175 



I have been with the Academy [of Sciences] for some 7 years. I am a very 

 loyal fan and supporter of the Academy. I would like to stay on there. It has 

 been a very pleasant association. However, there are certain philosophical 

 difficulties in whether or not the Academy should become an operating organiza- 

 tion. I think the Academy doesn't want to be, but they are willing to be persuaded 

 to it in some circumstances. 



I think the Science Foundation doesn't want them to "operate," and, of course, 

 the Foundation is not an operating organization either. So the question is how 

 does one set up to support our group of people in the best possible manner. My 

 second choice, if we cannot stay at the Academy, is that we either affiliate with 

 some existing nonprofit corporation or form a new one to go ahead and do this 

 job. I think it would be probably a real mistake to go to any other course."^ 



Followino- Bascom's testimony was that of Dr. William A. Benson 

 of NSF. He assured the committee that his agency would "make every 

 effort to get the necessary funds for proceeding with the Mohole 

 project as expeditiously as possible." The Foundation was studying 

 the problem of management, but had come to no firm conclusion. 

 There was indeed a controversy as to the next step. He himself favored 

 the intermediate ship, because it could be put to good use after it was 

 built and tested. Funding was not a problem. As to the timing of the 

 completion, he concurred in Bascom's estimates.^^ 



The concluding witness. Dr. Koger Revelle, reported to the com- 

 mittee concerning the "wave of excitement and enthusiasm there is 

 among scientists all over the country and in many fields in this pro- 

 posal to drill into the interior of the earth." ^^ It was an outstanding 

 achievement : 



We have done this. We have drilled through roughly 100 times as much water 

 as any oil company has ever drilled through before, and we have drilled into 

 the bottom about 10 times as far as any oceanographer has ever done before. 

 This was done on the very first attempt. I think this is quite an accomplishment." 



After graphically describing the possibilities for the discovery of 

 important scientific information, he concluded : 



As far as I am concerned, I would divide the drilling into two parts. I think it 

 is quite essential that we get to the Moho. This is a very high priority project 

 for a variety of reasons, not the least being that it demonstrates the scientific 

 and technical competence of the United States. 



I think it also important that we drill a lot of holes through the sediments. 

 I would like to see several hundred holes * * *. 



What I would like to see us do is divide this project very shortly into two 

 parts, one essentially an oceanographic program of exploring the ocean by drill- 

 ing, as well as by the geophysical methods ; secondly, an engineering program 

 designed specifically to develop the techniques and the technology, the know-how, 

 to gain the experience, which will enable us to get down into the mantle of the 

 earth.=*' 



Dr. Revelle's estimate as to the time required to reach the mantle 

 was 3 years: "* * * i year with this intermediate drilling ship and 

 then a year to put everything that has been learned into the big drill- 

 ing ship and then 1 year more to do the drilling." His estimates to 

 the cost was between $20 and $25 million.^^ 



The requested $1 million was granted by the House, and concurred 

 in without further comment by the Senate. No effort was made to 

 prescribe the organizational form the project should assume. The tech- 

 nical question as to priority of research emphasis, Congress had been 



•• Ibid., p. 123. 



== Ibid., pp. 124-127. 

 « Ibid., p. 127. 

 •'Ibid., p. 128. 

 * Ibid., p. 134. 

 » Ibid., p. 135. 



