Fraternity-Testvériség, 1958 (36. évfolyam, 1-11. szám)
1958-02-01 / 2. szám
8 FRATERNITY faster coincidences” — the amount of time taken by an atom nucleus to return from an “excited” state to a “ground” state. “I guess”, recalls Dr. Bay, “we were a little ahead of everyone else in the time measurement business. Anyway, we weren’t behind.” The measurement achieved was as small a part of a second as one second is to ten thousand years. It was achieved by use of a “coincidence circuit”, which measured radiation of gamma rays emitted by radioactive isotopes in “ten times less time” than could be measured by any other known means. Such basic research as this was designed to assist in the study of activity within an atom’s nucleus. In an adjoining room Dr. Patai was concerned with improving the quality of front surface mirrors, so that in practical use the viewers would see clearly only one image, not the two produced by most mirrors because they have the reflecting surface on the back. Dr. Faragó considered compounds which might be of interest as high explosives. During one of his five years at George Washington, he also lectured on the chemistry of hormones and vitamins, and in this regard he was involved with another type of “shocker”, oral examinations. “I believe in oral examinations. After six months of study and laboratory work, a person should be able to carry out an intelligent conversation about the subject.” The George Washington students, he reports, all survived. The contributions of Contract NORD have gone much further than the letter of the contract. It has meant an entirely new way of life for the men brought to America and their families. It has led to the creation of fervently dedicated citizens. In the end, it has integrated into the scientific and community life of five American cities, the talents and the loyalties of five men and their families and the widow of another. When Dr. Bay arrived at George Washington, he viewed with amazement the kindness of his neighbors in nearby Arlington; the cordiality of new University and Navy friends. “We had no break in our living patterns. We were invited to dinner. We found our credit was good immediately. I don’t think you could get that in any other country.” Dr. Bay’s son had been born in Austria. His second daughter, Julia, was the first of his family to become a citizen. She was born in 1950 at the George Washington University Hospital, the same year that his oldest daughter donned a white dress and was graduated from Bethesda- Chevy Chase High School in nearby Maryland. Three years later Dr. Bay and his wife received citizenship papers at the United States Circuit Court in Rockville, Maryland. Since then Mrs. Bay has received her Bachelor of Science degree in physical education from the George Washington University and has become a member of the faculty at Gallaudet College, Federal institution for the deaf. While he was at George Washington, Dr. Bay published a number of scientific papers in the “Physical Review” and the Review of “Scientific Instruments”. He served as a consultant on the Graduate Council
