October 7, 1974

Dr. Anne R. Somere

Office of Cm-Health Education
College of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey

Rutgers Medical School
University Heights
Piscataway, New Jersey 08854

Dear Dr. Somers,

  I was glad to learn of the project outline in your letter of
September 30th. and I want to thank you for thinking of me. Yes, the
eubject is one that 18 close to my heart; but no, I am afraid that I
just do not have enough time left over to be able to contemplate the
assignment. Howdver, I hope that you can find some way to kaep me
informed of your progrees and perhaps &ive me an opportunity to
comment on some aspect8 of it.

  Indeed I wonder if I could make a counter-proposition although this
is just off the top of my head and I will not have had a chance to clear
it with some of the other wople I am about to mention, But the proposal
is simply that you reschedule one of your meetings to hold it here at
Stanford, perhaps at the Center for Advanced Studies in Behavioral Sciences.
I am sure Nathan Maccoby will not complain about that. But what I had in
mind besides the possibility of my own participation as an observer is
that Bob Haggerty and Dave Mechanic are both here at the Center and I
need hardly mention the kind of contribution *they might be in a position
to make. And it is difficult for me to believe that they would not share
my enthusiasm about that kind of involvement. Beside8 the names that came
first to mind there are of course many others in the immediate area who
might be drawn upon as important resource8. I have taken part in meetings
of this kind before at the Center, and they have always been regarded as
most constructive. (The outstanding example, not to be homologized with
your very valuable activity, was one where - believe it or not - It was
decided to abendon a project a8 inherently unfeasible on the basis of
commentary to that effect by the observers. In that case it was a well
deserved fate!)

  I really am just delighted to see that this kind of initiative ie
being taken to reassess the status and substance of preventive medicine.
I would in fact be most interested to learn a little more about Its
general organleation - for example, what attention is being paid to
genetic factors as input variables.
                    Sincerely yours,

Joshua Lederberg
Profe8sor of Genetic8

JL/rr