46 THE OCEAN FLOOR 



which is immediately before our door. The new methods 

 developed and tested by the cruises of the "Albatross" 

 and the "Galathea," to mention only two, could be 

 utilized, and the methods of analysis developed for the 

 new material of the last three and a half years could be 

 put to use. 



However, the field of work offered by the ocean floor 

 all over the world is so vast that its exploration demands 

 organized cooperation on a large scale from all sea- 

 faring nations. With the help of UNESCO efforts are 

 now being made to set up a nucleus for an international 

 organization which could serve as a center for informa- 

 tion and exchange of plans and experiences. This would 

 eliminate the undesirable wait of up to several years 

 which workers must frequently endure until the results 

 of deep-sea research are made available through pub- 

 lication. Such a nucleus would be especially useful in 

 planning and equipping new expeditions. 



A step in the right direction is the so-called "Joint 

 Commission of Oceanography," in which physical and 

 chemical oceanography, deep-sea biology, and sub- 

 marine geology are represented. It was set up in 

 September, 1 95 1 , at the last meeting of the International 

 Union of Geodesy and Geophysics in Brussels and met 

 for the first time in the fall of 1 952 in Monaco. A second 

 meeting was held in September, 1953, at Liverpool. 



In this new international work on great depths, where 

 free cooperation, unhampered by military and utili- 

 tarian views, is essential, the United States seems pre- 



