to 26-year-old age group, will have to supply a great many men. Dr. Conant observed, however, that universal service over a period of years will result in all men having had two years of training and thus eliminate the need for selective service. Dr. Bush a n d Dr. Conant stated that the committee has not worked out the many detailed provisions interpreting and applying these principles of universal military service. T h e committee is working on fehis problem and expects to present concrete proposals in the near future. The committee plan is essentially the same as that announced earlier this month by the Association of American Universities. T h e AAU resolution, however, went into more detail in several respects. It is expected that the specific proposals will outline the details of the "broadened standards of fitness," the manner in which those who are not fit for combat service may be used in military or civilian capacities, proposed amendments to the Selective Service Act, reserve poliices, officer candidate training, assignment of inductees to technical and professional training, educational benefits on completion of training, and utilization of women in the a r m e d forces. Of equal importance to manpower is a program for equipment and supplies which must b e expanded far beyond goals already announced. T h e committee is also expected to make some specific proposals in this regard.
BRIEFS "Fire
Effects
of
V O L U M E
2 8,
NO.
52
>
Bombing
Attacks."
Copies of this 45-page booklet just issued by the Federal Civil Defense Administration are available from t h e Government Printing Office, Washington 25, O . C , at a cost of 15 cents. The report states that 8 0 % of all structural damage resulting from air attacks in World War II were due to fire. American cities are highh susceptible to fire and blast. Methods of appraising this susceptibility are outlined. Techniques for dealing with fire warfare will be published in later reports. Gulf Tidelands Oil. A recent Supreme Court decree giving the Federal Government title to submerged coastal lands oil the coasts of Texas and Louisiana makes invalid leases granted by these states for oil and gas well drilling. The Interior Department will allow holders of state leases to continue their operations until Feb. 11, pending consideration of applications for federal leases. Chemical Statistics. T h e Census bureau plans to initiate annual surveys of shipments a n d / o r production of several industries, including inorganic chemicals and gases. Manufacturers of sulfuric acid, superphosphates, steel containers, metal cans, and commercial closures w h o have not been filing quarterly reports will be
Committee on the Present Danger T h e committee, originally established about t w o months ago, is still being expanded. At present, its membership totals 25. It includes several university presidents a n d others whose positions during World War II were closely related to defense matters. T h e college president members are: R a y m o n d B. Allen, University of Washington; James Phiiiney Baxter III, Williams College; James B. Conant, Harvard University; Harold W . Dodds, Princeton University; Frederick A. Middlebush, University of Missouri; Robert G. Sproul, University of California; and Henry M. Wriston, Brown University. Other members are: Julius Ochs Adler, General Manager, New York Times; Frank Altschul, National Planning Association; Laird Bell, Chairman of the Board, University of Chicago; Lewis H. Brown, Ohairman of t h e Board, Johns Manville Corp.; Harry A. Bullis, Chairman of the Board, General Mills, Inc.; Vannevar Bush, President, Carnegie Institution of Washington; Will L. Clayton, former Undersecretary of State; R. Ammi Cutter, lawyer; Qharles Dollard, President, Carnegie Corp. of New York; E d w a r d S. Greenbaum, lawyer, Monte M. Lemanxi, lawyer, William L. Marbury, lawyer; John L o r d O'Brian, former General Counsel, W a r Production Board; Robert P. Patterson, former Secretary of War; Harold C. Petersen, Executive Vice President, Fidelity Philadelphia Trust Co.; Stanley Resor, C h a i r m a n of t h e Board, J. Walter T h o m p son Co.; Robert E. Sherwood, author and playwright; a n d Tracy S. Voorhees, former Undersecretary of the Army. T h e committee has established its administrative office in Washington, D. C.
requested to file a n n u a l reports. Forms and further details are available from the Director of t h e Census, Washington 25, D. C . ECA Aid t o United Kingdom Suspended. Economic recovery of Britain and t h e sterling area, plus t h e demands being imposed on t h e United States under foreign military aid programs, have m a d e it desirable t o suspend ECA aid to the United Kingdom after Jan. 1, 1951. N R C I n t e r n a t i o n a ! Relations Division.
Allocation of funds by the State Department's Science Office has made possible the activation of t h e International Relations Division of t h e National Research Council. Wallace W. Atwood Jr., formerly of the D e p a r t m e n t of Defense's Research and Development Board, has been appointed executive secretary. Dr. Atwood will coordinate the international activities of the seven existing divisions of NHC. Close liaison will be maintained with t h e United Nations and its specialized bodies, and with international scientific unions. Stockpiling. The President has asked Congress for $1.8 billion for stockpiling additional quantities of strategic and critical materials. Together with funds appropriated earlier this year, the total for this p u r p o s e will be 2.9 billion. T h e new funds will be used not only for procurement but also t o encourage expansion of production.
New Text D o e s Not Destroy M a t e r i a l Being Tested M e a s u r e s 20 /Vlicro-microlumens of Scattered Light
1 0 0 T i m e s the Sensitivity o f S i m i l a r Instruments FOR
THE MEASUREMENT
OF:
Droplet size of aerosols . . . Purity of proteins and other colloids . Rate of change of molecule size in solution . . . Particle size and concentration in dispersed systems . Concentration and size of undissolved particles . Opacity of almost-opaque materials . . Molecular aggregation in antigen-antibody reactions . . Microfluorescence in dilute solutions . . . Depolarization, turbidity, and dissymmetry of high-molecular-weight solutions . Light reflectance of dark surfaces . Minute precipitation, flocculation, and crystallization Molecular weight of high pol-.'mers in solution . . . Scintillation efficiency of nuclearradiatior.-sensitive crystals and phosphors . . . . Microchemical turbidity analyses F E A T U R ES Excellent sensitivity
Compact
Completely a-c. operated
Fully accessible interior
Has outlet for recorder operation Internal electronic stabilization
accessible
Built-in stable d-c. amplifier Maladjustment of the controls can not damage the unit
Comparisons of light intensities indicated as decimal percentages WRITE FOR BULLETIN
Removable slit and optical systems
2182-A
mztMM^JZSe^
DECEMBER
2 5,
1 9 5 0
4525
