New Aviation Project Will Study Health

The establishment of a new center to study human health and safety problems created by the air age was announced yesterday. It will be known as the Harvard-Guggenheim Center for Aviation Health and Safety.

The center, which will be conducted at the University's School of Public Health, will study the responses of the human body to extreme speeds, altitudes, temperatures and toxic agents, and will carry on research in the prevention and control of the increasing dangers of the air age.

It was made possible by a grant of $250,000 from the Daniel and Florence Guggenheim Foundation, and will begin operation in the fall. Two Guggenheim Fellowships of $5,000 each will be awarded annually for study at the new center.

Dr. Ross A. McFarland, associate professor of Industrial Hygiene, will be the Technical Director of the Center. McFarland won the 1956 John Jeffries Award for "outstanding contributions" to the advancement of aeronautics through medical research."

Establishment of the Center follows many years of research at Harvard in aviation biotechnology under McFarland, and is the direct result of three years of postgraduate training of U.S. and Canadian Armed Forces surgeons at the School of Public Health. The extension of this work to civilian specialists will be possible at the new center.

McFarland said that "there is an in creasing demand for civilian and military physicians trained in aviation biotechnology" and added that this is the first graduate center to be established for training such personnel.