JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES.

Editor: SAMUEL B. DETWILER, JR., Department of Agriculture

£ a“ .

A a ft / ~, j oo

J -~ for . 7 ‘ of A f

: Associate Editors

FRANK L. Campsett, National Academy of Heinz Specut, National Institutes of Health

Sciences

Harotp T. Coox, Department of Agriculture

RicHarp P. Farrow, National Canners Asso-

ciation JoHN K. Tay tor, National Bureau of Standards

LAwRENCE A. Woop, National Bureau of Standards

RusseLL B. StTEveNs, George Washington

University

Contributors

ALBERT M. Stoner, Applied Physics Laboratory ALPHONSE F, Forziati, National Bureau of

Joun A. O’Brien, Jr., Catholic University Standards

ELtioTT B. RosBerts, Coast & Geodetic Survey Howarp W. Bonn, National Institutes of Health

Marcaret D. Foster, Geological Survey ILEEN E. Stewart, National Science Foundation

RussELL B. STEVENS, George Washington ALLEN L. ALEXANDER, Naval Research Laboratory

University Victor R. BoswEtt, USDA, Beltsville

MoppiEe D. Taytor, Howard University Harotp T. Coox, USDA, Washington

FRANK L. CAMPBELL, NAS-NRC Witiiam J. BarLey, University of Maryland

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OFFICERS OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

President: BENJAMIN D. VAN Evers, George Washington University

President-Elect: HkEINz SpEcHT, National Institutes of Health

Secretary: GeorcE W. Irvinc, Jr., Department of Agriculture

Treasurer: MALCoLM C, HENDERSON, Catholic University

Academy to Honor Six

Outstanding Scientists

Six Washington-area scientists will re-

ceive awards for scientific achievement at

the Academy’s 64th Annual Meeting and

| Dinner, scheduled for January 18 at the

Cosmos Club.

Recognition for significant achievement

will be extended to Robert W. Krauss of

the University of Maryland, in the biologi-

cal sciences; John D. Hoffman of the

National Bureau of Standards, in the

physical sciences; Rodney E. Grantham of

| the Naval Ordnance Laboratory, in engi-

neering; and Lawrence E. Payne of the

| University of Maryland, in mathematics.

_ Additionally, Charles R. Naeser of George

Washington University and Ralph D.

Myers of the University of Maryland both

will be recognized for outstanding service

in the teaching of science.

The awards, consisting of scrolls en-

erossed with a citation, will be presented

by retiring Academy President Philip H.

Abelson, following introductions by Chair-

man Norman Bekkedahl of the Awards

Committee. The awards also include elec-

tion to membership in the Academy—

where the recipient is not already a mem-

ber—with remission of dues for the first

two years.

The Academy’s awards program was

initiated in 1939 to recognize young

scientists of the local area for “noteworthy

discovery, accomplishment, or publica-

tion” in the fields of biology, engineering.

and the physical sciences. Awards for

outstanding teaching were added in 1955,

while mathematics was included for the

first time in 1959.

Award winners must be under 40 years

of age except in science teaching, where

_ there is no age limit. This year’s nomina-

tions. received from Academy members

and from local scientific groups, were

evaluated by a series of panels under the

JANUARY, 1962

general chairmanship of Dr. Bekkedahl.

with panel chairmen as follows: Harald

A. Rehder (biological sciences), Malcolm

C. Henderson (physical sciences), Free-

man K. Hill (engineering), Harry Pola-

chek (mathematics), and John K. Taylor

(teaching of science).

Biological Sciences

Cited “for meritorious researches and

publications in the physiology of algae,”

Robert W. Krauss is professor of plant

physiology in the University of Mary-

land’s Department of Botany. Born in

1921, he received the B.S. degree from

Oberlin in 1947, the M.S. degree from the

University of Hawaii in 1949, and the

Ph.D. degree from the University of

Maryland in 1951. Dr. Krauss held ap-

pointments at the Carnegie Institute of

Washington (1951-54) and the Marine

Biological Laboratory at Woods Hole

(1955-57) before joining the Maryland

staff in 1958. He has numerous publica-

tions.

Dr. Krauss has been a pioneer in the

applied development of algae cultures, and

at present directs a very significant project

in this field. He is known as an inspiring

teacher and colleague.

Physical Sciences

John D. Hoffman, currently chief of the

Dielectrics Section in the Electricity Divi-

sion, National Bureau of Standards, was

born in 1922. He received a pre-War B.S.

degree from Franklin and Marshall, and

post-War M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from

Princeton University. His professional ex-

perience includes research at Oak Ridge as

a diffusion-plant group leader, and _ re-

search in physical chemistry at General

Electric.

Dr. Hoffman was cited “for fundamental

Award Winners at Annual Academy Meeting

LL. E. PAYNE

contributions to the science of polymer

physics.” His theoretical work on dielec-

tric relaxation has become an accepted

part of the theory of dielectric materials.

and his recent concept and analysis of

folded-chain polymer crystals has received

international acclaim. This theory resolves

some paradoxes in the field of polymer

behavior.

Engineering

Rodney EK. Grantham is a supervisory

electronic engineer and chief of the Ad-

vanced Engineering Division, Air and Sur-

face Evaluation Department, at the Naval

Ordnance Laboratory. Born in 1921, he

received the B.S. degree in electrical engi-

neering from Purdue University in 1942,

and the M.S. degree in physics from

George Washington University in 1951:

additionally, he has studied at the Uni-

versity of Maryland and at MIT Radar

School.

Mr. Grantham served as an electronic

J. D. HorrMAN

C. R. NAESER

R. E. GRANTHAM

RD: Mines

scientist at the National Bureau of Stand-

ards in the period 1946-1950, and there-

after transferred to NOL. During the last

11 years at NOL he has earned an impres-

sive number of awards and commendations

for his work in missile and communica-

tions systems; this work has resulted in

10 patents and about 20 publications. He

was cited “for technical management in

development of the Polaris arming and

fuzing system.”

Mathematics

Lawrence E. Payne, born in 1923, re-

ceived the B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees

from Iowa State College in 1946, 1948,

and 1950, respectively. After teaching ex-

perience at lowa State and the University

of Arizona, he joined the University of

Maryland staff in 1951 as research asso-

ciate, and advanced to research professor

in 1960.

Dr. Payne has about 50 publications in

various fields of higher mathematics. He

je JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

was cited “for his contributions to the

theory of partial differential equations.”

Teaching of Science

Charles R. Naeser is professor of chem-

istry and chairman of the Chemistry De-

partment of George Washington Uni-

versity. After receiving the B.S. degree

from the University of Wisconsin and the

M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from the Uni-

versity of Illinois, he joined the George

Washington faculty in 1935. Except for

three years of Army service, he has de-

voted his entire professional career to

teaching and research at that institution.

His field of specialization is the lesser-

known elements.

Dr. Naeser has conducted a very active

graduate and undergraduate teaching pro-

gram, and has directed the research of

many graduate students, particularly in

the chemistry of the rare earths. Among

his former students now engaged in re-

search and teaching throughout the coun-

try are the dean of the Graduate School

of the University of Nevada, a professor

of inorganic chemistry at the University

of Minnesota, and a professor of chemistry

at George Washington.

Dr. Naeser has been very active in af-

fairs of the Chemical Society of Washing-

ton and the Washington Academy of

Sciences, and participates in many second-

ary school science education activities. He

was cited “for contributions to chemical

education, particularly at the university

level.” .

Ralph D. Myers, co-recipient with Dr.

Naeser of the science teaching award, was

cited “for outstanding contributions to

postgraduate education of area physicists.”

He was educated at Cornell University.

with B.S., M.A., and Ph.D. degrees in

1934, 1935, and 1937 respectively. His

early research was in nuclear theory, and

most recently he has been working in solid

state theory.

Dr. Myers joined the Physics Depart-

ment of the University of Maryland in

1936, and became a full professor in

1948. He is chairman of the Depart-

ment’s Graduate Committee, and leader of

the University’s large research program in

solid state phenomena. Dr. Myers is de-

scribed as a truly outstanding teacher, who

has taught nearly all the regular courses

offered in the Physics Department at one

time or another during his 23 years at the

University. He is called upon by graduate

students and his colleagues for advice in

problems of physics, more than any other

member of the Department.

During 1962 Dr. Myers is serving as

president of the Philosophical Society of

Washington.

Soil Reservoirs of Pathogenic Fungi

Chester W. Emmons

National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases,

National Institutes of Health

Your invitation that I give the Annual

Dinner Lecture this year was highly grati-

fying to me as a recently elected Life

Member of this Branch and as a medical

mycologist. Even when I became an active

member of the Branch 25 years ago, medi-

cal mycologists felt at home among bac-

JANUARY, 1962

teriologists. Now that a legal change in

the name of our national society has

formally sanctioned the fraternization of

*Lecture presented at the Annual Dinner Meet-

ing of the Washington Branch of the American

Society for Microbiology, November 28, 1961.

we)

bacteriologists and mycologists, we can

anticipate that the bonds between us _ will

be strengthened.

Mycology and bacteriology have several

common meeting grounds. One is in and

around that group of microorganisms (the

actinomycetes) which have been claimed

by both mycologists and bacteriologists.

Some of the actinomycetes produce chronic

eranulomatous diseases which resemble in

certain respects the systemic mycoses. The

species of Streptomyces and Nocardia

which are the etiologic agents of these

diseases grow in soil or compost, and these

environmental sources of infection also

are reminiscent of mycoses. Morphologi-

cally the actinomycetes produce extensive

branching hyphae by terminal growth,

after the manner of fungi. I concede, how-

ever, that these hyphae are narrower than

many bacteria and if you all follow Ber-

gey's Manual in classifying them among

the higher bacteria, I shall not dispute the

point.

Let me emphasize, however, that soil

and humus rather than diseased man or

animals are the reservoirs from which

pathogenic species of Streptomyces and

Nocardia enter the respiratory tract or the

subcutaneous tissues of the patient. The

free saprophytic growth of fungi which

EDITOR’S NOTE—The four principal diseases

discussed in this article are defined as follows in

“The American Illustrated Medical Dictionary,”

22nd edition (W. B. Saunders Company, 1951) :

Coccidioidomycosis.—A disease caused by in-

fection of the lungs with Coccidioides immitis.

It is marked in initial stages by symptoms re-

sembling those of pulmonary tuberculosis.

Histoplasmosis——A_ disease of the reticulo-

endothelial system caused by infection with the

fungus Histoplasma capsulatum. It is character-

ized by enlargement of the liver and_ spleen,

fever, anemia, and leukopenia.

Aspergillosis——A diseased condition caused by

species of Aspergillus and marked by inflam-

matory granulomatous lesions in the skin, ear,

orbit, nasal sinuses, lungs, and sometimes in the

bones and meninges.

Cryptococcosis——An infection by Cryptococcus

neoformans which may involve the skin, lungs, or

other parts, but has a predilection for the brain

and meninges.

cause human disease is the subject of my

lecture this evening. It is a fundamental

concept in any consideration of the sys-

temic and subcutaneous mycoses that, with

very few exceptions, these mycoses are in-

fectious but not contagious diseases, that

they do not spread from man to man or

animal to man, and that the fungi which

cause them are normal components of the

varied and complex microflora of the soil

or of organic debris in the soil. Man and

animals are exposed to infection from this

environmental source, most cases of coc-

cidioidomycosis and histoplasmosis (and

perhaps of other mycoses) are asympto-

matic or mild, and contact with the patient

is not hazardous. Probably the human or

animal host does not play an essential role

even in reseeding soil. The pathogenic

fungi, once established in a favorable en-

vironment, are capable of indefinite growth

as saprophytes in suitable soil. These con-

cepts are basic to the epidemiologic aspects

of the systemic mycoses. They furnish re-

liable clues to the solution of many of the

previously puzzling aspects of the geo-

graphic distribution and sporadic occur-

rence of mycoses.

For many years before the saprophytic

habitats of pathogenic fungi were well

known, localized epidemiologic data of

various kinds strongly suggested environ-

mental sources of infection in the systemic

and subcutaneous mycoses. Most of our

first attempts to isolate these fungi were

like the proverbial search for a needle in

the haystack. We still are groping for some

of these pathogenic fungi but for Alle-

scheria. Nocardia, Histoplasma, Crypto-

coccus, some dermatophytes and Asper-

villus, we now know where to take samples

and we have effective if not efficient

methods of isolating these fungi. Once you

know how and where to look, the search

becomes easy. A similar phenomenon was

immortalized by that poet of American

foibles and folkways, Ogden Nash: “You

shake and shake the catsup bottle: first

none ll come and then a lot'Il.”

Some of the early reports of the free-

4 JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

living saprophytic occurrence of patho-

genic fungi were imaginative, and the

epidemiological significance of others is

equivocal. Bostroem’s report 70 years ago

that Actinomyces bovis grows in soil and

vegetation and that the disease is acquired

by chewing straws resulted from mistaking

a contaminant for the pathogen, and this

erroneous concept was perpetuated by

repetition in some textbooks for 50 years.

Beurmann and Gougerot reported 40 years

ago the isolation of Sporotrichum schenckii

from the scouring rush (Equisetum) and

from the beech tree. These sources have

not been confirmed by modern studies, but

perhaps no one has looked for the fungi in

these habitats. We do know that typical

strains of S. schenckii are isolated occa-

sionally from sphagnum moss, mulching

materials, and soil with which gardeners

work. More spectacularly, S. schenckii was

isolated repeatedly by Brown and associates

from timbers and ground waters of certain

gold mines in the vicinity of Johannesburg,

and nearly 3000 cases of sporotrichosis

were seen in miners during a three or four

year period before the epidemic was con-

trolled by sanitation and by rot-proofing

of mine timbers.

It may be appropriate to return to the

actinomycetes to begin a review of modern

studies of the habitats of pathogenic fungi.

Two of our former members, Ruth Gordon

and W. A. Hagan, in 1936 first isolated

Nocardia asteroides from soil by using the

time honored “baiting” technic. Taking ad-

vantage of the ability of N. asteroides to

utilize paraffin, they buried paraffin-coated

glass rods in soil and isolated several

strains of N. asteroides on this selective

medium. The success of their search can

be regularly duplicated, but we do not

know from systematic studies the extent to

which this pathogenic microorganism is

distributed geographically in soil. A per-

sistent search for Nocardia in sputum has

indicated that pulmonary nocardiosis is

more prevalent in man than present mor-

bidity and mortality statistics record and

suggests that this disease sometimes mas-

JANUARY, 1962

querades as tuberculosis in the wards of

hospitals. A closely related species, JN.

brasiliensis, which causes mycetoma in

tropical and subtropical areas of the

Americas, also probably is a frequent in-

habitant of soil. A similar saprophytic

habitat is well known for Allescheria

boydw and can be confidently assumed for

the numerous other fungi which cause

mycetomas.

A systematic enumeration of all the etio-

logic agents of mycoses which are known

or suspected to be present in soil would be

tedious and out of place on this occasion.

I propose to spend the remainder of my)

time in discussing four of the important

pathogens of man about which we have

interesting and well-documented informa-

tion. Such a review must include Cocci-

dioides immitis. Its first isolation from

soil was reported by Stewart and Meyer in

1932 from a soil specimen taken from near

a house occupied by patients with coccidi-

oidomycosis. In 1942 | isolated this fungus

from soil and from many desert rodents in

southern Arizona, and interest in the dis-

tribution and occurrence of C. immitis has

continued.

The geographic distribution of C. un-

mitis is limited to desert areas, and ani-

mals as well as man are accidental hosts

to the fungus. The rodents apparently play

only an incidental role in maintenance of

the fungus in soil, and even reseeding of

soil from the carcasses of animals which

die of the mycosis probably is of no im-

portance in the life history of the fungus.

The fungus survives the intense solar

radiation of summer in the sheltered and

cooler microclimate of the rodent burrow.

From this haven it grows (according to

the observations and hypothesis of Ege-

berg and his associates) after the rainy

season makes the desert floor more toler-

able to life. It has been assumed that at

this time the competition from other fungi

and from bacteria in soil is reduced and

C. immitis is able to grow rapidly in a

soil relatively free of antagonists. C. im-

mitis is less thermophilic than many other

fungi and its limitation to desert areas

cannot be explained merely by its ability

to grow at high temperatures. There is no

evidence that it has become established,

however, in cooler and more humid cli-

mates, to which it surely must have been

introduced many times by the migrations

of human hosts who were infected while

resident or in transit in endemic areas of

the fungus.

Three other pathogens of man have no

such geographic limitation but occur

around the world. Histoplasmosis was

first described in’ Panama in 1905 by

Darling, who reported three cases of this

mycosis. It is characteristic of this elusive

disease that it remained almost unknown

in Panama for 50 years thereafter, al-

though modern studies now _ indicate

clearly its present prevalence there. Path-

ologists have uncovered evidence that it

was present in this area during the long

interval while it was not observed. It was

nearly unrecognized in Panama for 50

years because, like coccidioidomycosis.

most cases are asymptomatic or are so

mild as to be confused with a common

cold. Like coccidioidomycosis, the disease

is not contagious and the source of infec-

tion is in man’s environment.

Histoplasma capsulatum was _ isolated

from soil first in Loudoun County, Va.

The soil specimen was taken under a small

chicken house. We made this isolation

during an intensive study of histoplasmosis

begun after the death of two brothers (the

first time two associated cases of histo-

plasmosis had been diagnosed.) In a

community-wide study we found that hy-

persensitivity to the antigen, histoplasmin,

began to appear shortly after infancy, that

the percentage of histoplasmin reactors

rose very sharply in the early school years,

and that 84 per cent of the general popula-

tion presented evidence of past infection

by reacting to histoplasmin.

The disease is similarly prevalent in

Maryland. In the search for environmental

sources of infection, I examined 382 soil

specimens before finding the fungus. Now

we know where to look and can depend

upon finding the fungus regularly in cer-

tain areas. Zeidberg and Ajello first called

attention in a publication to the frequent

association between chicken houses and

Histoplasma. No host-parasite relationship

is involved. The chicken is not a host of

the mycosis and is not susceptible to a

progressive infection. The fungus finds

an acceptable substratum and habitat in

soil enriched by the excreta of the chicken,

and can be isolated from the soil under or

adjacent to the foundation of many

chicken houses.

However, it was soon observed that

other habitats are equally acceptable to

H. capsulatum. It grows in bat guano in

caves in many parts of the world. In

South Africa, speleologists from the

Johannesburg area are generally histoplas-

min positive, indicating a past infection.

while speleologists from the Cape Town

area are generally nonreactive unless they

have entered caves in the north.

The common brown house bat (£ptesi-

cus fuscus) also can provide a suitable

environment for the fungus, and we have

for many years studied this relationship

in an old house near Clarksburg, Md. A

colony of more than 100 bats occupies

the attic of this residence, and their drop-

pings are apparent adjacent to the founda-

tion walls of the house where the bats

leave the house or approach it for ingress.

or where droppings have fallen down be-

tween the inner wall and the siding of the

house. We isolate H. capsulatum with

great regularity from soil collected next

to the foundation wall of this house, but

rarely find it beyond six feet from the

house. With Arthur Greenhall, director

of the bat rabies control program in Trini-

dad, W. I., we have found a similar asso-

ciation in that area where bat infestation

of both urban and rural houses is com-

monplace.

Until recently, histoplasmosis

thought to be predominantly rural in dis-

tribution, and it was assumed that urban

residents with histoplasmosis or evidence

Was

6 JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

of past infection had been infected during

trips to the country. When it became

evident that there must be also some ur-

ban sources of infection, we began to take

soil specimens from selected sites in cities.

‘You may remember the report in a news

magazine of a school outbreak of histo-

plasmosis in Milan, Mich., in which the

children were infected from soil on the

playground underneath trees in which

starlings roosted. Furcolow and associates

reported cases of histoplasmosis in Boy

Scouts who helped clear a_ neglected

forested ll-acre tract in Mexico, Mo.,

where starlings again were a factor.

The first isolation of Histoplasma cap-

sulatum from a congested downtown area

was in Washington, D. C. A year ago we

isolated the fungus from all of 10 soil

specimens collected under sycamore trees

in a tiny park at 7th Street and Pennsyl-

vania Avenue, N. W., and we have isolated

the fungus in subsequent samples from

this site. These trees provide roosting sites

for large numbers of starlings, and we be-

lieve the contamination of the soil by these

birds provides the environmental condi-

tions suitable for the growth of this patho-

genic fungus. Our studies of roosting sites

of starlings in other cities on the eastern

seaboard are not yet completed.

Aspergillosis is a relatively rare disease

in man, but it causes many deaths in

chicks, turkey poults, wild geese, and quail.

Most Emperor penguins brought to zoos

die of aspergillosis. Renon reported in

1897 the first comprehensive study of

aspergillosis in man. Five of his six cases

were in either wig cleaners or pigeon feed-

ers. The wig cleaners used meal from

cereal grains to comb out the wigs, and

Aspergillus was found in the meal. The

pigeon feeders masticated grain and fed

the enzymatic digest of this process direct-

ly from their lips to pigeon squabs. As-

pergillosis continued to appear in man

after the decline of the wig-cleaning in-

dustry, and the disease now is not statis-

tically related to pigeon feeding.

For 65 years it has been assumed that

JaNuaARY, 1962

man, animals, and birds acquire asper-

gillosis after exposure to moldy cereal

grains upon which the pathogen, Aspergil-

lus fumigatus, grows. It is probable that

moldy grain or mash and the bedding in

brooder and chicken houses are the most

frequent sources of infection in domestic

birds. A. fumigatus is a common fungus

with a wide distribution, and man and

birds must be frequently exposed by in-

halation to it.

In my presidential address to the My-

cological Society of America a year ago.

I described one type of habitat which

supports luxuriant growth of A. fumigatus

and, potentially, very heavy exposure to

this pathogen. A. fumigatus is thermophilic

and it probably grows very commonly in

compost piles. One type of compost sup-

ports an almost incredibly exuberant

growth of this fungus. Leaves and branch-

es of trees passed through “‘chippers”’ yield

a type of coarse mulch that provides ap-

parently optimum conditions for growth of

A. fumigatus. A truck load of this material.

dumped upon the lawn of a gardener who

expects to use it as mulch around azaleas.

is usually already undergoing biological

“heating” at the time of its delivery.

Within a few days, especially if it has been

moistened by a shower, it is dusty with

mold spores. If disturbed, a gray-green

cloud of these spores floats away on the

breeze. Microscopic examination reveals

the characteristic conidiophores and spores

of A. fumigatus. When suspensions of

spores from such compost piles were mixed

with agar, 90 to 96 per cent of the result-

ant colonies were of this fungus.

Fortunately, man appears to have a very

high natural resistance to aspergillosis. In

fact, pulmonary aspergillosis is rare in

normal persons and perhaps is_ usually

secondary to tuberculosis, silicosis, or

some other primary lung disease. Ex-

posure by inhalation of the spores is not

equivalent to infection, but one of my

gardening friends is allergic to this fungus,

and on more than one occasion has had to

go to bed for a day or two with asthma

after handling compost heavily overgrown

with A. fumigatus.

Finally we come to a mycosis which has

been known and diagnosed since 1894, but

which, in my opinion, has a wider range

of clinical manifestations than is now

recognized. Cryptococcosis, caused by

the yeast-like fungus Cryptococcus neo-

formans, is the most frequent fungal cause

of meningitis. Pulmonary lesions are fre-

quently seen, and it is assumed that the

disease begins as a respiratory infection.

A prevalent, benign respiratory form,

such as we know in coccidioidomycosis

and histoplasmosis, is not recognized. I be-

lieve such a respiratory form of the my-

cosis occurs, and this belief is based upon

some case reports, suggestive experimental

data, and the known prevalence of C. neo-

formans in man’s environment.

In 1894 Sanfelice isolated C. neoformans

from peach juice and it was reported in

the same year as a cause of human disease.

Its isolation was not reported again from

sources unrelated to animals or man, until

I isolated it from barnyard soil in 1950.

In 1955 I found it was regularly present

in old nests and droppings under roosting

sites of pigeons. This ecological associa-

tion was immediately confirmed — by

Schwartz in Cincinnati, Littman in New

York, and Yamamoto in Japan, and it is

now generally recognized as common and

almost constant in many parts of the

world. Nevertheless, histoplasmosis (and

not cryptococcosis) is still associated in

the minds of some clinicians (erroneously.

I believe) with exposure to pigeon ex-

creta.

Several outbreaks of pneumonitis in

men exposed to old accumulations of

pigeon excreta have been recorded in

medical literature. The men were exposed

to dust while cleaning or demolishing old

buildings which had housed pigeons for

many years. None of these outbreaks were

studied at the time by laboratory proce-

dures adequate to make a specific diag-

nosis. The diagnosis of histoplasmosis

was based (in one case 20 years after the

episode) on the history of pneumonitis,

roentgenographic changes, and the results

of serologic studies which in the light of

today’s knowledge must be considered

equivocal. The most convincing evidence

against the diagnosis of histoplasmosis in

these cases is that Histoplasma has never

been isolated from pigeon dung on the

upper floors of buildings, but we almost

invariably find virulent strains of Crypto-

coccus neoformans in such accumulations.

We have isolated strains of this fungus

indistinguishable from those from fatal

human cases of cryptococcal meningitis,

from sidewalks under fire escapes in

downtown Washington, from window

ledges, from cupolas on school houses.

from the attics of old buildings to which

pigeons have had access, and from almost

every spot in which we have been able to

take specimens from old accumulations of

this material. We have isolated it regu-

larly in lowa, Virginia and Maryland from

pigeon nests in barns and from haymows

where the excreta from roosting pigeons

accumulates on hay. In these cases, as in

the other associations I have mentioned.

the pigeon is not a host to the fungus.

This is a saprophytic association in which

the fungus grows in an unusual substratum

which is inhospitable to other fungi.

According to “Vital Statistics of the

United States,” each of three of the my-

coses I have discussed (coccidioidomy-

cosis, histoplasmosis, and cryptococcosis )

kills 50 to 75 persons per year. Many

medical mycologists and epidemiologists

estimate that the actual numbers of diag-

nosed and undiagnosed fatal cases may be

many times these numbers. The numbers

of nonfatal infections cannot be estimated

with accuracy, but we know that most of

the residents of some endemic areas of

coccidioidomycosis and histoplasmosis are

infected at some time. Our epidemiologi-

cal tools are inadequate to estimate the

frequency of mild forms of aspergillosis

and cryptococcosis, but we know from en-

vironmental studies that spores of the

etiologic agents of these mycoses are

8 JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

numerous in the soil we tread and the air

we breathe. Man’s natural resistance to

progressive infection by molds, and _ the

acquisition of immunity after a mild in-

fection, are fortunate defenses against

’ these agents of disease. We currently are

seeking effective and practical methods of

decontamination of soil, and investigating

new drugs, in a search for safer and more

effective therapy for those unfortunate in-

dividuals who acquire progressive and

potentially fatal mycoses.

The ‘Tarnished Beetles’

A Study of Underpopulation

Ross H. Arnett, Jr.

Department of Biology, Catholic University of America

Introduction

Darwin gave us a unifying theme for

all field studies of speciation when he pro-

posed that a major cause of evolution is

population pressure brought about by

overpopulation. Almost as important, but

generally overlooked or seldom stated, is

speciation of underabundant populations,

the cause of which is much more subtle

than speciation brought about by the fac-

tors discussed by Darwin. The under-

abundant species represent 90 to 95 per-

cent of the described animals and plants.

A great majority of these do not occupy

all possible areas, not because they are

held in check by lack of food or by pre-

dators and parasites, but because they are

in the process of adaptation to particular

environmental conditions. This adapta-

tion is slowed down by lack of numbers

sufficient to provide for the genetic varia-

tion and selection needed, and for very

little else at their present evolutionary

stage.

In support of these statements, | offer

the following account of five years of con-

* Condensation of a talk presented October 5,

1961, before the Entomological Society of Wash-

ington. Paper No. 15, Entomological Series of

the Department of Biology, Catholic University.

Most of the work reported herein was made pos-

sible by National Science Foundation Grant No.

14,272: this help is gratefully acknowledged.

JANUARY, 1962

centrated field study of one such under-

abundant and extremely variable group.

the tarnished beetles, members of the

genus Oxacis (family Oedemeridae). A

specimen of this genus is shown in Figure

Ile

The Problem

When I started this study of Oxacis

beetles 13 years ago, there was an abun-

dance of museum material, but all without

data other than very general locality labels.

Further, the numbers of specimens in each

series were so limited that few statistical

studies could be made. However, a study

of type specimens and the usual museum

taxonomic studies of this material per-

mitted the separation and identification of

many species (Arnett 1958).

There remained however, the problem

of the significance of the variation within

species and the proper evaluation of this

variation. In other words, are there many

poorly formed (sibling) species, or a few

large, but extremely variable, species?

It seemed reasonable to suppose that

field work could help to show the nature

of the variation by finding specimens that

were members of the same interbreeding

population. Then if the variation were

present among the offspring of a single

female, one could conclude that it was

random throughout the species and had

Figure 1. Oxacis subfusca Horn, female, 9 mm. in length, from Pena Blanca, Santa Cruz County

Ariz., July 24, 1959, R. H. Arnett, coll. (from a watercolor painting by Eileen R. Van Tassell).

no particular evolutionary significance. If,

on the other hand, the members of a re-

stricted population were uniform (that is,

with no greater variation than that found

among those species that are clear-cut and

are readily separable from other species

of their genus), then the variation seen in

museum material should be of evolutionary

significance. The problem then would be

to determine the factors that had brought

about the variation. With such observa-

tions and thoughts in mind, field work was

undertaken.

Procedure

During the first season (1957) a gen-

eral survey was made of the entire area

occupied by members of the genus Oxacis.

My family and I (Fig. 2) spent nearly

three months in the field. We covered

13,000 miles, collecting throughout south-

western United States and visiting eleven

states of Mexico (Arnett, 1959). During

1958 and 1959 comparative studies of

populations in the Sonoran Desert were

made. Both before and during the rainy

seasons, collections were made at regular

intervals at various altitudes on several

mountains and adjacent desert areas in

southern Arizona and northern Sonora.

The 1960 season was spent in Oklahoma

and northern Texas for the purpose of find-

ing the easternmost extension of the range

of the Sonoran Desert species, and to make

comparative studies of these populations.

In 1961 some of the lacunae were filled in

by collecting from the Lower Rio Grande

Valley in Texas, through the Chihuahuan

Desert, and north through New Mexico to

northern Arizona. The greater part of the

season, however, was spent in the Pena

Blanca area near Nogales, Arizona, where

several field experiments were undertaken

on three separate populations of the tarn-

ished beetle, O. subfusca (Fig. 1).

The data gathered over this five-year

period have made possible the following

types of studies, all of which are still in-

complete.

1. Statistical analyses of local popula-

tions were made to determine the standard

deviation and coefficient of variation of

several morphological characteristics of

these species. These have also been checked

10 JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

by the computation of Student’s ¢ for the

significance, or level of confidence, of

these data. |

2. Comparative studies of the abun-

dance and distribution of several species

before and during the rainy season were

made.

3. Comparisons of populations were

made throughout the range for some of

the species. For this it was determined by

statistical methods that sample stations

arranged on a 100-mile grid are of signi-

ficance for variational studies within this

genus. Further collecting has been under-

taken by visiting as many grid stations as

possible throughout the range of the

species.

4. Studies of local ecological factors

have been made as far as possible at each

of the stations under survey.

5. During the 1961 season, extensive

behavioral studies were made, so that some

comparative ethology is now possible.

6. Anatomical studies in the field, which

show changing conditions in the digestive

tract and reproductive system throughout

the adult life, are now underway.

7. Dispersal and movement studies were

made by the use of the marking, release,

and recovery procedure. (For this method,

I suggest the name: PNMR system, stand-

ing for Population density = Number ob-

served multiplied by number marked and

divided by number recaptured. )

8. Host plant and habitat specificity

data have been gathered where possible.

The remainder of this paper will report

some of the data obtained, and a pre-

liminary interpretation of these data.

Results

Desert islands. The mountains of south-

ern Arizona are isolated by a surrounding

barrier of desert flatland. The 1957 sea-

son of collecting showed that few tarnished

beetles are desert inhabitants; most species

are found in canyons or at higher levels

in the mountains. The next two seasons

of collecting before and during the rains

yielded the following hypothesis:

Most tarnished beetles apparently spend

JANUARY, 1962

their larval life in canyons or on moun-

tains. As the rainy season progresses, the

pollen-feeding adults migrate to the mouth

of the canyon where they feed on the new

blossoms. Eventually they move out onto

the desert floor where they meet members

of neighboring populations. Copulation

takes place throughout the adult life of

these beetles. It may be supposed there-

fore, that isolation is incomplete. There

is enough intermixing of the respective

gene pools to provide the variation seen

in these species. This, if true, also ac-

counts in part for the lack of clear geo-

graphical races in these species. The

material available is still under study. The

statistical calculations made so far seem

to bear this out, and have been partially

reported (Arnett, 1960). This study indi-

cates that centrifugal population variation

has taken place in at least one species.

The general effect of this desert island

hypothesis seems to be the addition of

another dimension, that of ecology. In

the eastern United States where ecological

change is more gradual, geographical races

are more evident because of the absence

of the additional complications of partial

seasonal isolation and _ perhaps longer

breeding seasons accompanied by greater

dispersal.

Behavior. Several interesting behavioral

observations have been added to the grow-

ing wealth of data. The best were obtained

during the 1961 season, when the actions

of the tarnished beetle, Oxacis subfusca,

while feeding on prickly poppy were ob-

served (Fig. 3) for many hours. In 1959

they were seen to feed on the pollen, not

occasionally, as was earlier thought, but

routinely. The following account is a typi-

cal observation taken from notes made

July 22, 1961 in Pena Blanca Canyon, be-

sinning at 5:30 a.m. It was light at this

hour, but of course the sun had not risen

above the canyon rim. Even so, it was

bright enough for the poppy blossoms,

which close at night, to be open. Two

blossoms were under observation, each

harboring a single beetle. These were

SQW

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: WH

: RR ANOW

BX4Q

RSS

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hs a

a tarnished beetle in a poppy flower.

re JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

called A and B, but B’s actions are omitted

from the following record. (A measured

9 mm. in length. )

“A is under the anthers. It emerges

_ once or twice during 10-minute periods to

feed on the pollen. It keeps its body hid-

den. 6:05—A is feeding on the anthers

near the base. 6:07—-A emerges from

among the anthers and is crawling on top

of the pollen sacs. It is feeding by grasp-

ing the sacs with its mandibles. It ruptures

these and pushes the pollen into its mouth

by means of the palpi. It continues to

feed, going from anther to anther, leaving

little nicks in the side of the partially de-

flated sac. Feeding continues steadily.

6:20—an ant, one-half the length of A.

crawls onto the flower. A leaves the

anthers and moves much more quickly

than before and with jerks, which are not

characteristic of its normal gait. A is run-

ning across the petals waving its antennae.

When the ant comes close to A, it goes

under a petal. 6:22—A and the ant are

both active, neither of them approach the

pollen sacs. 6:23—a small bee landed

near A, which causes some nervous activ-

ity. The bee flies away. (Several honey

bees have flown by, but have not stopped

to feed on the pollen or nectar.). 6:24—

the ant leaves; A is still out on the petals.

6:33—A seems to be “licking” the petals

with the ligula. 6:37—a honey bee lands

on a petal and searches for the pollen sacs

for a moment. and then flies away. A is

only slightly excited, but remains on the

petal. 6:40 to 6:50—A inactive on petal.

6:50—another ant arrives on the petal; A

shows little excitment, but goes to the edge

of the petal, where it nearly falls off. Now

it crawls under the petal for a moment.

but immediately reappears, then ducks

back under when the ant approaches. 6:59

—two ants arrive on the poppy blossom

and seem to be chasing A. 7:02—A

actively runs for a moment, then rears up

on the hind two pairs of legs and flies

away toward the nearby mesquite trees.”

Some tarnished beetles spend the night

closed inside the blossoms of prickly

JANUARY, 1962

poppy. Others leave the blossoms after

feeding and rest in nearby trees. They

have been observed to leave the blossoms.

circle once or twice, apparently for orien-

tation, and then fly to a mesquite or a

walnut tree. Their actions in the trees

have beeen observed by means of power-

ful binoculars. When they first arrive.

they are rather active and nervous. They

will crawl up and down a leaf several

times, but eventually come to rest on the

bark of the branch where they remain in-

definitely. Specimens have been watched

for hours in this position with no move-

ment of any sort observed. Beating trees

at night has knocked specimens into nets,

which shows that some spent the night in

this position.

Population movements. The first mark-

ing experiments were conducted during

the 1961 season. Marking was done by

painting small spots of quick-drying

enamel paint of various colors on the

beetles. A code system was used. An as-

sortment of colors and positions indicated

the date and place of capture and release,

so that upon recovery the exact flight dis-

tance could be recorded. All marked speci-

mens were released in the same quadrant

in which they were captured.

These first studies showed that these

beetles readily fly at least 1500 feet from

blossom to blossom, and probably further,

although this is the greatest distance yet

recorded. Specimens were marked and re-

leased some distance from the gasoline

lanterns at night. Releases were made at

the four points of the compass about 500

feet from the light. Recovery was not

made on the night of release, but from one

to several nights later. These same speci-

mens were also recovered on succeeding

days on poppy blossoms up to 1500 feet

away.

Three areas of poppies were staked out

in quadrants of 25 square feet for exten-

sive marking experiments. Counts were

taken over a period of fifteen days, four

times a day at 8 and 10 a.m., noon, and 3

p.m. Up to 200 individuals were marked

for a single experiment. These studies

showed that there is an hourly as well as

a seasonal fluctuation in the population on

the poppies. It is reasonable to conclude

that the hourly fluctuation is brought about

by changes in relative humidity, or more

accurately, by rate of evaporation if the

latter had been measured. Further, it

seems reasonable to suppose that the popu-

lation fluctuation over the period was due

to the increase of rain, with an increase in

the population, and then the drying after

the rain, with a decrease in the population,

this total population fluctuation being con-

nected with the amount of rain falling in

this particular area.

The marking experiments have also

shown that the beetles will move about in

a poppy field at random for several days.

Then they disappear, apparently going to

nearby trees. After a week to ten days they

again return to the poppies. This led to

another interesting, but inconclusive dis-

covery described below.

Internal anatomy. When it was first ob-

served that these beetles leave the poppies

for awhile and then return, some dissec-

tions were made in the field. These re-

vealed that there is present in both sexes

a large sac or diverticulum located im-

mediately behind the oesophagus. This

sac fills the major part of the abdomen

and contains nothing but undigested pol-

len. It is obvious that the beetles feed on

the pollen until this sac is full, then leave

the poppies. At the time they leave, the

oviducts of the female are empty, with no

sign of egg development, although copula-

tion apparently has taken place. These

dissections consistently show this condi-

tion. Also, in the one case of a specimen

recovered after an absence of several days,

the sac as well as the oviducts were empty.

As yet, full oviducts have never been ob-

served. These facts may mean that pollen

is used in egg development, which takes

place during the absence of the individuals

from the poppy fields, and that eggs are

laid at this time.

Miscellaneous. The total population of

the Walker Canyon corral area has been

estimated at between 1500 and 3000 adults.

This has been done by making use of the

PNMR method. The more refined methods

of measuring total populations and adjust-

ing for survival-rates (i.e., new emerg-

ences, invasion, emigration, and death)

have not been employed in these computa-

tions.

Never once was a predator noted. The

most disturbing influence on the popula-

tions under study were the grasshoppers

that emerged at the end of the rainy season

when the tarnished beetles had nearly dis-

appeared. The grasshoppers eat both the

petals and the pollen sacs of the poppies

and quickly drive away any remaining

tarnished beetles. No spider, bird, or in-

sect was observed attacking these beetles.

Interpretation of Present Data

By all commonly understood definitions.

the species of Oxacis are rare. Because of

the confusion in the usage of this term,

it seems more descriptive to apply the

word underabundant when referring to

populations such as these. The implication

of the use of this term is that of a popula-

tion potentially able to increase, and able

to continue an adaptive pattern of specia-

tion. This is in contrast to a rare popula-

tion that has ceased to expand and develop.

The rare population is heading toward ex-

tinction, or at best, it has ceased to

change and expand.

Some of the data in support of the

theory of underabundant populations have

been given above. This may be summar-

ized as follows:

1. Many of the species of Oxacis are

extremely variable morphologically. so

that the separation of species is difficult

and is possible only after a study of a

large population sample.

2. Partial isolation by desert islands has

resulted in minute local population differ-

ences, yet there is enough mixing of the

various gene pools to keep the species

intact and to prevent subspeciation.

3. Present evidence seems to indicate

that predation, on the adults at least. does

14 JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

not keep the population in check. Lack of

food supply of the adults certainly is not a

factor. It can only be concluded that the

populations remain underabundant because

of some unknown factors in their pre-adult

~ development, and some genetical factors

which prevent them from occupying a

larger range. These factors are many, no

doubt, and warrant a much fuller study.

At any rate, in contrast to the normal pat-

tern of an abundant species, where food

supply and predators may be the limiting

factors, these conditions do not obtain in

the adult tarnished beetles.

Future Research

Much remains to be done. These re-

searches need to be refined by gathering

more data in future years. The greatest

handicap at the present time is the as-yet-

unknown life cycle.

During the course of this study it has

become increasingly evident that much

more could be accomplished by making

use of more laboratory equipment in the

field. By proper instrumentation, many

refined measurements can be made in the

field. Microhabitat studies should be made,

including records of changes in relative

humidity, local rainfall, temperature, and

soil chemistry. Better facilities for a study

of the changes in internal organs are need-

ed and could be available in a mobile

laboratory in the form of a converted

“camper” type house trailer, equipped with

a gasoline-operated power plant and the

necessary laboratory equipment.

It is hoped that future studies of this

type in the Pena Blanca area can be made

to test the present theory, not only by a

study of the tarnished beetles, but by a

study of other organisms, both animals and

plants.

Literature Cited

menett, R. H., Jr.

1958. Contribution towards a monograph of

the Oedemeridae. 11. Speciation and distri-

bution in the genus Oxacis. Proc. 10th Inter-

national Congress of Entomology J, 805-811.

JANUARY, 1962

1959. Research report of grant no. 2205. Year

Book of the American Philosophical Society

1958, 247-250.

1960. Contribution towards a monograph of

the Oedemeridae. 13. The “Fragilis” com-

plex of the genus Oxacis. Coleopt. Bull. 14,

33-44.

THE BROWNSTONE TOWER

Writing this col-

umn just before

Christmas, I can-

not develop a sub-

ject that requires

time-consuming in-

Vie Seino) a Eom.

It seems best there-

fore to write about

the agency that

employs me, the

National Academy of Sciences—National

Research Council (NAS-NRC), which

should be better known in Washington

than it is. |

What is NAS-NRC? To Washingtonians

it is a monumental white marble building

on Constitution Avenue between 21st and

22nd streets. In the line of marble build-

ings, it stands between the Federal Reserve

and the American Institute of Pharmacy.

To tourists it is a building that excites

curiosity. It looks as if some interesting

exhibits should be housed in it, but there

are displayed only the medals and a copy

of the charter of the National Academy of

Sciences, and the building is not open to

those passing by. To members it is a goal

achieved and an opportunity for service—

the building is a beautiful symbol of their

professional eminence and a convenient

place for holding small meetings. To the

staff the building is the headquarters of a

great variety of activities that depend upon

voluntary participation of hundreds of

scientists and engineers throughout the

United States. There is probably no idea

or plan for the improvement of American

science or its applications in the United

States or abroad that has not been voiced

by someone connected with NAS-NRC, and

many of these plans are launched within it.

Usually NAS-NRC acts in an advisory or

catalytic capacity; it does not perform the

teaching or research functions of a uni-

versity, but it does influence what is done

in the universities and in industrial and

governmental research and development. A

sharper explanation of the functions and

activities of NAS-NRC would require, as

examples, descriptions of many _ specific

projects and proposals. I hope here only

to leave with the reader a true, if indis-

tinct, impression.

As briefly as possible I shall try to

answer certain questions: What is the

origin of NAS-NRC, how does it work, and

how is it supported ?

The National Academy of Sciences was

established by act of Congress in 1863. It

is a private, self-perpetuating body now

consisting of more than 600 distinguished

natural scientists, who are pledged to ad-

vise the Government upon request without

financial compensation. During World

War I the National Research Council was

founded as a reservoir of this country’s

scientific talent upon which the Academy

could draw as needed for advisory services.

Now, so far as public service is concerned,

the Academy and the Research Council act

as a single organization under President

Detlev W. Bronk.

The membership of the Academy is

divided by scientific disciplines into 14

sections; the smallest with only 11 mem-

bers, the largest with 96. There are three

groups of members who constitute the Na-

tional Research Council—those represent-

ing national scientific societies, those repre-

senting government, and those representing

only themselves, called members-at-large.

These three groups are divided among and

attached to eight broad subject Divisions

of NAS-NRC. They can control the policies

of the Divisions and of NAS-NRC as a

whole. They may also serve on appropriate

committees of NAS-NRC. The majority of

those who serve on NAS-NRC committees

are neither members of the Academy nor

of the Research Council; they are simply

competent working scientists or engineers

who upon invitation have agreed to give

some of their time and contribute from

their knowledge and experience, without

financial compensation, to collective

thought and action on problems, plans, or

operations with which their committees are

concerned,

In addition to the eight subject Divi-

sions of the Research Council, there are

three Offices—International Relations. Sci-

entific Personnel, and Documentation—

that are concerned with the needs of all the

natural sciences.

The staff work of the NAS-NRC is done

in its main building and is also scattered

among 11 office buildings in Washington.

Staff salaries, rental of space, supplies.

equipment, communications, travel and

subsistence of committee members and

staff, etc., are paid from funds from a

variety of public and _ private sources.

NAS-NRC does not receive annual appro-

priations from Congress, but most of its

operating funds do come from Government

agencies for advisory services requested by

them. Useful projects may also be initi-

ated in NAS-NRC and offered for support

to interested Government or private agen-

cies.

From what I[ have just said, it should be

clear that NAS-NRC is not a fund-granting

agency. When and if it appears to be a

giver, it is merely allocating funds pro-

vided by another agency. Here on Consti-

tution Avenue, the National Science

Foundation, a Government agency, is the

giver; NAS-NRC, a private organization,

the receiver.

—Frank L. Campbell

16 JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Science in Washington

SCIENTISTS IN THE NEWS

This column presents brief items concerning

the activities of members of the Academy. Such

items may include notices of talks given, im-

portant conferences or visits, promotions, awards,

election to membership or office in scientific and

technical societies, appointment to technical com-

mittees, civic activities, and marriages, births, and

other family news. Formal contributors are as-

signed for the systematic collection of news at

institutions employing considerable numbers of

Academy members (see list on masthead). How-

ever, for the bulk of the membership, we must

rely on individuals to send us news concerning

themselves and their friends. Contributions may

be addressed to Harold T. Cook, Associate Editor,

U. S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural

Marketing Service, Room 2628 South Building,

Washington 25, D. C.

CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF

AMERICA

W. Gardner Lynn, professor of biol-

ogy and head of Department, has been ap-

pointed associate editor in embryology for

the American Midland Naturalist. Dr.

Lynn presented a paper, “Effects of Thiou-

rea Treatments on the Histology of the

Pituitary in Gambusea,” at the Southeast-

ern Regional Meeting of the Division of

Comparative Endocrinology, American So-

ciety of Zoologists, held in Atlanta Novem-

ber 24-25.

Frank A. Biberstein, professor of

civil engineering and head of Department,

has been appointed a member of the Stu-

dent Award Committee, American Society

for Testing Materials, Middle Atlantic Dis-

trict.

William R. Osgood, professor of civil

engineering, has been appointed a member

of the Editorial Subcommittee of the

American Society for Testing Materials

Committee C-15, Manufactured Masonry

Units.

JANUARY, 1962

GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

George W. Morey visited the Law-

rence Radiation Laboratory at Livermore,

Calif., for some experimental work on No-

vember 13-14, and the Geological Survey

Laboratory at Menlo Park, Calif., for con-

ferences on November 15.

HARRIS RESEARCH

LABORATORIES

Alfred E. Brown has been appointed

to the Scientific Manpower Commission for

a three-year term commencing January 1.

Dr. Brown also has been elected vice-presi-

dent of the Commission.

Milton Harris has been elected presi-

dent of the Yale Chemists’ Association.

Anthony M. Schwartz presented a

paper on “Recent Developments in Surface

Physics” at the semiannual meeting of the

Society of Cosmetic Chemists in New York

on November 28.

Henry Peper gave a talk on “Inter-

actions in Monolayers” at the Toni Com-

pany in Chicago on October 26. Both Toni

and Harris Research Laboratories are affili-

ates of the Gillette Company. Mr. Peper

also spoke before the American Home

Laundry Conference in Chicago October

27, on the subject of “Soils, Stains, and

Detergents.”

Milton Harris has been elected to the

Advisory Board of Chemical and Engineer-

ing News.

John Krasny presented a paper en-

titled, “Fabric Construction for Wash-and-

Wear Cottons,” at the 10th Annual Cotton

Chemical Finishing Conference in Wash-

ington on November 8.

Lyman Fourt presented a paper en-

titled, “Biophysics of Clothing for the

Cold,” at a meeting of the Northern New

England Section of the American Associa-

tion of Textile Chemists and Colorists,

held October 20 at Natick, Mass.

Alfred E. Brown gave a talk before

the Raritan Valley Subsection of the North

Jersey Section of the American Chemical

Society at New Brunswick, N. J., Novem-

ber 8, on the subject of “Creative Scien-

tists and their Stimulation in Research

Laboratories.”

Edmund M. Buras, Jr., addressed a

luncheon meeting of the Washington Sec-

tion, American Institute of Chemists, on

‘Soviet Synthetic Fiber Research,” Novem-

ber 14.

NATIONAL BUREAU OF

STANDARDS

Lawrence M. Kushner has _ been

named chief of the Metallurgy Division.

Ralph P. Hudson has been appointed

chief of the Heat Division. Dr. Hudson

will continue to serve temporarily as chief

of the Cryogenic Physics Section.

NAS-NRC

Clem O. Miller has resigned as ex-

ecutive secretary of the Division of Chem-

istry and Chemical Technology, and effec-

tive December 1 has become executive

secretary of the Research Fellowships Sec-

tion, Division of General Medical Sciences.

National Institutes of Health.

USDA, BELTSVILLE

James H. Turner, research parasitolo-

gist at the Beltsville Parasitological Labora-

tory. has been awarded a_ Fulbright

Research Grant for 1962. Dr. Turner will

investigate the pathogenicity and immu-

nology of certain ovine parasites at the

McMaster Animal Health Laboratory in

Sydney, Australia. He will be granted

leave from his position as leader of sheep

and goat helminth research at the Belts-

ville station for the duration of his stay

abroad.

E. E. Wehr gave talks on “Observa-

tions on the Schizogony of Leucocytozoon

smithi in the Turkey” at a recent meeting

of the Virginia Academy of Sciences, Lex-

ington, Va., and the Avian Diseases Meet-

ing, Morgantown, W. Va.

A. L. Taylor, leader of Nematology

Investigations, recently spent two weeks at

the Estacion Experimental Agricola, La

Molina, Peru, conferring with Dr. Juan E.

Simon, in charge of this station, and other

research technologists on investigations on

the nematode problems in that country. On

his return trip he stopped in Biloxi, Miss..

to attend the American Phytopathological

Society meetings, December 10-13.

USDA, WASHINGTON

Justus C. Ward presented a paper en-

titled “Proper Use of Pesticides” at the

meeting of Entomological Society of

America held in Miami, November 27-28.

On November 29, he became director of

the newly established Pesticides Regulation

Division, which will carry out the functions

previously performed by the Pesticides

Regulation Branch, Plant Pest Control Divi-

sion.

Harold H. Shepard, as_president-

elect of the Entomological Society of Wash-

ington, became president at the annual

business meeting on December 7.

UNCLASSIFIED

Henry P. Kalmus, associate technical

director of the Diamond Ordnance Fuze

Laboratories. has been awarded the Army’s

Gold Medal Award for Exceptional Service.

This is the highest award the Army bestows

upon a civilian. Dr. Kalmus has been is-

sued over 30 patents for inventions, many

of which are applicable to missiles, nuclear

weapons, and radar and target detection

systems which have contributed im-

measurably to developments in modern

weaponry.

Frank M. Setzler has been appointed

director of the Southeast Museum of the

North American Indian in Marathon, Fla..

according to announcement by the Crane

Foundation. Mr. Setzler retired on Janu-

ary 1 from the Office of Head Curator of

the Department of Anthropology, U. S.

National Museum.

18 JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

AFFILIATED SOCIETIES

American Institute of Electrical

Engineers, Washington Section

The Technical Group on Microelec-

tronics, on December 5, sponsored a joint

meeting with the Institute of Radio Engi-

neers and the American Society of Naval

Engineers. Gene Strull, of Westinghouse,

spoke on “Molecular Electronics.”

On December 6, the Technical Group on

Nucleonics, jointly with the Professional

Group on Nuclear Science of the Institute

of Radio Engineers, met to hear Jack

Greene, of the Office of Emergency Plan-

ning, assisted by a panel of three (D. C.

Cook, L. Costrell, and A. W. Carriker)

discuss the problem of “Radiation Instru-

ments for Family Use in Civil Defense

Emergencies.”

The December 12 general

wrongly reported in the Calendar last

month, presented Maurice J. Gelpi, of the

Westinghouse Corporation, in an analysis

of “Ultrasonics.”

meeting,

American Meteorological Society,

D.C. Branch

Helmut E. Landsberg, Office of Clima-

tology, U.S. Weather Bureau, spoke to the

Branch on December 20 on the general sub-

ject “Modification of Climate by Urbaniza-

tion,” pointing out the effects of radical

changes in the earth’s surface and air pollu-

tion on such factors as _ temperature,

humidity, wind, cloudiness, and precipita-

tion. This program was accompanied by a

short PHS film on air pollution control.

American Society of Civil Engineers,

National Capital Section

“The U.S. Highway Exchange Team

Visit to the USSR” was selected as the title

of a report by Francis C. Turner, Bureau

of Public Roads, at the December 12 din-

ner meeting. The group traveled about

8,000 miles through the Soviet Union by

air, rail, bus, and automobile to observe

construction practices, designs, traffic and

equipment.

JANUARY, 1962

American Society of Mechanical

Engineers, Washington Section

Judging by the most recent issue of the

Section Bulletin, the November meeting,

featuring a talk by A. V. Kuznetsov and a

film of the Soviet cosmonaut, Titov, was

hugely successful.

Two papers were presented at the De-

cember 14 meeting: “Thermal Design for

Power Reactors,” by James Coughlin of

Babcock & Wilcox Co.; and “Mechanical

Design for Power Reactors,” by Joseph V.

Cupo, Allis-Chalmers.

Botanical Society of Washington

New officers of the Society for 1962 were

elected on December 5. They are: A. C.

Smith, president; L. C. Cochran, vice-presi-

dent; Mason Hale, recording secretary;

Marie L. Farr, corresponding secretary;

A. A. Piringer, treasurer; and O. L. Justice

and D. D. Keck, councillors. Following

the installation ceremonies, the retiring

president, W. D. McClellan, spoke on

“Weeds, Worms, and Other Worrisome

Things.”

Chemical Society of Washington

The December meeting, held at the Na-

tional Institutes of Health, featured Karl

A. Folkers, executive director of funda-

mental research at Merck and Company

and president-elect of the American Chemi-

cal Society, who spoke on “Newer Aspects

of Chemical and Biological Research on

Coenzyme Q.”

Four Topical Groups held before-dinner

meetings. Paul L. Day of FDA addressed

the Biochemical Group on “The Science of

Biochemistry: Past, Present, and Future.”

Milton Orchin of the University of Cin-

cinnati addressed the Organic Group on

“Cis-trans Isomerization Catalyzed by

Selenium.” George F. Fraenkel of Colum-

bia University addressed the Physical

Group on “The Determination of Electron

Distributions from Electron Spin Reson-

ance Spectra.” And Bourdon F. Scribner

of NBS addressed the Analytical Group on

“An Analytical Tour of West Europe.”

Geological Society of Washington

G. Arthur Cooper, retiring president,

spoke at the December 13 meeting on the

topic “Stratigraphy of Glass Mountains,

Texas.” The 69th annual meeting of the

Society followed, at which time officers for

1962 were elected.

Institute of Radio Engineers,

Washington Section

At the general meeting on December 12,

a program postponed from November pre-

sented Paul H. Robbins, executive director

of the National Society of Professional En-

gineers, in an examination of the proposi-

tion that “Your Technology is Not

Enough.”

Technical meetings during the month of

December included the following: Decem-

ber 4—‘‘Mohole Measurement Problems’”’;

December 6—*Civilian Instruments for

Measurement of Radiation Fallout’; De-

cember 14—*‘Kilomegacycle Computer Cir-

cuits and Systems”; December 19—

“Scoring Criteria for Determining RFI

Damage”; and “Electronically Scanned

Satellite Antennas.”

Measures are being taken looking toward

eventual merger of the Institute of Radio

Engineers and the American Institute of

Electrical Engineers. A detailed considera-

tion of this problem appears in the De-

cember issue of the Washington Bulletin,

by L. V. Berkner.

Philosophical Society of Washington

The Tenth Annual Christmas Lectures,

by Frank D. Drake of the National Radio

Astronomy Observatory, examined two

topics, the first on December 21, the sec-

ond on December 22: “Searching for Life

in Space,” and “Cosmic Radio Waves.”

Officers of the Philosophical Society for

1962 are R. D. Myers, president; F. N.

Frenkiel and M. M. Shapiro, vice-presi-

dents; L. Slack, corresponding secretary;

M. C. Henderson, recording secretary; and

J. S. Toll, treasurer. Members-at-large of

the General Committee are L. M. Brans-

comb, U. Liddel, B. W. Sitterly, and W. J.

Youden.

Society for Experimental Biology and

Medicine, D.C. Section

At the December 7 meeting, held jointly

with the local chapter of the American

Association of Clinical Chemists, four

papers were presented, as follows: “On the

Carbohydrate Moiety in Fibrinogen,” by

Koloman Laki, NIH; “Development of the

Laboratory Detection of Hepatoma in

Rainbow Trout,” by S. F. Snieszko, Fish

and Wildlife Service; ““Automation in the

Clinical Laboratory,” by J. N. Stabile,

Walter Reed; and “Effects of Mannitol on

Renal Blood Flow in Experimental Hypo-

tension,” by W. E. Braun and L. S. Lilien-

field, Georgetown University.

Society of American Military

Engineers, Washington Post

Herbert A. Swenson, Geological Survey.

addressed the luncheon meeting on De-

cember 18 on the topic, “Geological Survey

Research in Water.”

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Events which will take place, so far as we

can determine at the time of writing, are noted

below. Where no indication of the program other

than date appears, it will in most instances be a

regularly scheduled meeting of the society. Last-

minute changes in time and place, or emergency

cancellations, cannot be reflected here.

January 11—American Society of Mechani-

eal Engineers, Washington Section

PEPCO Auditorium, 10th and E Sts.,

N.W., 8:00 p.m.

11—Chemiecal Society of Wash-

January

ington

Two Topical Group meetings at 5 p.m.:

Inorganic, D. L. Leussing, National Bu-

reau of Standards, “The Transition Metal

Ion-Mercaptide Coordination Compounds’;

Analytical, L. T. Hallett, American Chemi-

cal Society, “The Author, the Reader, and

the Editor.”

Social period at 6 p.m., and dinner at

6:45, at Holy Redeemer Catholic Church,

Berwyn Road, College Park.

The general meeting at 6:15 will feature

20 JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

three concurrent sessions with two speak-

ers each, as follows: I. “Recent Advances

in Agricultural and Food Chemistry,” with

Edward O. Haenni of FDA and Sam R.

Hoover of USDA; II. ‘‘Recent Advances

‘in Chemotherapy,” with Abraham Goldin

of GWU and Albert Sjoerdsma of NIH;

III. “The Chemistry of Macromolecules in

Biological Systems,” with Leo Mandelkern

of NBS and Sterling B. Hendricks of

USDA.

All lectures in Nathan L. Drake Lecture

Hall, University of Maryland, except that

Session III will be held in the Physics

Building.

January 15—Acoustical Society of America,

Washington Chapter

National Bureau of Standards, 8:00 p.m.

January 15—Institute of Radio Engineers,

Washington Section

Meeting of Professional Group on En-

gineering Management.

January 15—Society of American Military

Engineers, Washington Post

YWCA, 17th and K Sts., N.W. Luncheon

at noon.

January 16—Columbia Historical Society

Annual Meeting in Heurich Mansion.

Two papers will be presented: “Chron-

icles,” by Miss Elizabeth Clark; and

“Divided Loyalties in Washington at Time

of the Civil War,” by James H. Whyte.

January 16—Institute of Radio Engineers,

Washington Section

Meeting of Professional Group on An-

tennas and Propagation.

January 17—Insecticide Society of Wash-

ington

Symons Hall, University of Maryland,

8:00 p.m.

January 17—Washington Society of Engi-

neers

Powell Auditorium, 8:00 p.m.

January 18—Society of American Foresters,

Washington Section

YWCA, 17th and K Sts., N.W. Dinner

meeting at 6:30 p.m.

January 19—Institute of Radio Engineers,

Washington Section

Meeting of Professional Group on Re-

liability and Quality Control.

JANUARY, 1962

January 22—Institute of Radio Engineers,

Washington Section

Meeting of Professional Group on Elec-

tron Devices.

January 23—American Society of Civil En-

gineers, National Capital Section

Luncheon Meeting, YWCA, 17th and K

Sts., N.W., noon.

January 23—Institute of Radio Engineers,

Washington Section

Meeting of Professional Group on Space

Electronics and Telemetry.

January 23—Society of American Bacteriolo-

gists, Washington Branch

Walter Reed Medical Center, 8:00 p.m.

January 25—American Society of Mechani-

cal Engineers, Washington Section

PEPCO Auditorium, 10th and E Sts.,

N.W., 8:00 p.m.

BOARD OF MANAGERS

MEETING NOTES

The Board of Managers held its 541st

meeting on November 7 at the National

Academy of Sciences, with President Abel-

son presiding.

Dr. Abelson reviewed the successful out-

come of the Institute on Isotopes and

Radioactivity which had been concluded

during the previous week. He read ex-

cerpts of letters from the various high

school teachers who had attended the

lectures and laboratory as well as com-

ments from auditors who also had been

present. He indicated that it was planned

to outline the whole procedure involved in

organizing such an institute with the hope

that it would be used as a model through-

out the country. On motion of Dr. Rob-

bins, the Board unanimously commended

Dr. Abelson for his fine performance in

organizing and conducting the Institute.

The minutes of the 540th meeting were

approved with minor corrections.

Announcements. Dr. Abelson announced

appointment of the Membership Com-

mittee’s new Panel on Engineering, as fol-

lows: William G. Allen (chairman), John

A. Bennett, John L. Torgesen, William A.

Geyger, and Joseph M. Caldwell.

Meetings Committee. Dr. Frenkiel an-

nounced that the next meeting of the Acad-

emy would be held on Friday, November

17, and that Roger Revelle of the Depart-

ment of Interior would speak on “The

Tragic Scissors of Pakistan” —a discussion

of lands ruined by irrigation. He observed

that the change from the regular Thursday

meeting night had been necessitated by the

Cosmos Club’s birthday celebration.

Dr. Frenkiel also announced that the fol-

lowing lecture would be held on Thursday,

November 30, at which time Richard H.

Bolt of NSF would speak on “Planning Re-

sources for Scientific Progress.”

Membership Committee. Dr. Robbins

gave the first reading of the names of 35

candidates for membership in the Academy.

Committee on Grants-in-aid. Dr. Me-

Pherson reported that $854 remained for

grants-in-aid, after action had been taken

by the AAAS to reimburse the Academy

for the $300 earlier donated for the sup-

port of high school students engaged in

summer research.

The Board approved an increase in a

previously-approved grant to Thomas G.

Hoffman of Fairfax High School, from $55

to $100. It also approved a grant of $50

to Richard Peacock for a study of the re-

cently-reported “mouse eruption” at Dulles

Airport.

Policy and Planning Committee. Dr.

Campbell reported the Committee’s views

on the Academy’s most urgent needs, as

follows: (1) Consideration must be given

to restaffing the Academy office, to furnish

the officers with relief from the chores

which beset them; (2) the membership

should be increased, partly by reaching

more eligible individuals under the present

criteria, and partly through consideration

of other membership structures which

would broaden the base of support; (3)

the proposed increase in dues is a vital

need. Concerning these needs, Dr. Camp-

bell observed that one of the chores, in-

volving sales of back issues of the Journal

and other Academy publications, might

very well be turned over to a commercial

organization; and that for staffing the

office, it would be desirable to find a re-

tired WAS member to serve as executive

secretary, with such clerical assistance as

could be afforded.

Committee on Encouragement of Science

Talent. The Secretary reported for Dr.

Brenner that the Junior Academy has a

growing interest in the publication of an-

nual proceedings, and that he was making

an effort to promote this in various practi-

cal ways. He indicated that papers would

be presented again this year at the Junior

Academy’s December meeting.

Secretary's report. The Secretary re-

ported that, as of November 6, there were

641 resident active members, 66 resident

emeritus members, 164 nonresident active

members, 70 nonresident emeritus mem-

bers, and 5 nonresident honorary members.

As concerns patron members, of whom

there are currently none, he referred to a

discussion at the previous Board meeting.

concerning the possibility of financial sup-

port of the Academy by persons not other-

wise qualified for membership. In_ this

connection, he provided the Board with a

list of names of the Academy’s eight former

patrons, elected in the period 1899-1901.

The Secretary also reported the names

of members deceased since the May meet-

ing, as follows: Herbert G. Dorsey, Sears

P. Doolittle, Perey W. Bridgman, Gotthold

Steiner, John W. McBurney, and Paul R.

Heyl.

New business. Dr. Frenkiel called atten-

tion to the revised Bulletin of the Philo-

sophical Society. He circulated copies of

a reprint from this periodical, containing

the 30th Joseph Henry Lecture by Frances

Bitter, on “New Developments in High

Magnetic Field Research.”

Chicago Academy of Sciences. At the

conclusion of regular business, Dr. Mc-

Pherson presented a talk on the organiza-

tion and program of the Chicago Academy

of Sciences. This was one of a series of

presentations on academies of science that

have been undertaken by members of the

Policy and Planning Committee.

ip JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Miscellaneous. Dr. Van Evera suggested

that the Board consider use of the Journal

to carry notices of meetings, in place of

the postcard notices presently used; this,

he felt, would effect a considerable saving

‘in the Secretary’s budget, although it would

require the planning of meetings perhaps

five weeks in advance. In the ensuing dis-

cussion by Drs. Abelson and F'renkiel, it

was brought out that setting up a meeting

so far in advance is not always feasible in

view of limitations in the availability of

speakers; also, that the Journal is geared

to the regular “third Thursday” meeting

date, and could not expect to handle notices

of special meetings on other dates. No

conclusions were reached.

SCIENCE AND DEVELOPMENT

A special transportation seminar

for educators from the University of

Belgrade was concluded November 10

at Catholic University. The seminar,

sponsored by the International Coopera-

tion Administration, was organized to as-

sist the visiting professors in planning a

school of transportation to be established

in Yugoslavia.

The Report of the President of the

Carnegie Institution of Washington,

released on December I1, is an in-

teresting account of major advances

in understanding the nature of the

universe, the structure of the earth,

and the mechanisms of life made by

scientists of the six research depart-

ments of the Institution during the

past year. Many of these contributions

were made by members of the Washington

Academy of Sciences.

The National Science Foundation

has awarded a cost-sharing contract

for research in mechanical language

translation to the Ramo-Woolridge

Corporation, Canoga Park, Calif. Re-

search has been underway on mechanical

translation of Russian to English in the

Synthetic Intelligence Department of this

corporation since 1958. Under this con-

JANUARY, 1962

tract, Ramo-Woolridge will undertake to

compile a dictionary of approximately

300,000 words of Russian text represent-

ing five fields of study, a study on cyclical

improvement of the translation program

and dictionary, and a study of overall sys-

tem considerations to determine how easily

modifications and supplements can be in-

troduced into the program.

Forty meteorologists, representing

the weather services of 30 nations,

met in Washington on November 13

for a 10-day International Meteoro-

logical Satellite Workshop. The pur-

pose of the workshop was to share with

weathermen throughout the world, the

knowledge and _ skills obtained from

America’s exploration of space for use in

daily weather forecasting. Several days of

laboratory work were scheduled to give the

participants practice in using actual satel-

lite photographs and infrared radiation

data to prepare weather analyses.

The University of Maryland has

been awarded a contract of $912,000

for a four-year interdepartmental re-

search study of materials in the solid

state. The study is sponsored by the

Advanced Research Projects Agency of the

Department of Defense. It will be con-

ducted in the Departments of Physics and

Chemistry and the Institute for Molecular

Physics. The aim of the study is to aid

scientists to understand better the physical

properties of materials and their behavior

in unusual states in the light of our present

knowledge of the structure of matter.

The Fourth Institute on Informa-

tion Storage and Retrieval will be

held February 12-16 at American

University. Topics on the program are

Organization and Management of Techni-

cal Information Centers; Management In-

formation Needs to Administer Technical

Projects; Selective Dissemination of In-

formation; Operation of Technical In-

formation Centers; Decision-Making Proc-

esses; Guidelines to Technical Library

Automation; and Management Control

Systems.

BYLAWS

OF THE

WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

(Last Revised in March 1960)

ARTICLE [—PurposeEs

Section 1. The purposes of the Washington Academy of Sciences shall be: (a) to stimulate

interest in the sciences, both pure and applied, and (b) to promote their advancement and the

development of their philosophical aspects by the Academy membership and through cooperative

action by the affiliated societies.

Section 2. These objectives may be attained by, but are not limited to:

(a) Publication of a periodical and of occasional scientific monographs and such other publi-

cations as may be deemed desirable.

(b) Public lectures of broad scope and interest in the fields of science.

(d) Promoting science education and a professional interest in science among people of high

school and college age.

(e) Accepting or making grants of funds to aid special research projects.

(f) Symposia, both formal and small informal, on any aspects of science.

(2) Scientific conferences.

(h) Organization of, or assistance in, scientific expeditions.

(1) Cooperation with other Academies and scientific organizations.

(j) Awards of prizes and citations for special merit in science.

(k) Maintaining an office and staff to aid in carrying out the purposes of the Academy.

ArticLeE II—MEMBERSHIP

Section 1. The membership shall consist of three general classes: active members (including

those in life and emeritus status), honorary members, and patrons.

Section 2. Nominations for active membership shall be presented in writing at a meeting of

the Board of Managers, each endorsed by at least two members of the Academy, one of whom shall

have knowledge of the nominee’s field. They shall be accompanied by a statement of the qualifi-

cations of the nominee and a list of his more important scientific publications and activities.

Section 3. Election to active membership shall be by vote of the Board of Managers. Final

action on nominations shall be deferred at least one week after presentation to the Board and

three-fourths of the vote cast shall be necessary to elect. An election to active membership shall

be void if the person elected does not within three months thereafter pay his dues or satisfactorily

explain his failure to do so.

Section 4. Active members shall be persons who by reason of original research or scientific

attainment are deemed worthy of the honor of election to Academy membership. They shall be

classed as resident and non-resident, those living within 25 miles of the White House, Washington,

D. C., being considered resident members. The number of active members shall not exceed 1500,

of whom not more than 1200 shall be resident members, provided that non-resident may become

resident members regardless of this limitation.

Section 5. Active members in good standing who have attained the age of 65 and are retired

from the gainful practice of their profession, or are retired before the age of 65 because of

disability, may become emeritus members. Upon request to the treasurer for transfer to this

status, they shall be relieved of the further payment of dues, beginning with the following Janu-

ary first. Such emeritus members shall receive notices of meetings without charge and, at their

request, shall be entitled to receive the Academy periodical at one-half the price to non-members.

Section 6. Life members shall be those active members who have made a single payment in

accordance with Article III, Section 2, in lieu of annual dues.

Section 7. Former active members who resigned in good standing may be reinstated upon

application to the Secretary and approval of the Board of Managers, reinstatement being regard-

less of the limitations as to size of membership. No consideration of the applicant’s qualifications

need be made by the Membership Committee in these cases.

24 JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Section 8. Honorary members shall be limited to 15 in number. To be nominated for

honorary membership, no less than two-thirds of the number of members of the Membership

Committee must (a) recognize the candidate to be distinctly outstanding in scientific accomplish-

ments and preferably to have participated or have been interested in the scientific activities of

the Washington area, and (b) recommend to the Board of Managers that the candidate be

elected. A three-fourths affirmative vote of the Board shall be required for election to honorary

‘membership. The Board of Managers, as an alternative procedure, may nominate for honorary

membership and, if two-thirds of the Membership Committee concurs, may then proceed to act on

the nomination as though the Membership Committee had initiated the action.

Section 9. Persons who have given to the Academy not less than one thousand (1,000)

dollars or its equivalent in property shall be eligible for election by the Board of Managers as

patrons of the Academy.

ArticLeE I]J—DueEs

Section 1. The annual dues of resident active members shall be six dollars and of non-

resident active members five dollars, payable January 1. Dues for fractional parts of a year shall

be at the monthly rate of one-twelfth the annual rate. Emeritus members, honorary members.

and patrons shall pay no dues.

Section 2. Active members in good standing may be relieved of further payment of dues

by making a single payment to provide an annuity equivalent to the annual dues of resident

active members (see Art II, Sect. 6). The annuity of such life members shall be computed on

the basis of an interest rate to be determined by the Board of Managers.

Section 3. Members whose. dues are in arrears for one year shall not be entitled to receive

Academy publications.

Section 4. Members whose dues are in arrears for more than two years shall be dropped

from the rolls of the Academy, upon notice to the Board of Managers unless the Board shall other-

wise direct. Persons who have been dropped from membership for nonpayment of dues may be

reinstated upon approval of the Board and upon payment of back dues for two years together

with dues for the year of reinstatement.

ARTICLE [V—OFFICERS

Section 1. The officers of the Academy shall be a President, a President-elect, a Secretary,

a Treasurer, an Editor, a Managing Editor, an Archivist, and a Custodian of Publications. All

shall be chosen from resident members of the Academy.

Section 2. The President shall appoint all committees unless otherwise directed by the

Board of Managers or provided in the bylaws. He (or his substitute—the President-elect, the

Secretary, or the Treasurer, in that order) shall preside at all meetings of the Academy and of

the Board of Managers.

Section 3. The Secretary shall act as secretary to the Board of Managers and to the

Academy at large. He shall conduct all correspondence relating thereto, except as otherwise

provided, and shall be the custodian of the corporate seal of the Academy. He shall arrange

for the publication in the Academy periodical of the names and professional connections of new

members, and also of such proceedings of the Academy, including meetings of the Board of

Managers, as may appropriately be of interest to the membership. He shall be responsible for

keeping a register of the membership, showing such information as qualifications, elections,

acceptances, changes of residence, lapses of membership, resignations and deaths, and for inform-

ing the Treasurer of changes affecting the status of members. He shall act as secretary to the

Nominating Committee (see Art. VI, Sect. 2).

Section 4. The Treasurer shall be responsible for keeping an accurate account of all receipts

and disbursements, shall select a suitable depository for current funds which shall be approved

by the Executive Committee, and shall invest the permanent funds of the Academy as directed

by that Committee. He shall prepare a budget at the beginning of each year which shall be

reviewed by the Executive Committee for presentation to and acceptance by the Board of Man-

agers. He shall notify the Secretary of the date when each new member qualifies by payment of

dues. He shall act as business adviser to the Editor and shall keep necessary records pertaining

to the subscription list. In view of his position as Treasurer, however, he shall not be required

to sign contracts. He shall pay no bil! until it has been approved in writing by the chairman of

the committee or other persons authorized to incur it. The fiscal year of the Academy shall be

the same as the calendar year.

Section 5. The President and the Treasurer, as directed by the Board of Managers, shall

JANUARY, 1962 > 25

jointly assign securities belonging to the Academy and indorse financial and legal papers necessary

for the uses of the Academy, except those relating to current expenditures authorized by the

Board. In case of disability or absence of the President or Treasurer, the Board of Managers

may designate the President-elect or a qualified Delegate as Acting President or an officer of the

Academy as Acting Treasurer, who shall perform the duties of these officers during such dis-

ability or absence.

Section 6. The Editor shall have control of the scientific content of the Academy’s publica-

tions. He shall be appointed for an indefinite term subject to annual review by the Board of

Managers, on nomination of the Executive Committee.

Section 7. The Managing Editor shall sign all contracts and is authorized to supervise all

activities connected with the production of the Academy’s publications in accordance with fiscal

and editorial plans to be approved annually by the Executive Committee and the Board of Man-

agers. He shall be appointed for a term of one year by the Board of Managers on nomination

of the Executive Committee.

Section 8. The Archivist shall maintain the permanent records of the Academy, including

important records Which are no longer in current use by the Secretary, Treasurer or other officer,

and such other documents and material as the Board of Managers may direct. The Archivist shall

be appointed by the President for a term of three years.

Section 9. The Custodian of Publications shall have general supervision of subscriptions

for the publications and of the sale of reserve stocks of publications of the Academy. He shall

recommend jointly with the Treasurer to the Board of Managers changes in the procedures and

prices relative to subscriptions, reserve stocks of publications and reprints. He shall have charge

of and be responsible for reserve stocks of the Academy’s publications, and shall maintain a

detailed inventory of reserve stocks. The Custodian of Publications shall be appointed by the

President for a term of three years.

Section 10. All officers and chairmen of standing committees shall submit annual reports

at the January meeting of the Board of Managers.

Section 11. No one shall be eligible to hold elective office until one year after election to

membership.

Section 12. Prior to November | of each year the Nominating Committee (Art. VI, Sect. 2),

having been notified by the Secretary, shall meet and nominate by preferential ballot, in the

manner prescribed by the Board of Managers, one person for each of the offices of President-

elect, of Secretary and of Treasurer, and four persons for the two Managers-at-large whose terms

expire each year. It shall, at the same time and in like manner, make nominations to fill any

vacancy in the foregoing. Not later than November 15, the Secretary shall forward to each

Academy member a printed notice of these nominations, with a list of incumbents. Independent

nominations may be made in writing by any ten active members. In order to be considered, such

nominations must be received by the Secretary before December 1.

Section 13. Not later than December 15, the Secretary shall prepare and mail ballots to

members. Independent nominations shall be included on the ballot, and the names of the nominees

shall be arranged in alphabetical order. When more than two candidates are nominated for the

same office the voting shall be by preferential ballot in the manner prescribed by the Board of

Managers. The ballot shall contain also a notice to the effect that votes not received by the

Secretary before the first Thursday of January, and votes of members whose dues are in arrears

for one year, will not be counted. The Committee of Tellers shall count the votes and report the

results at the annual meeting of the Academy.

Section 14. The newly elected officers shall take office at the close of the annual meeting,

the President-elect of the previous year automatically becoming President.

ARTICLE V—BOoARD OF MANAGERS

Section 1. The activities of the Academy shall be guided by the Board of Managers, con-

sisting of the President, the President-elect, one Delegate from each of the affiliated societies, the

Secretary, the Treasurer, six elected Managers-at-large, the Editor, the Managing Editor, the

Archivist, and the Custodian of Publications. The elected officers of the Academy shall hold like

offices on the Board of Managers.

Section 2. One Delegate shall be selected by each affiliated society (see Art. VIII, Sect. 3).

He shall serve until replaced by his society. Each Delegate is expected to participate in the

meetings of the Board of Managers and vote on behalf of his society.

26 JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Section 3. The Board of Managers shall transact all business of the Academy not otherwise

provided for. A quorum of the Board shall be nine of its members.

Section 4. The Board of Managers may provide for such standing and special committees

as it deems necessary.

Section 5. The Board shall have power to fill vacancies in its own membership until the

next annual election. This does not apply to the offices of President and Treasurer (see Art. IV,

Sect. 5), nor to Delegates (see Art. V, Sect. 2).

ARTICLE VI—CoMMITTEES

Section 1. An Executive Committee shall have general supervision of Academy finances,

approve the selection of a depository for the current funds, and direct the investment of the

permanent funds. At the beginning of the year it shall present to the Board of Managers an

itemized statement of receipts and expenditures of the preceding year and a budget based on the

estimated receipts and disbursements of the coming year, with such recommendations as may

seem desirable. It shall be charged with the duty of considering all activities of the Academy

which may tend to maintain and promote relations with the affiliated societies, and with any other

business which may be assigned to it by the Board. The Executive Committee shall consist of

the President, the President-elect, the Secretary and the Treasurer (or Acting Treasurer) ex

officio, as well as two members appointed annually by the President from the membership of the

Board.

Section 2. The Delegates shall constitute a Nominating Committee (see Art. IV, Sect. 12).

The Delegate from the Philosophical Society shall be chairman of the Committee, or, in his

absence, the Delegate from another society in the order of seniority as given in Article VIII,

Section 1.

Section 3. The President shall appoint in advance of the annual meeting an Auditing

Committee consisting of three persons, none of whom is an officer, to audit the accounts of the

Treasurer (Art. VII, Sect. 1).

Section 4. On or before the last Thursday of each year the President shall appoint a com-

mittee of three Tellers whose duty it shall be to canvass the ballots (Art. IV, Sec. 13, Art.

Wile Seet..1).

Section 5. The President shall appoint from the Academy membership such committees as

are authorized by the Board of Managers and such special committees as necessary to carry out

his functions. Committee appointments shall be staggered as to term whenever it is determined

by the Board to be in the interest of continuity of committee affairs.

ArTICcLE VII—MEETINGS

Section 1. The annual meeting shall be held each year in January. It shall be held on the

third Thursday of the month unless otherwise directed by the Board of Managers. At this meet-

ing the reports of the Secretary, Treasurer, Auditing Committee (see Art. VI, Sect. 3), and

Committee of Tellers shall be presented.

Section 2. Other meetings may be held at such time and place as the Board of Managers

may determine.

Section 3. The rules contained in “Robert’s Rules of Order Revised” shall govern the

Academy in all cases to which they are applicable, and in which they are not inconsistent with

the bylaws or the special rules of order of the Academy.

ArticLe VIII—Corporation

Section 1. The term “affiliated societies” in their order of seniority (see Art. VI, Sect. 2)

shall be held to cover the:

Philosophical Society of Washington

Anthropological Society of Washington

Biological Society of Washington

Chemical Society of Washington

Entomological Society of Washington

January, 1962 27

National Geographic Society

Geological Society of Washington

Medical Society of the District of Columbia

Columbia Historical Society

Botanical Society of Washington

Washington Section of Society of American Foresters

Washington Society of Engineers

Washington Section of American Institute of Electrical Engineers

Washington Section of American Society of Mechanical Engineers

Helminthological Society of Washington

Washington Branch of American Society for Microbiology

Washington Post of Society of American Military Engineers

Washington Section of Institute of Radio Engineers

District of Columbia Section of American Society of Civil Engineers

District of Columbia Section of Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine

Washington Chapter of American Society for Metals

Washington Section of the International Association for Dental Research

Washington Section of Institute of the Aerospace Sciences

D. C. Branch of American Meteorological Society

Insecticide Society of Washington

Washington Branch of the Acoustical Society of America

Washington Section of the American Nuclear Society

and such others as may be hereafter recommended by the Board and elected by two-thirds of

the members of the Academy voting, the vote being taken by correspondence. A society may be

released from affliation on recommendation of the Board of Managers, and the concurrence of

two-thirds of the members of the Academy voting.

Section 2. The Academy may assist the affiliated scientific societies of Washington in any

matter of common interest, as in joint meetings, or the publication of a joint directory: Provided.

it shall not have power to incur for or in the name of one or more of these societies any expense

or liability not previously authorized by said society or societies, nor shall it without action of the

Board of Managers be responsible for any expenses incurred by one or more of the affiliated

societies.

Section 3. Each afhliated society shall select one of its members as a Delegate to the

Academy who is a resident member of the Academy (Art. V, Sect. 2).

Section 4. The Academy may establish and assist a Washington Junior Academy of Sciences

for the encouragement of interest in science among students in the Washington area of high

school and college age.

ArTICLE [X—-AWARDS AND GRANTS-IN-AID

Section 1. The Academy may award medals and prizes, or otherwise express its recognition

and commendation of scientific work of high merit and distinction in the Washington area. Such

recognition shall be given only on approval by the Board of Managers of a recommendation by a

committee on awards for scientific achievement.

Section 2. The Academy may receive or make grants to aid scientific research in the Wash-

ington area. Grants shall be received or made only on approval by the Board of Managers of a

recommendation by a committee on grants-in-aid for scientific research.

ARTICLE X—-AMENDMENTS

Section 1. Amendments to these bylaws shall be proposed by the Board of Managers and

submitted to the members of the Academy in the form of a mail ballot accompanied by a state-

ment of the reasons for the proposed amendment. A two-thirds majority of those members voting

is required for adoption. At least two weeks shall be allowed for the ballots to be returned.

Section 2. Any affliated society or any group of ten or more members may propose an

amendment to the Board of Managers in writing. The action of the Board in accepting or reject-

ing this proposal to amend the bylaws shall be by a vote on a roll call, and the complete roll

call shall be entered in the minutes of the meeting.

& JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Delegates to the Washington Academy of Sciences, Representing

the Local Affiliated Societies*

SEM SaGlely Of WaShINgtOny \..................... ccsessvessecsesssnsscsssssssssssovseneesenseceass Lawson M. McKenzie

mmtnropological Society of Washington ......................csscssscsesesssessssssseseeeneeen Recina FLANNERY HERZFELD

IME GLO IW SEMIN ELON 5. 5..5.<cc6s0cs<5.0ncneocvsccusscnavsconsiedeessotaoasdvedestarevevsvansenssvnes HERBERT FRIEDMANN

seth WASHINGTON 6 ..ccc cece csc: cosscssscssssessevstccscessvecnsecosecvcedcecnsssvtedsenvenssonerse JoHn L. Torcesen

SnTea SOcicty Of Washingt0on .....................0.0. cscsssscseoseeScectsencceescesesencesssneseecenensas Witiiam E. BicKLey

MMU PNETATNIC SOCICLY. <0. ..ccc.c.cccctcnencveseecntecssntncvee cossantstenoeessvevesaneunessessorsntecseneeanenas ALEXANDER WETMORE

MI SOCIELY Of WASHINGTON ..2....62.00...6.. cs cscs see soeseeseneeeeessenesseonssveveesssavessesanesions Marcaret D, Foster

Medical Society of the District of Woltmbiaeemen: tea eee ate ces et FREDERICK O. CoE

MINNIE FRI IE SOCICUY oie... cece codec snsendcanseacensenctasevasueus, stedeusecuevavenaspsvenestosdenasnsancractens U. S. Grant, III

TET EVMO TMV ASIEN TON, (0. cchanee-cecessancocsooescotmntuctsecevedcedesesnucedendalocsisecsnenteessbasnaneneses Harotp T. Cook

MIE PIDETACAT FHOLESLETS. ..,.,...-.c.<--.c.cscscedeoccnesentenesievssesnsoescecnuessusenessestenentuaacseueeaesene Harry A. Fowe ts

RIES GGICEV EOF MEN CINEET Soo... 2c cn.catece ancy edeqseenshoaseeeesesenstenesscstsestecssscounsveensenonss Howarp S. RAPPLEYE

Wmerican Institute of Electrical Engineers ....................00....cccccccccceesccecescccesssceessceessseeenes WILLIAM A. GEYGER

Mimerican, society of Mechanical Engineers .............::.......cc..css.cc0scessssesescesescessseessseseessoees Wittram G. ALLEN

Melminthological Society of Washimgton «..........c.cccemccesecssesecsscssesssossvcssversssssvenevensesssececesecens Doys A. SHORB

MTS OCICIY, TOT, WIICTODIOIO SY oo c....5...cccccccccccoceessvscessvasesteoseseresessnssnsvaceaceensettens Mary Louise Rossins

MEM INeTICAN Nitlitary ENGINEETS ........:...0..:--gessseeeccsetoeeeovseensesseseeeeseusonnseeeeeesaees Delegate not appointed

Institute MOM EuteIDMT COMPA EGS 0 coeds gad: ccascdoevescsstiacedenenrooscuntso-vasseticctensasnesseacevicennensesnanse Rospert D. HunToon

Mea Society OF Civil) ENGINEETS .............c..cps.cceseneesvdersrocnseseesseseessscsnsesessersassaeasenees JosepH M. CaLpwWeELt

Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine ..............0...0.ccccececeeeeeteee este ttetetesees KATHRYN KNOWLTON

OEMS CTC E VMTN VE CUA Seinen. se scene av nce nen cubeshdoxencoveesdensiscwsseveseeSsavegueesrsrservunt sasves JoHn A. BENNETT

International Mesociapon tor Werntal Researehy ...........2:.:csscsscs-cnsseasessescssensesesesetennsnesnnneneonee GERHARD BRAUER

Srabitte Of the ACTOSPaCe SCIENCES ...................6.)ccccsccessseescssesssesecesasesseecsseesconerseseenevess Francois N, FRENKIEL

MUPEIETEATIONNIGLCOLOLOPICAl SOCLELY ......0.....01.cccc0.cncoscsecenmsecsocsonessoovesssvsaesessocevssecssengeesatensessceaeees Jack THOMPSON

BeEereIeNSOCIety Of Washington ..............0:....cccsecsucsssscsescsessesesesasoessecessusssstssasserseess MILTON S. SCHECHTER.

Acoustical Society of America .............0.ccccccccccceccecccecsetee tetas Peet ss Re rs tek AY OT te RicHarp K. Cook

SEMPER 1S OC TCU eo iis. c. occ esse secsciesnooues uot snsuoeovasatdstescesadssasvuvessscvousevspvenessssssesssaeussensens Urner LIpDDEL

*Delegates continue in office until new selections are made by the respective affliated societies.

Volume 52 JANUARY 1962 No. l

CONTENTS

Academy to Honor Six Outstanding Scientists. ........0......0.2....... 2 1

Soil Reservoirs of Pathogenic Fungi ....:...25.0.6..00i 66.1 3 |

The Tarnished~ Beetles: i...< o....cino aii Ot 9

The Brownstone Tower isasbods stchau tah hess Stndssdlwphag hs Ge aye ade he ee rr 15

Science in Washington

Scientists im the News) ....cs.$.0..0 ccc ienecliss Bienes. 2 rr i

Affiliates “Societies: 2.5. o.222s.c.citelee ky sectenchts sencgs bee seeder 19

Calendar of Events ...0).20. 0040. techs, oe ee 20

Board, of Managers Meeting Notes. ...........0....:...: 50:08. ts ee 21

Science and. Development (25.566 01:2ye-- docs sss: 240s ee ee rr 23

Bylaws of the Washington Academy of Sciences ................................0:. ae 24

Washington Academy of Sciences 2nd Class Postage

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Return Postage Guaranteed

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JOURNAL

of the

WASHINGTON

ACADEMY

CIENCES

Vol. 52 ¢ No.2

FEBRUARY 1962

~ RECEIVED“) Us

FEB 2 8 1962

LIBRARY __=

‘2 «

JOURNAL OF THE WASHINGTON ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Editor: Samuet B. Derwiter, Jr., Department of Agriculture

(sf

Associate Editors

Frank L. Campsett, National Academy of Hetnz Specut, National Institutes of Health

Sciences

Harotp T. Coox, Department of Agriculture

RicHarp P. Farrow, National Canners Asso-

ciation Joun K. Taytor, National Bureau of Standards

LAWRENCE A. Woop, National Bureau of Standards

Russet B. Stevens, George Washington

University ay

Contributors

ALBERT M. Srone, Applied Physics Laboratory GERHARD M._ BRAUER, National Been of

Joun A. O’Brien, Jr., Catholic University Standards

Cuar_Les A. WHITTEN, Coast & Geodetic Survey Howarp W. Bonp, National Institutes of Health —

Marcaret D. Foster, Geological Survey ILEEN E, Stewart, National Science Foundation

RussELL 8B. STEvENs, George Washington ALLEN L. ALEXANDER, Naval Research Laboratory

University Victor R. Boswett, USDA, Beltsville

JosepH B. Morris, Howard University Harotp T. Cook, USDA, Washington

FraNK L. CAmpBeLL, NAS-NRC WituiAM J. Battey, University of Maryland