Dr. Rabi had learned from Dr. Smyth and Mr, Zuckert that $5 x 10 had
Acceler- been restored to the budget for accelerator construction,
ators
He felt this
figure insufficient, but had been told that it was a step of expedience,
and that it might be possible to increase the amount later, Dr. Rabi also
said that, it was believed that various difficulties in applying the strong
‘°
focussing principle could be overcome, and that the construction savings
which it would make possible would be important in the 50 Bev region,
although not so important at 10-15 Bev.
Dr, Wigner mentioned that he had visited G.E. and was impressed by the
civil
Power
greater efficiency of the work they do for themselves than that of the work
they do for the government.
He took this to support his position against
the government's building a pilot plant for nuclear power.
An inefficient
and costly pilot plant would be a black mark on the future.
At 10:30 a.m. Dr. Rabi left the meeting; Dr. Buckley presided in his
absence.
Discussion continued on the nuclear power question.
Dr. Buckley said
that the Commission has a clear directive to propose changes in the Act
Wigner
View
which would make an engineering step possible.
Dr. Wigner amplified his
view on subsidy, saying that his point was not that subsidy is a good thing,
but rather that power development should not be kept in government hands,
If it is kept under government control, it will be increasingly difficult
to get private companies into the development.
He felt that it should be
possible to make a government subsidy without using taxpayer's money to
give preference to one company over another, e.g. that uranium could be
furnished at its average instead of its marginal price.
In answer to a
question from Dr. Buckley, Mr. Murphree said that government's demonstration
-.. ARCHIVES SO