MARINE SCIENCE 23 



Instead of being a medium for navigation and a source of a minor 

 fraction of the world's food, it has become suddenly apparent that 

 the ocean is of the highest importance to national defense, indeed to our 

 survival. It seems unnecessary to emphasize here the possible results 

 of the development of nuclear su^bmarines and guided missiles. My 

 own personal reaction can be phrased briefly : 



"Another nation caught us practically unawares upstairs; for 

 heaven's sake, don't let the same thing happen to us down cellar." 



With this problem thrust upon us, we become unhappily aware of 

 the abysmal extent of our ignorance of the ocean in areas where 

 knowledge both wide and accurate seems essential. Others will em- 

 phasize this point but I believe it to be completely factual. 



3. The report of the committee provides a program toward its 

 goal: To overcome this handicap, the committee has recommended 

 what seems to me to be a well rounded, 10-year program of construc- 

 tion, operation, and education aimed at remedying present deficiencies 

 and providing some of the most urgently required information. 



Besides replacement of obsolete and aging ships and other equip- 

 ment, it involves construction of additional sea and shore installa- 

 tions sufficient to allow roughly a doubling of our basic oceanic re- 

 search effort. 



Basic and applied research, development of better, more accurate 

 instruments, extension of world surveying, combined with an ex- 

 panded supply of well-qualified manpower, all are involved in the 

 necessary coordinated advance on a broad front required to give us 

 what we so sorely need, a better knowledge of the ocean in all its 

 manifestations. 



It should be emphasized that without this overall approach, maxi- 

 mum benefits will not be attained. Ships, shore laboratories, new 

 devices, manpower, all are necessary and none of them is self-suf- 

 ficient without the others. 



4. The cost, while considerable, is not large in comparison with the 

 benefits to be expected : To predict exact results from this program 

 would be futile and misleading. In many instances even the prob- 

 lems camiot be clearly stated until the work is well underway. Based 

 on previous experience, however, it seems reasonable to predict that 

 discoveries of great value to the Nation and the world will result from 

 a careful, intelligent, well coordinated attack upon the myriad prob- 

 lems presented by the ocean. 



The concept that I have found helpful, Mr. Chairman, is to think 

 that there is only one space, one fluid-filled space. Now, it happens 

 one of those fluids is heavier than the other. That is water and that 

 fills the ocean. The other fluid is air, which starts from the ocean 

 up. The tie-in between the two is completely inevitable. The rela- 

 tionship between the two is as important to the human race as either 

 one taken alone. The fact is, they cannot be taken alone. 



From the defense point of view, it seems apparent that inner 

 space, represented by the ocean, is at least as immediately important 

 as outer space which now seems to capture the popular unagina- 



An accurate worldwide survey of the ocean depths, its topographic 

 features, its currents, its temperatures, and salinities, its ability to 

 support marme life— an enormous source of foods for the human 



