Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1917-08-03
Army Of Greatest
Scientists Solving
Vast War Problems
IBy Henry NJ. Hyde.]

JEy Henry ny uc.J
washington, Aug. 2.-"The commit
tee on location of airplanes by SOUND
of which G. w Stewart is chairman
and which was sent by the navy 10
navy station to make tests for a period
of two weeks, has presented full re-
mort to the navy and to the research
council, in which it is shown that this
committee has satisfactorily solved the
nrobem of the accurate location OF
noises by sound. In its work the COM
mittee was able to locate sources u
sound with an accuracy Of one degree.
THE subcommittee on the develop
ment Of telephony between alrships Vi
from airships to the srouno mas
brought that problem to satisfactory
solution
Progress on Submarines.
PROGRESS is being made in tests anu
Investigations Of various devices ior
submarine offense and defense anu
members of committee of the council
cooperating with the special SUP
marine board of the navy department.
are living at a submarine statlon, de-
voting their entire time to such IN
vestigations.
It would be easy to take the last
monthly report of the national research
council, from which the above extracts
are made, and build from 1t a most
lurid and sensational article. In fact,
il it were permitted to tell the 1ull
truth about what the various commit
tees of the national research council
have already accomplished, the story
would be startling in itself. But the
backbone of its membership is made up
of hundreds Of scientists who abhor
sensation.
1.-THE public need expect no black
magic or sensational marvels from u.s.
said DR.. George E. Hale, once of Chi
cago and the Yerkes observatory, who
is chairman of the national research
council ut is our work to help ap-
ply the principles of science to the
problems Of war. We are striving 10
add certain useful devices and discoV-
cries to the resources Of the military
and naval arms Of the government.
Superb Organization.
1t would not be fair to the research
council to allow the modesty OF lts
chairman to obscure the Importance OF
its work Certainly in its great task OF
winning the war with Germany the
United States is to have the full sup
port of it's scientists. Perhaps never
has a country at war-not even Ger
many itself-had behind it in great
national crisis such a complete ana
comprehensive organization Of sell
entific leaders Of the great engineering
societies, with missions of scientf1c
and military men from Great Britain,
France and Italy, and with experts OF
the army and navy devottng most
of their time to the solution OF war
| problems. .n
So comprehensive is the field which
| the council, thru its many ramihca-
tions Is covering, that at. hrst glance
| some Of its activities seem, quite I'M
connected with the present crisis.
| Widely Scattered.
| Take a glance, for instance, at the
report Of the subcommittee on botany
| "a subject apparently remote from the
problems Of war. At the head OF this
subcommittee is DR.. John M. Coulter,
| Of the University OF Chicago. Il has
discovered in the shape Of hitherto
waste material satisfactory supsti !
| tute for cotton in the manufacture OF
| high explosives.
It has been working to find new
sources for rubber, so vital and 50
costly product in many war 'mechan-
isms, and it reports the problem well
towards solution
i 1t has undertaken the old problem OF
producing strains Of wheat and other
cereals which will be disease resisting
and expects that some disease-re
sisting strains will soon be available.
It has found common weed which