48 ORGANIZING SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH FOR WAR 



the result of a proposal by one of its members. In general, they might be 

 expected to cover NDRC, Army and/or Navy areas; CMR, Army and/or 

 Navy areas; and sometimes might include the NACA. The scope of the 

 ad hoc inquiry and the terms of reference of the committee were deter- 

 mined by the Council. 



Depending upon whether the OSRD interest was primarily NDRC or 

 CMR, arrangements for the ad hoc committee were handled either by the 

 Chairman of the NDRC or by the Chairman of the CMR, the designation 

 of the responsible Council member being made by the Director. Civilian 

 members of an ad hoc committee might be selected from within or outside 

 OSRD. The preliminary choice of civilian members by the responsible 

 Council member was subject to review by the Army and Navy members 

 of the Council and by the Director. Army and Navy members were desig- 

 nated by the Service representative and where the NACA was involved, 

 the NACA member was selected by Hunsaker. The responsible Council 

 member also co-operated with the Chairman of the ad hoc committee by 

 attending the first meeting and advising the committee as to the general 

 mode of operation and such background of the problem as might be per- 

 tinent. When the committee submitted its report, it was dissolved and 

 copies of its report were circulated to the members of the Council. Bundy 

 and Purer were charged with conveying to their respective Services any 

 recommendations of the committee with respect to the work of the Army 

 and Navy; Hunsaker had a similar position with respect to NACA; and 

 the responsible Council member had the initiative in carrying out the 

 recommendations with respect to OSRD. 



Clearance of individuals for military research was a continuing topic 

 upon which the individual members of the Council were quite helpful. 

 Troublesome problems of liaison with the military services were frequendy 

 smoothed with the assistance of the Council. Ways in which to speed up 

 the production of newly developed weapons received a great deal of atten- 

 tion. Major changes in the organization and procedure of OSRD were dis- 

 cussed by the Director with the Council prior to their being put into effect. 

 The proper handling of an increasingly inadequate supply of scientific man- 

 power was a perennial subject for discussion which was paralleled in the 

 early days by discussions of ways by which research laboratories could be 

 assisted in obtaining badly needed equipment. 



At one time or another, nearly everything within the jurisdiction of 

 OSRD was considered in some of its aspects by the Advisory Council. The 

 greatest contribution of that body, however, was the fact that its members 

 individually provided an important high-level contact with the agencies 

 with which they were associated. Another important contribution of the 

 Council as a group was the series of ad hoc committees appointed to study 

 critical problems from time to time. Although the function of the Council 



