July 17, 1959

Or. George Derbyshire

Space Science Board Secretatiat
National Academy of Sciences
Washington 25 0.C.

Dear George:

1 am returning your notes with some suggested revisions, mainly rather
minor.

The main costs of the Westex meetings should be for travel. In view of
the momentary postponement of the planetary probes, we probably do not need
so intensive a schedule as { had anticipated. @r, Sagan's summer expenses
are teing taken up by JPL, and it now appears tnlikely that he would accept
the position | had In mind here, on which we would have been a part-time
consultant for us. | would not, however, preclude bringing this project up
again; ‘'B'' of my memorandum on Westex projects submitted to the last SSB meeting
In May.

As matters stand now, [| think our committee expenses would be covered for
fiscal 1959-1960 by a budget of about $5000. This would include the travel
expenses for severalmeetings, and the office costs here as well. This is pos-
sibly an ample figure, and somewhat less would probably suffice, though a limi-
tation much below this might make us start to think twice about scheduling
some meetings. While the continuity of the group is maintained by its regional
composition, we have also found [It extremely profitable to bring In individual
consultants from some distance, and this expectation is compounded [n the budget.

| am enclosing a statement for accumulated expenses -~- { hope the form and
content is acceptable. We have been Including these incidental costs in our
departmental budget, and could contInue to do so; obviously, if you can reimburse
the department for them we would welcome this as a falrer arrangemeht.

Yours sincerely,

Joshua Lederberg
Professor of Genetics