Letter from Linus Pauling to H.B. Ivekovic. January 5, 1959. Page 1  Larger Images / More Information. 1 p.  View Transcript

January  1959   > S M T W T F S         1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

Activity Listings

• Article: "Zinc-65 in Foods and People," Science. [Filed under LP Peace: (Materials re: The Biological Effects of Radiation, 1948, 1950, 1955-1959), Box #7.015, Folder #15.21]
• Commercial Account Counter Check from First Western Bank and Trust Company for LP for $300.00. [Filed under LP Biographical: (Business and Financial: Bank Statements and Canceled Checks, December 1957-December 1959), Box #4.025, Folder #25.2]
• Handwritten Memo from I. M. Ponedel to R. B. Gilmore RE: Budget and award letters of 6 Nov 1958 for N. F. CVRE-121 turned over to Dr. Corey's office. [Filed under LP Science: (The National Foundation, 1958-1962), Box #14.024, Folder #24.1]
• Letter from Barbara Kamb, Dodd, Mead & Co., to LP RE: Informs that she has found no letter from Hendricks requesting a review copy of No More War! Says she will send a copy to LP to replace the one sent to Hendricks and a copy to Rubin at The Progressive. [Letter form LP to Kamb January 6, 1959] [Filed under LP Books: 1958b3.1]
• Letter from Charles J. Lewin, The Standard Times, to LP RE: Requests that LP provide an evaluation of the position of the United States today from a scientific standpoint for publication in The Standard Times. [Filed under LP Manuscripts of Articles: 1959a.2]
• Letter from D. M. Lowe, Pergamon Press Limited, to LP RE: Requests that LP read over a proof of his contribution to the Proceedings of the First International Symposium on the Origin of Life on the Earth, correct and return it to the editor. [Filed under LP Manuscripts of Articles: 1959a2.8]
• Letter from Dr. M. Denbrow, Senior Lecturer in Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Chelsea College of Science and Technology, to LP RE: Says they are planning a program of work on physical chemistry properties of certain biochemical systems, gives the names of the peptides needed, and asks if he knows of any other sources for them besides a chemical company who only has a few. [Letter from LP to Denbrow January 27, 1959] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (D: Correspondence, 1959), #98.24]
• Letter from Irving Michelson, Assistant Technical Director, Consumers Union, to LP RE: Says they are preparing a report of strontium-90 in milk, encloses a draft, welcomes his comments, and says they will be kept strictly confidential. [Letter from LP to Michelson January 14, 1959] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (Consumer Reports [Consumers Union] 1958-1959, 1971-1972, 1975-1976, 1980, 1986, 1990, 1991), #72.3]
• Letter from Jill Hopkins, University of Oregon, University Religious Council, to LP RE: Discusses travel details of LP's upcoming visit to University of Oregon. [Letter from LP to Hopkins January 6, 1959] [Filed under LP Speeches: 1959s.1]
• Letter from LP to A. V. Topchiev, Academy of Sciences, USSR, RE: Inquires about whether the Academy of Sciences would be interested in having the third edition of LP's The Nature of the Chemical Bond translated into Russian and published. [Letter from Topchiev to LP December 29, 1958, Letter from LP to Topchiev January 16, 1959] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (Topchiev, Alexandr D.), #408.1]
• Letter from LP to D. Mead Johnson. [Letter from Patrick to LP January 15, 1959] [Filed under LP Peace: Box #7.012, Folder #17]

  CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

  PASADENA, CALIFORNIA

  9 January 1959

  Mr. D. Mead Johnson, President

  Mead Johnson

  2505 Pennsylvania Avenue

  Evansville 21, Indiana

  Dear Sir:

  I am writing about a proposed new pharmaceutical product, in the hope that you would be interested in putting it on the market. I may say that I first wrote to Dr. George Rieveschl, Jr., of Parke, Davis and Company, because of the interest that I have in Parke, Davis and my personal acquaintance with Dr. Rieveschl, and it is at his suggestion that I now write to you.

  You know what the situation is about strontium-90. Children now have much more strontium-90 in their bones than adults have, and the amount will continue to increase, even if the bomb tests are stopped, until twenty years from now nearly everybody will have amounts perhaps ten times the present average. If the tests are continued, the amounts will be larger—Dr. Libby in 1955 estimated 24 micromicrocuries per gram of calcium as the equilibrium level corresponding to testing at the average rate for the years before 1955.

  In my book No More War! I have estimated that testing at the recent average age probably will cause about 10,000 people to die of leukemia and bone cancer and possibly 90,000 others by other diseases, for each year of testing. This means that for the United States alone (the above figures are for the whole world) the tests carried out so far can be estimated probably to produce approximately the above number of deaths, during the period of action of the fallout products from these tests.

  The principal damage by strontium-90 from the bomb tests carried out so far will be to people who are infants during the period beginning a few years ago and ending around the year 2000.

  If we assume that 200,000,000 children are born between now and the year 2000, and about 100,000 of them were to incur leukemia, bone cancer, or other disease because of the ingested strontium-90, only about one child in 2,000 would be affected, and the question may be raised as to whether this chance of serious damage to the health of the person justifies taking any measure of protection. I think that the chance of one in 2,000 of having twenty years cut off one's life expectancy in this way is enough to justify some protective effort, even though we must recognize that there is also a possibility that a much smaller number of people will be affected, as discussed in the section beginning on page 96 of my book. For example, the loss in earnings over a 20-year period might be estimated at $100,000, and on this basis an expenditure of $50 (corresponding to a chance of one in 2,000) per person would be justified on the financial basis.

  There is, moreover, another fact to be taken into consideration. Many mothers are now concerned about the fact that strontium-90 is being built into the bones of their children. It might well be worth while to take some action that would relieve their concern to some extent.

  What I propose for your consideration is that you put on the market a preparation of calcium free from strontium-90. This preparation, perhaps calcium dihydrogen phosphate or calcium gluconate, would be in a form such as to permit it to be added to the diet of the infant or child every day—a powder that could be added to milk, for example. If the amount of calcium ingested in this way were equal to the amount ingested from other sources, contaminated with strontium-90, the amount of strontium-90 built into the bones would be cut in half. It is important, of course, that the amount of added calcium not be such as to increase the total calcium intake to such an extent as to have harmful consequences. Possibly the amount of calcium (free of strontium-90) taken in this way could be twice or three times the amount ingested in other ways, so that the amount of strontium-90 built into the bones could be cut to one third or one quarter of the amount that would be built in without treatment.

  It is important also that the preparation be taken by pregnant women.

  In addition to this preparation, I think that the calcium free of strontium-90 should be added to baby foods and baby-food supplements. It may be that a single preparation, some form of baby-food supplement, could be made that would take care of the total intake of strontium-90, including both vegetables and milk.

  Calcium free of strontium-90 is, of course, easily available. Ordinary calcium that has not been exposed to fallout from the atmosphere during recent years contains no strontium-90.

  I shall be interested to hear what your feelings are about this matter. I want to emphasize that in my opinion the preparation would serve a useful purpose in addition to cutting down on the amount of strontium-90 in the bones; namely, the purpose of relieving the minds of mothers, to some extent, about this hazard.

  Sincerely yours,

  Linus Pauling:JH

  Enclosure

• Letter from LP to George Rieveschl, Jr., Parke, Davis and Company, RE: Sends Rieveschl a copy of his book, No More War! Discusses his plans to visit Detroit in April. [Note from Rieveschl to LP January 6, 1959, Note from Rieveschl to LP January 27, 1959] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (R: Correspondence, 1959), #341.5]
• Letter from LP to Lewis P. Houghton RE: Says he was pleased to read his letter about No More War and to answer his question, says from his description Tabun is probably a nerve gas that was developed with others in the 40's, and says that these gasses besides nuclear weapons give an additional reason for eliminating war. [Note from Houghton to LP January 7, 1959] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (H: Correspondence, 1959), #167.4]
• Letter from LP to Mr. Mead Johnson, RE: LP is writing to Johnson to inform him of a new pharmaceutical product in hopes that Johnson would be interested in putting it on the market. The main concern is that children's bones have too much Strontium-90. LP suggests that calcium, prepared to be free of Strontium-90 be put on the market. [Johnson's reply June 17, 1959] [Filed under LP Peace: (Materials re: Strontium-90, June 1959-November 1959), Box #7.012, Folder #12.17]
• Letter from Phyllis N. Smith to LP RE: Proposes a specific molecular rearrangement and inquires about whether such an arrangement could occur. [Letter from LP to Smith January 14, 1959] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (S: Correspondence, 1959), #380.3]
• Letter from Ruth Ann Tukey to LP RE: Discusses a brief meeting they once had and states they tried to meet him again while in Pasadena but he was out of the office. She wishes to inquire about some studies he is making on chemistry and intelligence. Outlines her work on a doctoral program with Dr. Elizabeth Drews who is working in the area of the gifted student. [Letter from LP to Mrs. Ruth Ann Tukey January 12, 1959] [Filed under LP Science: Box #11.088, Folder #88.14]
• Letter from W. K. Hayman, Department of Mathematics, Imperial College of Science and Technology, to LP RE: Thanks him for his kind letter, and says he will do as LP suggests and send his mother's manuscript to the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists. [Filed under LP Correspondence: (H: Correspondence, 1959), #167.4]
• Note from Homer B. Wellman to LP RE: Explains to LP his theory that he was Vitamin C "hungry" and that he was cured once he increased his Vitamin C intake and had a spiritual renascence. Supports his theory with a detailed analysis of his family tree, enclosing his genealogy. [Letter from LP to Wellman January 14, 1959] [Filed under LP Science: Orthomolecular Medicine and Mental Health: Materials re: Ford Foundation grants for the study of mental disorders, 1955-1966: Box #11.089, Folder #89.9]