October 15, 1920] 



SCIENCE 



353 



Resolved (a), That in addition to the study 

 of the post-Cretaceous stratigraphy and paleon- 

 tology of the Pacific islands and of the land 

 areas on the margins of the Pacific Ocean, 

 that such work also be expedited in the Carib- 

 bean region, and in the region fk)m Burma 

 through the Himalayas to the Mediterranean 

 Sea. 



(6) That inventories of the living fauna and 

 flora of the Pacific r^ion be prepared at the 

 earliest practicable date. 



5. Studies of Subaerial and Submarine Erosion 



Since it is coming to be recognized gener- 

 ally that a knowledge of subaerial and subma- 

 rine erosion is indispensable to a correct in- 

 terpretation of the history of the continents, 

 the continental margins, and the oceanic is- 

 lands during post^Cretaceous time, be it 



Resolved (a) That geologists, geographers, 

 seismologists, biologists and others who are 

 interested in the facts of form within the Pa- 

 cific Ocean and along its margins devote atten- 

 tion to the study of physiographic processes 

 and the forms resultant from such processes. 



(h) That geologists and physiographers 

 make special study of the physical, chemical 

 and other properties of igneous and sedimen- 

 tary rocks so as to ascertain the difference in 

 their resistance to erosive agents. 



(c) That efforts be made to obtain assistance 

 in furthering the study of such important 

 agents as wave and current erosion, factors lim- 

 iting wave base, the action of weathering and 

 corrosive agents at the headwaters of streams, 

 the forms of stream channels, the form of sea 

 cliffs at different stages of development, the 

 action of plants in retarding land erosion, and 

 the sequential stages of erosion of fault scarps. 



6. Studies of Sedimentary Processes and Sedi- 

 mentary Rocks 



Since it is generally recognized that the in- 

 terpretation of a large part of the geological 

 record demands a knowledge of the processes 

 and the results of these processes in the forma- 

 tion of deposits of past geological time; there- 

 fore be itt 



Resolved (a) That geologists, oceanograph- 



ers, geographers, biologists and others who may 

 be interested devote as much attention as pos- 

 sible to the study of modern sediments and the 

 processes by which they are formed. 



(&) That geologists make special studies of 

 the physical, chemical and other properties of 

 sedimentary rocks to ascertain the conditions 

 under which the deposits were formed and the 

 changes that may have taken place in such 

 sedimentary rocks after deposition. 



(c) That all existing agencies be urged to 

 study the phenomena referred to in paragraphs 

 (a) and (b) above, and that efforts be made to 

 increase the number of agencies for the prose- 

 cution of such investigations. 



6. Geological Cooperation 

 Since it is desirable that the projects under- 

 taken by the different workers in the Pacific 

 region be so selected and so designed that each 

 may be supplementary to the rest and so eon- 

 tribute to the uniform accumulation of geo- 

 logical information concerning the Pacific re- 

 gion, be it 



Resolved, That steps be taken to advise in 

 the planning of research to correlate the efforts 

 of the different workers, and to promote in 

 such ways as may be proper a uniform mode 

 of publication of results. 



VI. Seismology and Volcanology 

 The dominant motive which hais appeared in 

 the convention of seismologists and voloanol- 

 ogists of the Pacific here gathered together for 

 the first time, has been to promote more local- 

 ized and more continuous observation of re- 

 gional phenomena than has hitherto been ac- 

 complished in most seismic and volcanic 

 districts. On the other hand, there is agree- 

 ment that precise teleseismic triangulation is 

 not a field for amateurs or for stations 

 equipped with a multiplicity of inferior and 

 diverse instruments. 



There is a crying need for mutual informa- 

 tion, regularly supplied by each observer to his 

 distant colleagues, concerning volcanic and 

 seismic happenings in each land. The employ- 

 ment of mariners and scientific expeditions to 



