November l6, 1945
Dr. Frank Aydelotte
Institute for Advanced Study
Princeton, New Jersey
Dear Frank:
I am writing to ask for suggestions about personnel in connection with a plan being
developed by the faculty at the California Institute of Technology.
The members of our faculty are very deeply interested in world affairs at the present
time. This interest, and the feeling that scientists should take far more than the
normal part in decisions about world affairs, are of course the result of the development
of atomic power and the atomic bomb, culminating the accelerating contributions of
science to the factors determining the nature of the modern world.
It has been proposed that we add to the staff of the California Institute of Technology
a man who is spending all of his time in the study of world affairs, and particularly
the nature and causes of war, or methods of keeping the peace. Perhaps it will be
possible to invite several men with interests of this sort to Pasadena for a few lectures,
with a decision to be made later as to whether any one of them should be asked to
come for a year or more. I think that the presence on our faculty of men, such as
Tolman, Oppenheimer, Lauritsen, who have been involved in the recent developments
of science and technology might interest the students of world affairs, in the job
at this Institute.
I shall be grateful to you for any suggestions that you have to make, and information
about the people whom you propose.
Cordially yours,
Linus Pauling
