APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200080002-5
the Italian academic system, namely, that professors are "kings," and, although a man must work diligently to become a professor, he has little requirement to do much research after he attains the rank. There are, of course, some professors who are doing research, but the overall research productivity per man appears low.
At the lower levels of Italian university education, mathematics is apparently emphasized, laying the foundation for broad use of mathematics in many fields. However, advanced education in mathematics seems less organized. Thus, for example, in 1971 only three Italian universities (Bari, Pisa, and Torino) had established work in computer science. Several research institutes have since been established to help bridge the gap. One of these is the Institute for Information Processing, formerly the Center of Studies of Electronic Computers in Pisa. This Institute collaborated with the Olivetti Corporation in developing early Italian computers; it now does research in numerical analysis and various branches of applied mathematics, and it collaborates in instruction with the University of Pisa. Other research institutes include the Institute of Applied Mechanics for Aerial Dynamic and Gas Dynamic Engines, connected with the Torino Polytechnic Institute, and the Numerical Analysis Institute, connected with a university in Rome. The institutes contain or have access to substantial computing facilities, including in Pisa an IBM 7000 plus other machines, in Torino an IBM 360/44, and in Rome a UNIVAC 1108. Substantial computing facilities appear to be widely available.
Italian industry was slow to use mathematicians, although several leading mathematicians have concentrated their efforts on fields such as shell theory, numerical analysis, and recognition of characters. The use of computers was stimulated in late 1968 with inauguration of the UNIVAC Advanced Systems Computer Center in Rome.
There has been substantial cooperation in mathematics between Italy and the U.S.S.R. Collaboration in use of methods of calculation has been conducted under the Mixed Commission for Soviet-Italian Scientific-Technical Cooperation. In 1970 the General Electric Information Systems Italia contracted to supply two large electronic computers, type GE-425, to a motor vehicle plant in Moscow. By 1971 the Olivetti Corporation appeared to be a world leader in use of computers for machine design. In doing this they seemed to have made clever use of U.S. scientific findings. In June 1972 it was reported that the Olivetti Corporation had, since mid-1970, sold large quantities of automatic machine tooling to the U.S.S.R., including computer programming and electronic numerical control equipment known as "Inductosyns," a kind manufactured in the United States. The U.S.S.R. was also reported attempting to acquire the technology for its own production of the Olivetti machine tool systems. In 1970 the CGE FIAR Defense and Commercial Electronic Department at Milan had licensing agreements with the General Electric Company and AEG Telefunken and specific agreements with several U.S. companies in the computer field. The FIAR was pursing projects in several military applications. The Italian mathematical effort is fairly strong and quite competent. It includes a substantial trend toward applications, which is particularly noteworthy now in work on numerical analysis and computing, but which Italian industry seems to have been somewhat slow to utilize.
c. Astrogeophysical sciences
In general, Italy is not outstanding in astronomy. However, better-than-average work is done in solar astronomy, which is emphasized. While there are more than 15 astronomical observatories in Italy, including small private installations, most equipment is mediocre. For stellar work, however, Italy has two of the largest telescopes in Western Europe. One is a 50-inch reflector at Merate, an observing station of the Brera Astronomical Observatory, Milan; the other is a 48-inch reflector at the Astrophysical Observatory, Asiago, of the University of Padova. At the Astrophysical Observatory of Catania, Sicily, stellar research emphasizes the study of stars that exhibit activity believed to be similar to that of the sun, such as flat, spotted, and magnetic stars. The Catania observatory is also a solar patrol station. Other optical or radio solar research facilities are located at Bologna, Florence, Rome, and Trieste. All of these observatories participated actively in the International Active Sun years (IASY) programs (1969-71). An International Astronomical Latitude Station at Carloforte has participated in studies of variations in the position of the pole, while the Astronomical Observatory of Torino has been the site of the Central Bureau of the Latitude Service and is supported by the International Astronomical Union and the IUGG. The Vatican has an observatory which specializes in studying the structure of the Milky Way galaxy at Castelgondolfo. Italy has a relatively modest but on-going space research program. The Italian aerospace industry was responsible for the design, development, and construction of all the test satellites and some electronic space-borne and ground equipment for the
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APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200080002-5
