Letter from Linus Pauling to Leonard Rack. March 30, 1955. Page 1  Larger Images / More Information. 1 p.  View Transcript

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Activity Listings

• Check from LP to Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists for $17.00. [Filed under LP Biographical: (Business and Financial: Bank Statements and Canceled Checks, December 1954-February 1956), Box #4.023, Folder #23.1] [Also filed under LP Biographical: (Business and Financial: Check Registers, 1951-1960), Box #4.075, Folder #75.3]
• Check from LP to W.D. Love, Trustee for $600.00. [Filed under LP Biographical: (Business and Financial: Bank Statements and Canceled Checks, December 1954-February 1956), Box #4.023, Folder #23.1] [Also filed under LP Biographical: (Business and Financial: Check Registers, 1951-1960), Box #4.075, Folder #75.3]
• Letter from Dr. Bernard Pullman, Faculty of Sciences, Institut du Radium, to LP RE: Plans to visit the U.S. this year in order to assist the symposium on electronic structure of molecules, to be held in Austin in December. Would like to visit several laboratories, including Caltech. Would be willing to give a lecture or two at Caltech. [Letter from LP to Pullman April 7, 1955] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (P: Correspondence, 1953-1959), #313.3]
• Letter from Dr. Gladys A. Anslow, Physics Dept., Smith College, to LP RE: Invite LP to Smith College to discuss their recent work. Has been working on the spectroscopic evidence for the structure of proteins both from the accepted polypeptide chain hypothesis and from Dr. Wrinch's disputed cyclol theory. Enclosed is an article by Anslow on this work, published in The Journal of Chemical Physics. [Filed under LP Correspondence: (A: Correspondence), #12.21]
• Letter from Dr. S. K. Mukherjee, Indian Chemical Society, to LP RE: Informs that they were extremely privileged to have he and AHP visit and have him as one of their Honorary Fellows. [Filed under LP Awards: 1955h.2
• Letter from Dr. W. Foerst, Heidelberg, Germany, to LP RE: Written in German. Has completed the German translation of General Chemistry. Will send the galley proofs. [Letter from LP to Foerst April 7, 1955] [Filed under LP Books: (General Chemistry: An Introduction to Descriptive Chemistry and Modern Chemical Theory, Second Edition), #1953b.2]
• Letter from Hans-Joachim Bruchner to LP RE: Gives detailed results of his nitrogen calculation. Encloses graph of internuclear distance against energy and against effective nuclear charge. Will send another report when his work on the nitrogen molecule is finished. Requests that LP write the appraisal of his thesis as he promised. Wonders if a decision has been made about his application for the Caltech post-doctoral research fellowship. [Filed under LP Correspondence: (B: Correspondence, 1955-1957), #38.1]
• Letter from LP to Chancellor Jaime Benitez, University of Puerto Rico, RE: Preparing to set out with his wife on the eastern trip that will include the visit in Puerto Rico. Describes the details of the itinerary for the Puerto Rico trip. Would like to have his travel agent issue the tickets. [Letter from Benitez to LP May 3, 1955] [Filed under LP Speeches: 1955s.9]
• Letter from LP to Dr. Robert N. Feinstein, Editor, The Chemical Bulletin, RE: Has had difficulty obtaining a passport to make foreign trips during the last two years. Describes a specific incident regarding a planned trip to attend the India Science Congress. Was allowed in the following year to attend the same Congress, on a trip which included other destinations, notably Sweden to receive the Nobel Prize. Believes this changed attitude may have resulted from the fear of public embarrassment if a man who wanted to receive the Nobel Prize was not permitted to travel to Sweden to do so. Not aware of any measures that have been taken to ameliorate passport difficulties. [Letter from Feinstein to LP January 25, 1955] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (F: Correspondence, 1935-1956), #128.20]
• Letter from LP to Laura Soto Arenas, Lima, Peru, RE: Thanks Arenas for her congratulations on Nobel Prize. Expresses interest in her desire to pursue advanced study in chemical engineering. Informs her that there is no work being done in her field at Caltech, nor scholarships available. Suggests other institutions she might apply to. [Filed under LP Correspondence: (A: Correspondence), #12.21]
• Letter from LP to Lt. Leonard Rack, MC, Second General Hospital. [Letter from Rack to LP January 14, 1955] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (R: Correspondence, 1955-1959), #341.1]

  30 March 1955

  Lt. Leonard Rack, MC, 01934127

  2nd General Hospital

  APO 180, c/o Postmaster

  New York, N. Y.

  Dear Dr. Rack:

  I am pleased to find your letter of 14 January awaiting me on my return to the laboratory. My wife and I had spent more than three months on our trip around the world. It was a great experience. We visited Sweden, Norway, Israel, India, Thailand, and Japan.

  Thank you for your congratulations about the Nobel Prize. The ceremonies in Stockholm were very impressive.

  I am sorry that you did not get from Karlsrueh to Heidelberg in time for us to see you in 1953.

  The work on abnormal hemoglobins is going along very well. Dr. Murayama here has studied the combination constants with alkyl isocyanides, with, however, rather uninteresting results, inasmuch as the combination constants are not very much different. I had a letter from Harvey Itano in which he said that six more abnormal hemoglobins have now been discovered, making a total of seven, and I suppose that we must assume that still more will be found in the near future.

  Let me know what your plans are, when you have made some definite decisions.

  With best regards, I am

  Sincerely yours,

  Linus Pauling:W

• Letter from LP to Professor B. Kameswara Sarma, W.G.B. College, RE: Informs him that the competition for graduate assistantships is very keen. Generally assigned to applicants who have had experience in American universities. Recommends that Sarma obtain a Ph.D. in an Indian university, and then consider doing post-doctoral work at Caltech or another American university. [Letter from Sarma to LP January 17, 1955, Letter from LP to Sarma July 26, 1955] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (S: Correspondence, 1953-1956), #379.3]
• Letter from LP to Willard F. Libby. [Filed under LP Correspondence: Box #217, Folder #2]

  30 March 1955

  Dr. Willard F. Libby

  Department of Chemistry

  University of Chicago

  Chicago 37, Illinois

  Dear Bill:

  I see that you and I have been put in the position of apparently being on opposite sides in an argument, in the article in U.S. News and World Report of 25 March 1955.

  You are quoted as saying "The world is radioactive. It always has been and always will be. Its natural radioactivities evidently are not dangerous and we can conclude from this fact that contamination from atomic bombs, small in magnitude or even of the same order of magnitude as these natural radiations, is not likely to be at all dangerous."

  Perhaps it is not justified to say that the natural radiations evidently are not dangerous. In his paper on the genetic effects of high energy radiation of human populations Professor A. H. Sturtevant, who is one of the most able and experienced geneticists in the world, writes that "In particular, there is evidence that irradiation does increase the incidence of leukemia and other malignant growths." Some biologists, at any rate, think that at least some kinds of cancer are produced by somatic mutations induced by naturally radioactive potassium, carbon, and perhaps other elements, as well as by cosmic rays. If this is so, there is little doubt that artificial radioactive substances introduced into the body would also produce these malignancies.

  Herman Muller in his 1950 article in The American Scientist, Kurt Stern in Science of 31 December 1954, and Sturtevant all point out that these radiations without doubt produce harmful mutations. In general these mutations are recessive, so that their most seriously harmful effects do not show up in the first generation.

  Do you have an argument to show that there is no danger that these effects are occurring?

  I note that U.S. News and World Report states that radiation exposure to each individual from all tests to date averages no greater than that produced by one chest x-ray. The point here is that everybody in the world receives this exposure, whereas only a few people are given chest x-rays. Moreover, the geneticists are disturbed about chest x-rays Sturtevant says "In general, the conclusion seems warranted that the

  medical 'use of x-rays is dangerous, and should be applied with caution and with full realization of the genetic hazards involved."

  I shall be interested to read what you feel about my remarks in this letter.

  Ava Helen and I are safely back in Pasadena, after some great experiences during our trip around the world.

  With best regards, I am

  Sincerely yours,

  Linus Pauling:W

• Letter from Per Hallvard Nilsen, Chemical Engineer, Chemical Products Division, Sarpsborg, Norway, to LP RE: Attempting to improve the yield in a commercial aldol condensation process. Describes the reaction kinetics and thermal effects accompanying the reaction. Describes calculations. Wonders whether his figures are reasonable for the resonance energies of aldol and DHD. [Letter from LP to Nilsen April 7, 1955] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (N: Correspondence, 1929-1930, 1936-1956), #287.22]
• Letter from Philip Kerby, Editor, Frontier, to LP RE: Encloses a copy of the latest issue of Frontier and a release by Contemporary Issues. Discusses Bertrand Russell's recent peace appeal in the issue. Encloses the pamphlet "Nuclear Tests." Plans to reprint this pamphlet. Requests an amplifying comment from LP or perhaps even an article written by him. [Filed under LP Correspondence: (F: Organizational Correspondence. (Fa - Fu)), #122.11]
• Letter from Professor E. Bright Wilson, Jr., Chemistry Dept., Harvard University, to LP RE: Pleased that LP plans to lecture at Harvard and wonders if April 13th would be a satisfactory date. Assumes that everything has been arranged for LP and AHP's accommodations. Wishes he were in a position to offer hospitality, but unfortunately, he is not. Looks forward to seeing LP and AHP. [Letter from LP to Wilson March 28, 1955] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (W: Individual Correspondence. (Williams, J. W. - Wyman)), #438.5]
• Telegram from Professor Joseph Hirschfelder, Chemistry Dept., University of Wisconsin, to LP RE: Phi Lambda Upsilon requests that LP give an all-university lecture at Wisconsin this spring. [Telegram from LP to Hirschfelder April 4, 1955] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (H: Individual Correspondence. (Hicks - Hodgkin)), #159.8]