1965

THE MICHIGAN DAILY

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9

SIP: Can It Mold One Role from lanyFunct

ions?

(Continued from Page 1)
fall semester starts and the Uni-
versity unexpectedly finds a few
classes teacherless because of
last-minute faculty resignations,
someone from Willow Run can
temporarily fill the void.
Further relations to the educa-
tion function are a little harder to
pin down. Presumably the pres-
ence of IST-administered facilities
enables the University to maintain
1 what has been term a "critical
mass" of talent.
Scientific Interaction
A large enough body of scien-
tists working together will, by
their interactions, reinforce and
stimulate e a c h other's work,
whereas one man working alone at
a small university would have no
one to discuss his work with or to
consult for fresh viewpoints and
ideas.
Such a "critical mass" neces-
sarily spills over into more cam-
pus-oriented functions through
(many faculty do work both at
Willow Run and on campus) and
through general interest in the
work done at the IST labs.
These stimulated interests in
both faculty and students pre-
sumably affect the quality of
teaching done at all levels both
directly and through the creation
of a "good" University environ-
ment.
Willow Run's role in thet educa-
tional process does come in for
frequent criticism. It is charged
that faculty participation in Wil-
low Run research is discouraged
and that little money is available
for graduate students to do re-
search in connection with thesis
work. Willow Run's isolation
from the campus and the elabor-
ate secrecy procedures that pre-
vail there make these charges dif-
ficult to either prove or disprove.
[ST As A Stimulant To
The State's Economy.. .
The Institute's role in the state
economy was given heavy empha-
sis for the first time in IST's No-
vember 1960 progress report to the
Governor. The report pointed out
the concentration of science-
oriented industries on the east
and west coasts and concluded
that "the state of Michigan has
been playing a more limited role
in this era of innovation and
growth than is consistent with its
past accomplishments and its
basic resources.
"The basic concept of the Insti-
tute is that of a center of science
and technology having a unique
and powerful capability for pro-
viding impetus to the develop-
ment of the research climate and
scientific community of the State
of Michigan. It has been amply
demonstrated that industry based
on advances in technology grows
and flourishes in an atmosphere
of scientific education and. re-
search'."
Industrial Development
In order to carry out this pro-
gram, IST's Industrial Develop-
ment Division was formed. An at-
tempt is made there to break
down the "ivory tower" and make
the University and specifically the
Institute more directly meaning-

ful to the state, particularly the
state economy. This division is
run entirely with state funds.
Considering the type of work
mainly done by IST-nationally-
oriented scietific research-IDD's
job is not an enviable one. But
as far as Prof. Hansford W. Far-
ris, associate director of IST for
this division, is concerned, the re-
lation between the University's
research and the state's economy
and industries is one that deserves
considerable attention.
In September, 1961, J. A. Boyd,
director of the Institute at that
time, asserted that "a University
research program which includes

Biophysics Lab and the Great
Lakes Research Division became a
part of the Institute-both of
these being engaged predominant-
ly in research.
The big step was taken later in
1960, however, when the Willow
Run Laboratories, which were do-
ing research at an $8 million per
year level, were merged with IST
Since this work was much greater
in dollar magnitude than in the
rest of IST the research orienta-
tion that developed in the Insti-
tute is quite understandable.
Since Willow Run research does
account for so much of IST's ef-
forts, it is important to under-

f
f
,

structuring and the fairly large factors, in determining the im-
amount of non-military applica- portance of the Institute's (and
tion and research that has result- hence the University's) scientific
ed from the defense department- output.
sponsored studies.

Whether this "spin-off" of non-
military research from Willow
Run is sufficient to justify the
continuation of these labs as part
of the University is a question
that can be argued on both sides.
However, it is on the relative im-
portance of this spin-off into
other areas of University concern
that the question must ultimate-
ly hinge.
Another factor that must alsu
be taken into account in an over-
all appraisal of IST research is
the "contribution to knowledge'
generated within the Institute
labs. While some may argue that
the University's only real business
is teaching, the fact is that most
of the faculty do research, and
the rationale for promoting this
is that new knowledge is a worthy
end in itself.
Arguments
Researchers at IST are con-
stantly acquiring new informa-
tion. The work may be inspired
from a practical and immediate
expectation of usefulness, as with
Great Lakes Research, or it may
move into uncharted areas for
which any results are difficult to
predict, such as in biophysics. But
even in the case of Great Lakes
research, a considerable amount
of "basic" research is done.
While laboratories such as En-
gineering Psychology may have
been set up with pretty clear-cut
goals in mind, the millions of dol-
lars worth of work in infrared and
radar has come to have signifi-
cance in a large number of prac-
tical and theoretical fields.
New Techniques
Other important techniques in
the field of data handling, storage
and processing have emerged from
Willow Run work. The three
scientific information centers
. .

IST OPERATES eight aircraft for use in testing equipment and
gathering data on field trips around the world. The craft are
housed and fitted out in this hangar at Willow Run Airport.

an Institute committed to support
industry through a program of
research can be a tremendous
force in stimulating and support-
ing a creative industrial commun-
ity."
Creative Industry
This "creative industrial com-
munity" that he envisioned pre-
sumably isnto be modeled after
the New England electronics in-
dustry and the California aero-
space industry. Signs of such a,
boom either in Ann Arbor or the
state have thus far failed to ma-
terialize. Few administratorseare
expecting such a burst of develop-
ment any time soon.
This is not to say that IDD's
efforts have been in vain. The
idea of the University-state econ-
omy relationships has had to be
rethought, and outstanding re-
sults have subsequently taken
place. The division's analysis of,
and subsequent program for, the
machine tool industry is the most
notable example.
[ST As A Research
Institution.,
Research has always b e e n
prominent in IST thinking. Even.
in the initial proposal, the word
"education" was almost always
followed by the words "and re-
search." A research orientation
began to evolve during the first1
year of IST's existence when the

stand the nature of this research
and the type of studies that it
deals with.
Defense Work
Most of the Willow Run work is
done for the defense department
on a cost-reismbursement con-
tract basis. Theoretically, research
done by contract is directed to-
ward solving specifically defined
problems for the contractor, giv-
ing the researcher much less free-
dom in his work. Actually this
distinction is becoming increasing-
ly hazy, or at least more subtle, as
the University-federal govern-
ment relationship continues to
evolve.
In the Willow Run defense de-
partment-supported research, the
areas of interest of the sponsoring
agencies are broad enough that
problems of researchers becoming
too narrow or tied down have not
developed. Most of the work in-
volves wide-ranging study of basic
scientific problems. While the
broad goal is still application of
these findings to new military-
oriented techniques, the findings,
and in many cases the techniques,
that make use of them, are valu-
able for non-military purposes.
Fluid Structure
The basic nature of the work
and the relative freedom of the
scientist to explore promising
areas within the broad spectrum
of Willow Run activity are evi-
denced by the fluidity of the lab

[ST As An
Administrative Device
The Institute has an impressive
range of accomplishments to its
credit in this role. It will be seen
by now that there are substantial
interrelationships within the labs
and divisions of the Institute and
between them and other depart-
ments and divisions of the Uni-
versity. Such relationships have
been strengthened and increased
by the imposition of IST organiza-
tion, which is oriented toward
North Campus and closely tied to
the University's central adminis-
tration.
This structure has consciously
attempted to integrate the work
and functions of the many divis-
ions brought together with each
other and with the rest of the
University. There have, of course,
been substantial problems in such
a move.
Tying together the, many and
varied parts of IST into this co-
herent mosaic has been one of the
major tasks of the Institute's ad-
ministration. The result has been
a combination of functions and
objectives that exists at no other
university.
Hybrid Administration
In the cases of the Industrial
Development Division, G r e a t
Lakes Research Division and the
new Biophysics and Electro-Opti-
cal Sciences Laboratories, the re-
lationship with this hybrid ad-
ministration is important in a
variety of ways:
-Wilson, IST's director, reports
to the vice-president for research.
This establishes a high-level link
to the rest of the University and
prevents the relatively small labs
from floating off into their own
Never-Never Land of over-special-
ized research.
-Financial support and co-
ordination are provided when
needed.
-Formal administration, saving
the lab directors from getting lost
in administrative details, is pro-
vided.
This direct administrative con-
trol and responsibility enables
closer supervision of specific re-
search and education roles that
the labs or division should carry
out.
Dissociation
It is common practice at univer-
sities around the country for the
large research laboratories to dis-
sociate themselves from the uni-
versity sponsorships under which
fthey grew up. Examples are the
multi-million dollar operations of
the Argonne National Laboratory,
which is run by, but not really as
a part of, the University of Chi-
cago; the Lawrence Radiation
Lab affiliated with the University
of California and the Lincoln Labs
in Cambridge, Mass.
Apparently, the merger of the
Willow Run Labs with IST was
an attempt to counter this trend.
Rather than separate the labs
from the University, the goal is to
find a valuable role within the
University's overall teaching and
research function.
Success is as yet hard to evalu-
ate. The movement of some Wil-
low Run research to North Cam-
pus is a hopeful sign, since the very
fact of physical proximity to the
University increases the possibil-
ities of interrelationships with
other parts of it.
The Future Of
The Organization,.
There are, then, four important
facets of the1ST operation: edu-
cational importance, the Insti-
tut.s relation to the state and the
stateeconomy, its research func-
tion,.;and dynamic effects the IST
adniinistrative organization has
had.
'hat importance these relative
emphases will assume in the fu-
ture is impossible to assess, since
such trends are the result of con-
tinual evolution of goals in the

minds of those responsible for
guidiiig and administering IST.
One thing only seems clear-IST
is a large and significant exper-
iment in University organization.
The paths ahead are yet unchart-
ed but hold great promise for the
overall development of the Uni-
versity.

THIS IS A METEOROLOGICAL tower maintained in the Great Lakes by IST's Great Lakes Re-
search Division. It is being used for calibrating instruments on the division's ship "Inland Seas,"
in the background. This ship, one of four used In the Great Lakes research, is outfitted with three
laboratories,

i
i

MAINLY DEFENSE RESEARCH:
Willow Run Budget Nears $8 Million

(Continued from Page 8)
communicate with and navigate
future supersonic aircraft as they
fly between the United States and
Europe.
As Llewellynmsays, "Beautiful,
workable systems can be devel-
oped, but the humans who operate
them won't conform to the re-
quired procedures." Possibly the
pilot should not have any in-flight
control of the navigations of his
aircraft, he says.
Acoustics and Seismics investi-
gates the characteristics of earth
tremors with a view to distinguish-
ing the location and identity of
their source. This work is closely
tied in with the need for methods
of detecting underground nuclear
explosions. Like electromagnetic
waves such as radio and light,
acoustic and seismic waves trav-
elling through land, sea, and air
have their own spectrum which
can be analyzed in great detail.
Seismic Center
Data analysis techniques devel-
oped at other Willow Run labs
play an important role in this
work. Closely associated with this
research is the VELA Seismic In-
formation Analysis Center, which
collects, analyzes, and dissemi-
nates information throughout the
country concerning all research
and development activities relat-
ed to the detection of nuclear
explosions.
The Computer Lab acts largely,
but not entirely, to provide digitall
computer services to the otherI

labs. Data analysis techniques are;
highly important in Willow Run's
Iscientific research. The Willow
Run computer may be used by it-
self, but is more generally used to
prepare information for the Cen-
tral Campus computer and to in-
terpret its output.
Analog Computer provides a
computation and simulation serv-
ice for the other labs. It can be
used to stimulate the operation of
aircraft navigations, vehicle sus-
pension or other types of dynam-
ic systems. Frequently it can be
employed to eliminate the need
for reducing these systems to
mathematical formulas that a dig-
ital computer needs to work with.
Not All Applied
Much of the Willow Run work
involves developing and integrat-
ing basic knowledge into workable
systems which themselves serve to
further define and provide an ori-
entation for this knowledge.
As soon as the work passes this
research stage, when a system's
concepts are developed and ready
to be designed into working, mass-
producible instruments and ma-
chinery, the findings are handed
over to an industry or government
sponsor for their use. Where this
point comes can vary, depending
on the inclinations of the re-
searcher and the sponsoring
agency.
In Hawaii
An extension of the Willow Run
work is now going on atop Mount
l Haleakala on Maui, a Hawaiian
Island. The defense department

has appropriated $4.4 million for
the Institute to build a large in-I
frared observatory there. Studies
there for tracking ballistic missiles
and orbiting satellites and for re-
search in applying infrared tech-
niques to work in geophysics and
astrophysics are currently beingE
planned.
This is a general picture of the
work at Willow Run. Some idea of
its size and complexity may be
deduced from a look at the air
fleet operated to test equipment
and instrument systems developed
in the labs. Seven planes on loan
from the Armed Forces are used
to aid the researchers. They have
carried the maize and blue em-
blem of the Universitythroughout
the world many times in testing
research equipment. For example,
investigators found that infrared
techniques enabled them to spot
concealed crevices in the Arctic
icecap, considerably aiding ground
operations.

PROF. James T. Wilson was
made director of IST last year,
after serving as acting director
for several years.
there are useful examples of pos-
sible systems for handling the
great accumulations of scientific
knowledge. The analog computer
methods worked out for equip-1
ment design and infrared and i'a-
dar information analysis are also
examples of potentially valuable
techniques.
The pioneering work done on
lasers and masers has had consid-
erable impact in other areas of re-
search within the. University and
outside it. An example of how
such work can overlap into many
other fields is the recent confer-
ence conducted by the Infrared
Physics Lab on "Remote Sensing
of the Environment."
Symposium
This three-day symposium at-
tracted scientists from all over
the country as well as widespread
interest from many groups within
the University. Material that was
presented dealt with new sensing
techniques and applications for
them which stem from and can
contribute to scientific studies in
a broad range of fields.
These are all examples of work
done within the Institute that
have made significant contribu-
tions to the University's knowl-
edge output.
At any rate, the "critical mass
of talent" concept, as it has been
fostered by IST, is an important
one, and it has probably played a
key role, along with many other

THIS IS THE WILLOW RUN CENTER of the Institute of Science and Technology. Located at
the eastern end of Willow Run Airport, which was purchased by the University after World War
II for one dollar, the Center houses most of the defense research labs of IST.

Special Summer Workshop for Actors
i,'
CHOREOLOGIA
on excitingly creative new artform which heightens on actor's performance
by synchronizing stylized movement with speech
originated by
Sara Lee Stadelman
Director, Performing Arts Workshop
four weeks' instruction in acting, directing-choreography-traditional and

IN THlE MIDIST OF PLENTY
A Symposium on American Poverty
Apresentation of eight
speakers on various
aspects of poverty
On the stage during each speech will be a "reactor
panel" of three professors and professional social
workers. At 10:00 the day following each speech
this panel will conduct a student-faculty seminar.
Students mnay sign up for participation in seminars


'Decorator

in the Fishbowl and Union

Student Offices

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W eJ ner axv throug h Friday.

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