November 30, 1960

Dr. Y. Hirota
Department of Genetics
School of Medicine
University of Osaka
Osaka, Japan

Dear Hirota:

Thank you very much for the effort that you have taken for me on the
Hoshino manuscript. Your translation was quite valuable as It gave me the
opportunity, for the first time, to understand the mechanism by which these
filters acted. We have been able to Improve thelr performance considerably
and Jane can now produce filters that show at least 50% transmission of the
254 mercury line while still effectively filtering out the rest of the
ultraviolet.

| am very much cencerned about what to do with the work that you

have written up In the preliminary manuscript on the F' studies. As a
realistic matter, it Is going to take quite a long time to reduce these
preliminary writings into a completely acceptable, full length paper,
partly because of the problem of language, partly because there are some
aspects of the studles which are not fully completed. 1! really think it
would be the safest and best thing to do If you could quickly write a
briefer account of this work for prompt publication In one of your
Journals at home for example, the Japan Academy of Sciences or the
Japanese Journal of Genetics. This would then at least ensure a
publication that could be used as a reference by other people usIng these
stocks and we could meanwhile be reviewing the whole situation in whatever
time was available from the point of view of ultimate detalled publication.
We will be glad to order a sufficient number of reprints so that these can
be distributed on our regular malling and this willensure that the work
will be seen by most of the people that you would want to have know about
it In the event that they miss it In Its original publication In the
journal. We can de this on the strength of an acknowledgement In the
paper that the work was done at Stanferd University. Please let me know
what you think about this and we will be glad to hear from you from time to
time,

One reason that | make this suggestion Is that It [Is stil] very much
on my conscience that | have not fulfilled my obligations to Iino, which
1 still Intend to do just whenever | can, and | would hate to see the
same thing happen again In your case. When you see him, please give
him our very best regards and good wishes to both of you.

1 am a little uncertain as to the present status of our under~
standing with Professor Kikawa concerning the possibility of a visit
to Japan. At the present time It seems rather unlikely that we would
be able to do this during 1961 since we have not made any more
explicit preparations. However, it will disappoint both of us very
much if we do not have a chance to see your country and to visit our
very good friends there sometime during the next two or three years.

As ever.