AIP Advisory Committee to NBS

THE National Bureau of Standards faced a crisis in the spring of 1953 as a result of a controversy over the Bureau’s position on certain types of battery additives. At the height of the tense situation, Secretary Weeks decided to attempt to resolve the controversy by seeking the advice of an Ad Hoc Committee composed of representatives of the professional scientific and engineering societies. L. A. DuBridge was appointed the American Institute of Physics representative of this group, which popularly came to be called the Kelly Committee since M. J. Kelly of the Bell Telephone Laboratories was its chairman. The committee was singularly effective in resolving the crisis through a series of actions and through recommendations contained in its final report of October 15, 1953. For example, its work in no small measure led to the reinstatement of A. V. Astin as Director of the Bureau.