September 28, 1959

Dr. Ruggero Ceppel! ini
TEMPO MEDICO

Edizion! Plerre!

Via Turati 30

Milano, Italy

Dear Roger:

Thank you for your two letters. The Issue of TEMPO MEDICO Itself
has arrived and | could read the extensive article with great Interest.
Where In the world did you dig up that marvelous picture of Luria?

As concerns Moondust | am afraid almost nothing has been pub! ished
on this question aside from our paper in Science. There has been a great
deal of Interest and activity on these questions, which are not secret,
but which have not been published so far. The Space Sclence Board of the
Natlonal Academy of Sclences of the U.S. may be making some more announce-
ments In the future. The Symposium at which the paper was given is not
yet In print but In any case would not have very much else of interest
in this Immediate connection although there are other kinds of physfological
studies.

| have been told that a writer for the New Yorker magazine Is also
preparing an article on the subject.

You may want io refer to an article which appeared In Sclfence for
July 24, 1959 which has at least some general statements about space
research In the United States. An International committee on the question
of extraterrestrial exploration and contamination of celestial objects
has meet twice and Its report {s published In Nature for April 4, 1959.
i will, of course, agree with the main conclusions of the Cetex Committee
although some of their statements, both on the negative and positive side
are perhaps too sweeping. This may reflect the composition of the Committee
which was represented malnly by the physical sclences.

| was very much encouraged to hear, according to the newspapers,
that Lunik 11 had been decontaminated. According to a statement by
Tupchiev, quoted by Assoclated Press from Moscow, the payload of this
mission was chemically sterilized. We have been working In this country
on the practical use of gaseous fumigants, especially ethylene oxide,
as an obvious solution to this problem.
-2.

For background materlal | am enclosing a private writing of my own;
however, unti! this is published elsewhere | would prefer that you not
quote me as the immediate source of the statements therein.

There is a rather remarkable book by Jonathan Leonard called
Flight Into Space which has been published as a Modern Library Paper-
back. His remark on “other worldly life’ fs a very penetrating one:
“There Is a curlous blank In the sclentific Ifterature of Space. So
far as thts observer knows there Is no full-scale responsible and informed
study of the kinds of life that might develop under circumstances different
from those on earth.-'' Though even Leonard drifts off Into some meaningless
fantasy too, this Is a surprisingly Informative and sound book. It was,
however, written before the accomplishments of the last two years.

With best regards.

Yours as ever,

Joshua Lederberg

Encl.