Report: NBS Technical Advisory Committee on Physics

When Dr. C. S. Wu, stimulated by the conjectures of Lee and Yang, decided to make an earnest attempt to test the laws of parity conservation, the most natural laboratory to turn to for cooperation was the National Bureau of Standards. Her work with Ambler, Hayward, Hoppes, and Hudson of the Bureau is now a classic of current physics. Although this incident contains many unusual features of drama, the underlying moral is simple: the National Bureau of Standards plays a completely unique and important role in the science and technology of our country. Physicists everywhere are indebted to it and, in turn, have an obligation to make certain that it occupies a place in their minds commensurate with its importance.

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