Hungarian Grab Bag

For a country of its size, Hungary has an extraordinary record for providing the U.S. with first-rank scientist immigrants. Leo Szilard (key atom-bomb physicist), Edward Teller ("Father of the H-bomb") and the late great Mathematician John von Neumann (an Atomic Energy commissioner) were all Hungarian-born. So when refugees began streaming out of rebellious Hungary last year, the National Academy of Sciences set up an office at Camp Kilmer, N.J. and sent an expeditionary force to Austria to help educated Hungarians find jobs in the U.S.

Last week, in its News Report, the academy proudly reported how it had found jobs for more than 500 well-schooled Hungarians who had come to Camp Kilmer. About 20% were scientists; most of the rest were engineers or had medical training. Their ages generally fell between 25 and 35. Medical men, lawyers and a few other professionals were hard to place in U.S. jobs. But the academy found that man-hungry U.S. industry and education were eager to take the scientists off its hands. In spite of language difficulties, one research chemist dropped into an industrial job at $15,000 a year. Some others did nearly as well. With this encouragement, the academy is planning to bring 300 more Hungarian refugee scientists and professional men to the U.S. in the next few months.

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