380 



also food processing or in the areas of mining, of bringing up nodules 

 from the bottom of the ocean where it could serve as 'a base for opera- 

 tions and storage until they can be transferred to a surface craft to 

 bring them to shore where they could be processed. 



In short, as a stable operating base out where the raw materials are 

 located rather than trying to use a surface platform or a vessel which 

 is exposed to the very severe ocean environment of pitching and rolling 

 which is not conducive to the efficient operations. Particularly in very 

 severe weather where operations might have to be suspended and crews 

 go to shore which would be very uneconomical. 



Mr. Downing. Thank you very much. 



Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 



Mr. Lennon. Mr, Pelly. 



Mr. Pelly. In looking through your biographical sketch, I do not 

 find that you are descended from Jules Verne but I think it could 

 well be the case. 



I don't think there is anything unrealistic or impractical about some 

 of these imaginative uses of the ocean. I, myself, feel that eventually 

 we are going to have fish farms and seafood product farms under the 

 sea and other means of providing the protein that will be needed to 

 feed the population of the world. 



So, while we might have large community centers such as the struc- 

 tures you suggest, perhaps smaller individual habitations for humans 

 to conduct necessary aquacultural operations, would seem very prac- 

 tical to me. 



Mr. Pierce. May I say, Congressman, that while part of it is imagi- 

 native, quite a bit of it is due to my experience in the space field where 

 in 1958 I saw the first Sputnik go across the sky and some 12 short 

 years later, as we see all the tremendously wonderful things that have 

 been accomplished in space from the recent trip to the moon and all 

 the various unmanned sophisticated satellites that are in the sky today, 

 at that time I would not have dared predict the amount and complexity 

 of the present accomplishments in the space field. 



I am sure with this same type of technology and the same type of 

 imaginative thinking we can do these imaginative things in the oceans 

 too. In 10 years, if we go about it properly we may be quite surprised 

 at what we can do in the oceans, possibly along some of the lines I have 

 talked about here. 



Mr. Pelly. It is hard for me to conceive of utilizing the Moon or 

 Mars as a means of providing food for mankind. I can see so many 

 better opportunities here at home. Really, we are going far afield too 

 fast and too soon relative to the way that we have conducted our own 

 exploration here on this particular planet. 



I want to thank you for your contribution here. 



I certainly think that the farmers of Iowa might well be interested 

 in oceanography as opposed to outer space because they can see some 

 of the beautiful pigs that we have heard about actually grunting and 

 running around under the sea some day. 



Mr. Lennon. The gentleman from Minnesota, Mr. Karth. 



Mr. Karth. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 



Mr. Chairman, I want to congratulate Mr. Pierce for having brought 

 to us one of those rare 'presentations where on the one hand it is spe- 

 cific and on the other hand it is also imaginative and evolutionary. 



