﻿REPORT 
  OF 
  THE 
  SECRET 
  ART 
  9 
  

  

  best 
  possible 
  condition, 
  in 
  spite 
  of 
  the 
  increasing 
  shortages 
  of 
  man- 
  

   power, 
  food, 
  and 
  materials. 
  The 
  functioning 
  of 
  the 
  Zoo 
  is 
  thought 
  

   to 
  be 
  particularly 
  important 
  in 
  wartime 
  because 
  it 
  provides 
  free 
  

   recreation 
  and 
  enjoyment 
  for 
  thousands 
  of 
  war 
  workers 
  and 
  members 
  

   of 
  the 
  armed 
  forces. 
  Although 
  automobile 
  traffic 
  to 
  the 
  Zoo 
  prac- 
  

   tically 
  ceased, 
  nevertheless 
  a 
  greatly 
  increased 
  number 
  of 
  visitors 
  

   walked 
  or 
  came 
  by 
  bus 
  or 
  streetcar. 
  The 
  total 
  number 
  of 
  visitors 
  for 
  

   the 
  year 
  was 
  1,974,500. 
  Officials 
  of 
  the 
  Zoo 
  have 
  furnished 
  much 
  

   information 
  regarding 
  animals 
  to 
  the 
  War 
  and 
  Navy 
  Departments, 
  

   other 
  Government 
  agencies, 
  and 
  medical 
  groups. 
  Conditions 
  have 
  

   precluded 
  expeditions 
  by 
  the 
  Zoo 
  for 
  the 
  collection 
  of 
  animals, 
  and 
  

   few 
  animals 
  are 
  offered 
  for 
  sale 
  by 
  dealers. 
  New 
  specimens, 
  there- 
  

   fore, 
  have 
  come 
  mainly 
  through 
  gift 
  and 
  exchange. 
  In 
  addition, 
  101 
  

   mammals 
  were 
  born 
  and 
  83 
  birds 
  hatched 
  at 
  the 
  Zoo 
  during 
  the 
  year. 
  

   Despite 
  adverse 
  conditions, 
  six 
  species 
  never 
  before 
  in 
  the 
  collection 
  

   were 
  obtained; 
  these 
  included 
  a 
  specimen 
  of 
  the 
  rarely 
  exhibited 
  

   spectacled 
  bear 
  of 
  the 
  northern 
  Andes 
  and 
  a 
  white 
  starling 
  from 
  

   Java, 
  also 
  rare 
  in 
  captivity. 
  At 
  the 
  close 
  of 
  the 
  year 
  the 
  collection 
  

   contained 
  2,435 
  animals 
  representing 
  684 
  species 
  and 
  subspecies. 
  

  

  Astrophysical 
  Observatory. 
  — 
  A 
  prediction 
  of 
  the 
  march 
  of 
  solar 
  

   variation 
  from 
  1939 
  through 
  1945, 
  based 
  on 
  periodicities 
  revealed 
  by 
  

   the 
  solar-constant 
  values 
  published 
  in 
  volume 
  6 
  of 
  the 
  Annals 
  of 
  the 
  

   Observatory, 
  shows 
  that 
  the 
  years 
  1940 
  to 
  1947 
  will 
  be 
  the 
  most 
  im- 
  

   portant 
  years 
  to 
  study 
  the 
  sun's 
  variation 
  since 
  the 
  early 
  twenties. 
  

   For 
  this 
  reason, 
  every 
  effort 
  has 
  been 
  made 
  to 
  keep 
  the 
  three 
  field 
  

   observatories 
  in 
  Chile, 
  California, 
  and 
  New 
  Mexico 
  in 
  operation. 
  

   Up 
  to 
  the 
  close 
  of 
  the 
  year, 
  these 
  efforts 
  had 
  been 
  successful. 
  Further 
  

   studies 
  of 
  the 
  short-interval 
  changes 
  of 
  solar 
  radiation 
  in 
  their 
  rela- 
  

   tion 
  to 
  weather 
  have 
  been 
  even 
  more 
  convincing 
  than 
  previous 
  re- 
  

   sults. 
  The 
  weather 
  effects 
  of 
  individual 
  solar 
  changes 
  are 
  found 
  to 
  

   last 
  at 
  least 
  2 
  weeks. 
  Most 
  of 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  the 
  staff 
  at 
  Washington 
  

   has 
  been 
  devoted 
  to 
  war-research 
  problems 
  assigned 
  by 
  the 
  war 
  serv- 
  

   ices. 
  In 
  the 
  division 
  of 
  radiation 
  and 
  organisms, 
  the 
  regular 
  research 
  

   program 
  was 
  discontinued 
  in 
  August 
  1942, 
  and 
  since 
  then 
  practically 
  

   the 
  entire 
  time 
  of 
  the 
  staff 
  has 
  been 
  directed 
  toward 
  solving 
  war 
  

   problems. 
  

  

  THE 
  ESTABLISHMENT 
  

  

  The 
  Smithsonian 
  Institution 
  was 
  created 
  by 
  act 
  of 
  Congress 
  in 
  

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

   land, 
  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 
  

  

  