. Paffenbarger, Schoonover
and Souder1 measured the opacities of
human dentin and enamel and found the
averages to be 70 and 39 per cent, re­
spectively.
Compressive Strength • The strength of
the silica-reinforced resin under com­
pressive loading was measured by the
method used for testing silicate cements.9
Values are given in Table 2 for the com­
pressive strengths of the synthetic polymer
reinforced with vinylsilane-coated silica
of various average particle sizes. Other
materials, now in general use, are shown
for comparison.
Specimens made without silica or with
untreated silica had lower compressive
strength than specimens made with vinyl-
silane-treated silica.
Tensile Strength • The tensile strength
of the material was also tested as reported
in a previous publication.20 In this test,
specimens were prepared with powder
fine enough to pass through a no. 400
United States standard sieve and were
 BO W EN . . . V O LU M E 66, J A N U A R Y 1963 • 75/61

T a b le 2 • Com pressive strengths o f the s ilica -re in fo rce d B IS-G M A resin and o th e r d ental materials

N um ber C o e ffi­
A verage
of Standard cient o f
M a te ria l* compressive
speci­ d evia tio n v a ria ­
strength
mens tion

kg./cm .2 psi kg./cm .2 psi p er cent

Synthetic BIS -G M A resin re in fo rce d with
vinylsilane-coated silica th a t passed through 5 1,050 15,000 63 900 6
a no. 100 sieve but was retained on a
no. 325 sieve
Synthetic BIS -G M A resin re in fo rce d w ith
vinylsilane-coated silica th a t passed through 5 1,340 19,000 77 1,100 6
a no. 100 sieve

Synthetic BIS -G M A resin reinforced with

vinylsilane-coated silica th a t passed through 5 1,600 23,000 26 370 2
a no. 325 sieve
— 1,600- 23,000-
Silicate cements15 — — —
1,900 27,000

U nreinforced com m ercial p o ly (methyl

m ethacrylate) d ire c t filling resin 5 750 10,700 42 600 6
2 ,1 0 0- 30,000- —
Human den tin 16"18 — — —
3,500 50,000

Human enam el17-19 — 980- 14,000- — — —•

3,940 56,000

*The specimens were tested according to the American Dental Association Specification N o. 9 fo r dental silicate
cement.®

T a b le 3 • Tensile strengths o f the silica -rein fo rce d BIS-G M A resin and o th e r d ental m aterials

N um ber A verage C oe fficie n t

Standard
M a te ria l* of tensile of
d evia tio n
specimens strength varia tio n

kg./cm .2 psi kg./cm .2 psi per cent

BIS-G M A resin re in fo rce d w ith vinyl­
silane-coated silica th a t passed 10 280 4,000 49 700 18
through a no. 400 sieve

BIS-G M A resin fille d w ith silica not

c oated w ith vinylsilane but otherw ise 7 105 1,500 21 300 20
the same as a b o ve
Silicate cements (five typ ical brands) 26 49 700 21 300 43

Poly (methyl m ethacrylate) d ire c t fillin g

resins (fo u r com m ercial brands) 21 280 4,000 42 600 15

Human dentin 9 530 7,500 105 1,500 20

Human enamel 9 105 1,500 26 370 25

*The specimens were stored in distilled water at 37°C. (99°F.) fo r 7 days and were tested wet at 23°C. {73°F.).

immersed in distilled water at 37°G . for
seven days before testing. Typical tensile
strengths for this and other dental mate­
rials are given in Table 3. T h e low tensile
strength values for silicate cements may
explain in part the occasional fracture
of these fillings in dental practice, espe­
cially when these cements are used in
Glass I V restorations. Such fillings are
exposed to functional loads which in­
duce tensile as well as compressive and
shear stresses within the material.
7 6/62 • THE J O U R N A L O F THE A M E R IC A N DENTAL A S S O C IA T IO N

T a b le 4 • M o du li o f e lasticity, in tension, o f the silica -rein fo rce d BIS -G M A resin and o th e r den tal materials

N umber Modulus o f Standard C oe fficie n t

M a te ria ls* of elasticity devia tio n of
specimens x 10» x 106 v a ria tio n

kg ./cm .2 psi kg./cm .2 psi per cent

BIS-G M A resin reinforced w ith vinyl-
silane-coated silica th a t passed 10 0.112 1.6 0.014 0.20 12
through a no. 400 sieve

S ilicate cement 5 0.2 Ì 8 3.1 0.0626 0.89 28

C om m ercial d ire c t fillin g resin 6 0.0183 0.26 0.001 .0.01 4
C om m ercial d ire c t fillin g resin
containing 2 5 % glass fibers 5 0.020 0.28 0.0021 0.03 11
Human dentin 7 0.197 2.8 0.0555 0.79 28

*The specimens were stored ¡n distilled water at 37°C. (99°F.) fo r 7 days and were tested wet at 23°C. (73°F.).

M odulus of Elasticity • T h e distribution on the location and orientation of the

of stress and strain within a restored tooth
when a load is applied, is influenced by
the differential modulus of elasticity
(stiffness) of the two or more materials
involved. T h e modulus, defined as the
ratio of stress to corresponding strain,
gives an indication of the amount of de­
formation that will occur in a material
when a load is encountered. Thus, for a
restorative material, the modulus should
be approximately as high as that of tooth
structure to conform to the general re­
quirements of dimensional stability.
' Stress-strain curves were plotted and
the modulus of elasticity was determined
in tension for the silica-reinforced mate­
rial described earlier except that the
treated silica particles were fine enough
to pass through a no. 400 sieve. Moduli
were also determined for human dentin,
a silicate cement, and two commercial
poly (methyl methacrylate) direct filling
resins (one of which contained about 25
per cent glass fibers averaging about 0.5
m m . in length).
T h e values for the modulus of elas­
ticity in tension, determined from the
initial, nearly straight line portion of the
curves, are given in Table 4. The modu­
lus for human enamel in compression is
reported in the literature to be in the
range of 0.10 to 0.84 x 10® kg. per centi­
meter2 (1.4 to 12 x 106 psi) depending
specimens in the teeth.17"19
Resistance of Surface to Indentation •
The resistance of the materials to inden­
tation was observed by applying loads to
specimens with the Rockwell Superficial
Hardness Tester as reported by Sweeney,
Sheehan and Yost.21 In this test a steel
ball, 12.7 mm. (0.5 inch) in diameter, was
applied with a minor 3 kilogram (6.6
pound) load to the flat surfaces of speci­
mens which were between 1.5 and 4.0
mm. (0.06 and 0.16 inch) thick. The
minor load (3 kilograms) was used for
the fiducial reading and the major load
of 30 kilograms (66 pounds) was applied
for 10 minutes. T h e depth of indentation
was read to ± 0 .0 0 1 mm . (± 0 .0 0 0 4 inch)
with a dial indicator. Per cent recovery of
the indentation was calculated from the
residual indentation depth (minor load
only) ten minutes after removal of the
major load. T h e age of all specimens was
120 hours or more. D ata on the compara­
tive resistance to indentation are given in
Table 5.
Toxicity • T h e acute oral toxicity (L D 50)
for rats, of the comonomer described, was
tested by an independent biological labo­
ratory and was reported to be comparable
with that of the liquid of a silicate cement
and a direct filling resin.
 BO W EN . . . V O L U M E 66, JA N U A R Y 196,3 • 77/63

D IS C U S S IO N A N D C O N C L U S IO N der could be incorporated into a given

It was the purpose of this work to make
a preliminary comparison of some of the
properties of a silica-reinforced resin with
silicate cements, direct filling resins, and
hard tooth tissues, and to determine if
further investigation of such a material
would be justified. This report is not in­
tended to set firm values for properties
of a particular material formulation.
T h e surface treatment of the silica par­
ticles appeared to be crucial in the present
system. W ithout the vinylsilane coating
on the particles, the water sorption and
apparent solubility of the composite m a­
terial was higher and the strength was
lower. Whether or not copolymerization
occurred between vinyl groups on the
silica and the methacrylate groups in the
resin cannot be ascertained by the limited
data reported here. However, after the
specimens were exposed to water for one
week, a comparison of the tensile strength
data for treated and untreated silica sug­
gests that in the case of the treated silica
the adhesion between the silica and the
resin was not so low as to decrease the
composite tensile strength.
Qualitatively, more of the treated pow­
amount of resin than could untreated
powder. This higher silica to resin ratio
would be expected to result in a relative
decrease in hardening shrinkage, coeffi­
cient of thermal expansion, and flow, and
a relative increase in modulus of elas­
ticity.
Altering parameters of the material de­
scribed in this report, such as the kind of
surface treatment o f the powder, particle
shape or size distribution, or the nature
of the resin might well lead to better
properties. But even without such im­
provement, the vinylsilane-coated silica
particles impart to the resin many prop­
erties with better values than the other
direct filling materials and further inves­
tigation should certainly be pursued.
SUM M ARY
The incorporation o f vinylsilane-treated
silica powder into an organic polymer re­
inforced the material. This reinforcement
gave values for some physical properties
that more nearly matched those obtained
on hard tooth tissues than those obtained
on unreinforced direct filling resins. When
70 per cent vinylsilane-coated silica was

T a b le 5 • Resistance to indentation o f the silica -rein fo rce d B1S-GMA resin and o th e r dental materials

Depth o f indentation Recovery

N um ber
of C o e ffi­ C o e ffi­
Stand­
M a te ria l meas­ cient A v e r­ cient
A ve rag e Standard ard
ure­ of age of
value d evia tio n d e v ia ­
ments v a ria ­ value v a ria ­
tion
tion tion

M icrons Inch M icrons Inch p e r cent p e r cent p e r cent per cent

Synthetic BiS-GM A
resin re in fo rce d with
vinylsilane-coated
silica that passed 9 55 0.0022 8 0.00031 14 77 6 8
through a no.
325 sieve

Silicate cement 10 40 0.0016 2 0.00008 5 83 4 5

D irect filling 0.0038-
resins21 — 95-115 0.0045 — — — 60-80 ___ ___ _
Human dentin 11 46 0.0018 1.6 0.00006 3 85 2.7 3
Human enamel 11 33 O.OOÌ3 3.4 0.00013 10 86 3.8 4
78/64 • T H E J O U R N A L O F TH E A M E R IC A N DENTAL A S S O C IA T IO N

combined with a suitable comonomer b. Her, R. K. Method o f esterifying the surface of

solution and the material allowed to
harden, the hardening shrinkage and the
coefficient o f thermal expansion were
decreased; the compressive strength, the
modulus of elasticity, and the resistance
to indentation were increased relative to
contemporary direct filling resins.
The reinforced resin had lower solu­
bility and disintegration in water, was less
affected by desiccation, and had higher
tensile strength than silicate cements.
T h e same resin filled with silica not
having the vinylsilane surface treatment
had inferior properties after equivalent
immersion in water.
Presented as p art o f a panel discussion, "N ew con­
cepts of restorative dentistry,'* one hundred and third
annual session, American Dental Association, Miami
Beach, Fla., O ctober 30, 1962.
*Research associate, Am erican Dental Association,
National Bureau o f Standards, Washington, D.C.
1. Paffenbarger, G. C .; Schoonover, I. C., and Souder,
W ilm er. Dental siiica te ce m e n ts: physical and chemical
properties and a specification. J.A .D .A . 25:32 Jan. 1938.
2. Skinner, E. W . A comparison o f properties and
uses of silica te cement and acrylic resin in operative
dentistry. J .A .D .A . 58:27 Jan. 1959.
3. Paffenbarger, G. C .; Nelsen, R. J., and Sweeney,
W . T. D irect and indirect fillin g resins: a review of
some physical and chemical properties. J.A .D .A . 47:516
Nov. 1953.
4. Coy, H . D. Direct fillin g resins. J.A .D .A . 47:532
Nov. 1953.
5. Vanderbullt, B. M., and SImko, J . P., Jr. Silane
coupling agents in glass-reinforced plastics. Modern
Plastics 38:135 Dec. I960.
silica substrate having a reactive silanol surface and
products thereof. U .S . Patent 2,657,149 Oct. 27, 1953
(column 19, lines 28-54).
7. Bowen, R. L. Investigation o f the surfaces o f hard
tooth tissues by a surface activity test. Proceedings of
the workshop on adhesive restorative dental materials
at Indiana University, Sept. 28-29, 1961.
8. Paffenbarger, G. C. Silicate cement: an investiga­
tion by a group o f practicing dentists under the direc­
tion o f the American Dental Association Research Fel­
lowship a t the N ational Bureau of Standards. J.A.D.A.
27:1611 O ct. 1940.
9. Guide to dental materials. Chicago, American
Dental Association, 1962, p. 54.
10. Smith, D. L., and Schoonover, I. C. Direct fillin g
resins: dimensional changes resulting from polymeriza­
tion shrinkage and water sorption. J.A .D .A . 46:540 May
1953.
1!. Guide to dental materials. Chicago, American
Dental Association, 1962, p. 67.
12. Saunders, J . B. An apparatus fo r photographing
interference phenomena. J. Research N.B.S. 35:157 1945
R.P. 1668.
13. Souder, W ., and Paffenbarger, G . C. Physical
properties of dental materials. Washington, D.C., Gov­
ernment Printing O ffice, 1942, p. 13.
14. Caul, H. J., and Schoonover, I. C. C olor stability
of d ire c t fillin g resins. J.A .D .A . 47:448 O ct. 1953.
15. Paffenbarger, G . C., and Stanford, J. W . Zinc
phosphate and silicate cements. In Dental clinics of
North Am erica, R. W . Phillips, editor. Philadelphia,
W . B. Saunders Co., 1958, p. 566.
16. C raig, R. G., and Peyton, F. A. Elastic and
mechanical properties of human dentin. J.D. Res. 37:710
Aug. 1958.
17. Stanford, J. W ., and others. Determination of
some compressive properties o f human enamel and
dentin. J.A .D .A . 57:487 O ct. 1958.
18. Stanford, J. W ., and others. Compressive proper­
ties o f hard tooth tissues and some restorative m ateri­
als. J.A .D .A . 60:746 June I960.
19. C raig, R. G .; Peyton, F. A., and Johnson, D. W.
Compressive properties of enamel, dental cements, and
g old . J.D. Res. 40:936 O ct. 1961.
20. Bowen, R. L., and Rodriguez, M. S. Tensile
strength and modulus o f elasticity o f tooth structure and
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The Indispensable Drudge • The printed literature of medicine remains the indispensable
archive of its scientific, clinical, social and economic progress, as well as of its philosophy; the
permanent depository of discovery whether in the physical sciences or in the development of
ideas. And in order that the record may be legible, the editor, like Samuel Johnson’s lexicog­
rapher, a harmless drudge, enjoys also a reflected and anonymous indispensability.— Joseph
Garland. The Journal of the Canadian Medical Association3 Jan. 30, 1960.