NDRC OF OSRD — THE COMMITTEE 53 



Rear Admiral J. A. Purer March 9, 1945, to June 22, 1945 



Rear Admiral A. H. Van Keuren June 22, 1945, to November 13, 1945 



Commodore H. A. Schade November 13, 1945 — 



The committee held monthly meetings through September 1942, then 

 changed to a biweekly schedule through October and November, and to 

 weekly meetings from December 1942 through the middle of July 1943, at 

 which time the biweekly schedule was restored. This was followed until the 

 end of the war with Germany; subsequent to that event meetings were held 

 at irregular intervals. 



Organization 



With its change to an advisory capacity the National Defense Research 

 Committee was relieved of responsibility for business operations and for 

 scientific interchange with Allied governments. These responsibilities were 

 entrusted to the Administrative Office with the Executive Secretary as its 

 head and to the Liaison Office under the direction of the Senior Liaison 

 Officer. 



The reorganized Committee held its first meeting on July 18, 1941, with 

 all members present. In a series of procedural resolutions the Committee 

 indicated its intention of proceeding as it had during the earlier period. The 

 Director of OSRD was requested to appoint Tolman as Vice-Chairman and 

 Stewart as Executive Secretary of the Committee. The quorum was set at 

 five members. The Chairmen of the several divisions were instructed to 

 send to the Executive Secretary in advance of the meetings of the Commit- 

 tee summaries of items to be submitted by them for action, with each 

 summary to carry the name of the Army and Navy liaison officers who 

 participated in discussions leading to the recommendation. The summaries 

 were to be circulated to the members of the Committee in advance of meet- 

 ings insofar as practicable. 



In another series of resolutions the Committee recommended that the 

 Director of OSRD take over existing contracts entered into by the original 

 NDRC and carry out the projects for which formal contracts had not been 

 completed; that OSRD employ a contract form similar to that which 

 NDRC had used; that the compensation of persons working directly for the 

 Committee or for its contractors should be so fixed that the employee would 

 neither gain nor lose financially from such employment and that the maxi- 

 mum consideration paid under contract be so fixed as not to result in a 

 profit to the contractor; and that the policies followed by the former NDRC 

 with reference to classified matter, overhead allowances in contracts, defer- 

 ments and other procedural matters be adopted by the Director to the extent 

 that they were applicable. 



Neither the change in the nature of function of NDRC nor the entry of 

 the United States into the war brought an immediate change in the organiza- 



