8 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1941 



to stimulative amounts of certain wave lengths of the ultraviolet 

 exhibited 4 to 4.8 times the growth rate (expressed as number of 

 cells) of the control cultures. The influence of culture conditions 

 on the photosynthetic behavior of the alga Chlorella pyrenoidosa 

 was investigated. The growth cycle of this organism was studied 

 in relation to light intensity, carbon dioxide concentration, and the 

 composition of the nutrient solution. A number of papers were pre- 

 sented by members of the staff before meetings of scientific bodies, 

 and six publications resulting from the work of the Division were 

 issued during the year. 



THE ESTABLISHMENT 



The Smithsonian Institution was created by act of Congress in 

 1846, according to the terms of the will of James Smithson, of 

 England, who in 1826 bequeathed his property to the United States 

 of America "to found at Washington, under the name of the Smith- 

 sonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of 

 knowledge among men." In receiving the property and accepting 

 the trust. Congress determined that the Federal Government was 

 without authority to administer the trust directly, and, therefore, 

 constituted an "establishment" whose statutory members are "the 

 President, the Vice President, the Chief Justice, and the heads of 

 the executive departments." 



THE BOAUD OF REGENTS 



Changes in the personnel of the Board of Kegents during the 

 fiscal year included the succession of Vice President Henry A. Wal- 

 lace to the membership held by former Vice President John N. 

 Garner, effective January 20, 1941, the Vice President being by law 

 a regent ex officio, and the appointment by the Speaker of the House 

 of Kepresentatives on January 22, 1941, of Eepresentative Foster 

 Stearns, of New Hampshire, to succeed Representative Charles L. 

 Gifford, who had resigned his membership as a regent. 



The roll of regents at the close of the fiscal year was as follows: 

 Charles Evans Hughes, Chief Justice of the United States, Chancel- 

 lor; Henry A. Wallace, Vice President of the United States; mem- 

 bers from the Senate — Charles L. McNary, Alben W. Barkley, 

 Bennett Champ Clark ; members from the House of Representatives — 

 Clarence Cannon, William P. Cole, Jr., Foster Stearns; citizen mem- 

 bers — Frederic A. Delano, Washington, D. C; Roland S. Morris, 

 Pennsylvania; Harvey N. Davis, New Jersey; Arthur H. Comptou, 

 Illinois; and Vannevar Bush, Washington, D. C. 



Proceedings. — The annual meeting of the Board of Regents was 

 held on January 17, 1941. The regents present were Chief Justice 



