THE MICHIGAN DAILY TUESDAY, Cold Harder To Fight Than Polio "About the only way to from catching a cold is to warm, dry and well fed," Ward asserts. "If possible, away from people who colds." Pace Quickening keep keep Prof. stay have Biochemists, physiologists, vir- ologists and other scientists are quickening the pace of their re- search, the report declares. They are trying to develop vaccines for 'UT' Appoints Computing Center Head Revision of a Regents' Bylaw to establish a Computing Center at the University and the appoint- ment of Prof. Robert C. F. Bartels of the mathematics department as the director, effective July 1, 1959, were approved by the Re- gents June 12. The Computing Center will be maintained as a research and service activity of the graduate school. It will provide consultation and computing service for teach- ing and research units of the Uni- versity and for members of the faculty and students who are in need of such service for their re- search activities. Other services will include the provision of facilities for research in scientific computing and data processing and the providing of opportunities for students to have experience in these fields. Will Correlate Efforts The center also will correlate the interest and efforts of mem- bers of the faculty engaged in in- struction and research in com- puting and - data processing. The center will be located in the North University Building, formerly the Plant Department Building, on North University at Forest Avenue. It is planned to install an IBM 704 digital com- puter in the new center. The Sta- tistical Research Laboratory will continue to function in the Rack- ham Building under the direction of Prof. Cecil C. Craig of the mathematics department. Prof. Bartels has been on the faculty since 1939 except for the period from 1942 to 1945 when he served as an aeronautical engi- neer in the Navy Department. He was promoted from instructor to assistant professor when he re- turned to the University from the Navy in 1945. Has Three Degrees Promotions to associate profes- sor in 1950 and to professor in 1957 followed. He has three de- grees from the University of Wis- consin, including the Doctor of Philosophy received in 1938. The Regents also approved a six-member Executive Committee for the Computing Center. Ap- pointed for one-year terms end- ing June 30, 1960 were Prof. Ar- thur W. Burks of the philosophy department and Prof. George E. Hay, chairman of the mathe- matics department. Prof. Wallace W. Gardner of the economics department and Prof. Norman R. Scott of the en- gineering college were named to two-year terms. James E. Lesch of the University Research Insti- tute and Prof. Stuart W. Church- ill of the engineering college were appointed to three-year terms. the common cold to relieve al-c most universal discomfort, to re-1 duce industry's number one ab- sentee problem, and to meet a multi-million dollar p o t e n t i a 1 market. What-have these scientists found? How effective will the vac- cines be? When will they be avail-7 able? Why is the problem so diffi- cult? These are some of the ques- tions the American Chemical So- ciety weekly asked these scien- tists, and here are some answers: The common cold, which can be defined as "a disorder in which a person has a runny nose two days in succession but little or no fever," has been found to be an extremely complex, ever changing problem. Colds are caused by dozens of different strains of vi- ruses and, apparently, by many viruses not yet isolated. These viruses are capable of mutating, or changing, which makes the job of finding and fighting them very difficult. Furthermore, many "rip-roar- ing colds" are simply the first stages of mumps, pneumonia,. chicken pox or polio, which the sufferer has the resistance to fight off after this initial stage. Cold symptoms also may result from bacterial infections or allergies. Some Pessimistic One researcher thinks a vac- cine that will prevent 60 to 70 per cent of all common colds will be available within two years. Some, much less optimistic, talk in terms of 10 to 15 years. The polio vac- cine, which is considered highly successful, is about 80 per cent effective, but it contains only three inactivate viruses and deals with a much simpler problem. Some scientists are convinced that no cold vaccine used on a national scale will be more than about 40 or 50 per cent effective, which brings up the interesting question whether the public will buy them. A person may have five colds in a single season, exactly the same in symptoms, but each caused by a different organism. It is possible that, in a given area in a given season, only a few viruses are the cause of the cold problem. This may even be true nationwide. On the other hand, some observers doubt whether any one virus causes more than about 10 per cent of the nation's colds in any one year. Production Problems The manufacturer of a success- ful cold vaccine, the report says, will have to put into his product the antigens of the most import- ant causes of respiratory diseases, and as many of them as possible. His formula may have to be changed from time to time as the importance of individual viruses changes and as new viruses are discovered. Scientists working for the vac- cine manufacturer have the basic job of isolating the pure virus strain, producing it in 1 a r g e enough quantity, inactivating it, and putting it into a safe vaccine. One of the practical limitations is the number of antigens that can be purified and squeezed into a single hypodermic shot. One 15- antigen shot has already been de- veloped. Twenty antigens in a single shot would constitute "a heroic effort," but they might also begin to interfere with one an- other. One manufacturer believes that, after the safety and potential Ivalueof a cold vaccine have been determined, it may be necessary to test it on 10 million people be- fore its real effectiveness can be known. "In the expanding quest for an effective cold vaccine, chemists are continuing to play a key role," says "Chemical and Engineering News." "They are helping to de- velope culture media for the growing of viruses, helping to de- velop improved ways of purifying and inactivating viruses, working on new adjuvants to increase the potency of virus antigens. They are also deeply involved in the problems of analytical control." Regents Pass League Funds The Regents approved a project budget of $883,000 for remodeling of the League, and awarded the contract to A. Z. Shmina & Sons of Dearborn at their meeting June 12. The remodeling,, to be paid for from League funds, involves ex- tensive changes in the kitchen fa- cilities, excavation of the area un- der the north end of the building and construction of additional of- fices and other facilities. .. Subscribe to The Michigan Daily son i 1 i .'. 5 .. r '1 w 1 . :'.1 t ;1i (v, : ';_: J ; . . ' t I '" f 450 a. ! White * Black ,f ~ w : f Chino 0 Navy z.% cv.,- x . nn) 306 South State S- t a, curves the striped cotton knit sheath suit with calculated femininity and figure control...and creates a stunner! its shape-strategem: vertical stripes, wide straps, deep v-back, contoured bustline ..just one from our sea of cotton, 11 i1 ' ,, ,- . :. : ,. r2z,::::.::.:: :. : : : ; .... :...::5 y: , ::: .: .'..:' <