Science Today in Latin America

Abstract

Scientific and technological endeavor in Latin America is making rapid progress. Today there is a vast program of scientific learning and investigation being carried on by the various American republics, in some cases independently, and in others, in conjunction with all the other Latin American republics and with the United States. The nations of South and Central America are basically agricultural; thus we would expect a large part of the technological movement to be directed toward the improvement of agriculture as it has existed for many years. Indeed, this is the case. Receiving particular emphasis is the rubber program. Many Latin American countries face the problem of the South American leaf blight (Dothidella ulei), and in these countries there is a concerted effort to develop rubber trees that are resistant to the blight. In the few countries where the blight does not exist, the effort is focused on developing highyield plant strains. Another field receiving much attention is Seismology. Since earthquakes kill thousands of people and destroy vast amounts of property in South America, a system has been devised whereby exchange of data taken by one government is disseminated to the others. This information, which includes the location, frequency, magnitude of the destructive force, and how structures can be built to withstand these forces, is analyzed scientifically to the end of reducing the damage wrought yearly by the earthquakes. The bombardment of the earth by cosmic rays can be studied much more effectively at high altitude because the rays are more intense there than at sea level. In particular, the heaviest particles of the rays, known as the meson spectrum, are best observed above ten thousand feet; at lower altitudes the meson spectrum can be detected only with great difficulty. For this reason there has recently been installed at Morococha, Peru, a physics laboratory for the purpose of cosmic ray research. One section of this station is 16,540 feet above sea level-the highest research station in the world. Incidentally, an International Symposium on High Altitude Biology was sponsored at Lima from November 23 to November 30 by the Peruvian Government, with technical help from UNESCO. T roughout Latin America there are magnetic observation stations which compil a vast amount of data used to establish a more accurate knowledge of the earth's magnetic field. This information is a prerequisite for accurate mapping, land surveying, navigation by sea and air, radio communication, maintenance of wire and cable communications, and geological explorations. The most famous of these stations is the Huancayo Magnetic Observatory in Peru, established in 1922 by the Carnegie Institute of Washington, and still in operation today. If there is a field rivalling the development of agriculture in progress, it is public health. There is now a great interchange of health and medical information, and much effort is being exerted to stimulate efforts for the control and eradication of disease. Headquarters for this work are at Lima, Peru, from which services are available to the American republics for conducting surveys of water supplies and sewage systems, supervising anti-plague activities, investigating public health supplies, initiating studies of communicable diseases, and other similar activities.