THE EOETVOES LORAND UNIVERSITY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00047R000100540003-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 8
• Document Creation Date: December 27, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 10, 2013
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: September 12, 1952
• Content Type: REPORT

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CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
INFORMATION REPORT
COUNTRY Hungary
SUBJECT The Ece%..roes Lorand University
PLACE
ACQUIRED
DATE
AC.QU I RED
THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS INFORMATION AFFECTING THE NATIONAL -:--
OF THE UNITED STATES, WITHIN THE MEANING OF TITLE IS, SECTION793
AND 794. OF THE U.S. CODE. A9 AMENDED. ITS TRANSMISSION O RENE?
L A T I O N O F I T S C O N T E N T S TO O R R E C E I P T R NAU TNORI ZED PERSON 9
PROHIBITED BY LAW. THE REPRODUCTION CF THIS FORM 19 PROHIBITED!
was supported by the Ministry of Public Health. The total
enrollment of the Ecetvoes Lorand University was five thousand;
of that number some two thousand students were specializing in_,
natural sciences, 400 in chemistry, of which number 100 were
DATE D I S T R ./ , : ? - Sep 52 50X1
NO. OF PAGES 4
NO. OF EEpNCLS. 4
(LISTED "
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
1. The Eoetvoes Lorand University was formerly the 'azmany Peter
University; it was renamed in honor of Lorand Eoetvoes, a
Hungarian Leftist I,,ero. The university, a government institution,
beginners. There was about an even number of men and women.,
The following were divisions of the university:
(a) The Central Physics Research Institute is a part of the
Eoetvoes Lorand University although it is un4er the
Ministry of Education and the Academy of Sciences. It
was set up in 191+.9 for to purpose of coordinating instruc-
tion and research 1pitheoretical and experimental physics,
and several physics institutes were consolidated to form
the new institute. The equipment was old and the instruc-
tion was poor, but it was improving The
institute was located in a three story building at the
northeastern corner of the university compound at No 7,
Pushkin utca. The administrative offices, class rooms.,
and several small laboratories and individual research
rooms were located in this buildin; botr instruction
and individual research were carried on there. The
Central Physics Research Institute had a staff of some
CLASSIFICATION SECRET 5EC1_JRITY INFORMATION
141 /Vft V Cf I )el DISTRIBUTION
IA 1 j9- 1 .- i
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Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr2013/05/10 : CIA-RDP82-00047R000100540003-7
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SECRET/SECURITY INFORMA?. TON
100 persons made up of professors, teaching and laboratory
asaistent, and those doing individual research. It had
ko-50 "di-.1om" students a year; there were four or five
50X1 aspirants Dr Karoly Novobatzky became the
Director o the ins institute in 1951. The Central Physics
Research Institute was made up of the following:
(1)
Theoretical Physics Institute
Director: Dr Novobatzky
. (2) Experimental Physics Institute
Director: Dr Jenoe Poeza
(3) Applied Physics Institute
Director: Dr Peter Farago
(4+) Atomic Physics Research Institute
Director: Dr. Istvan Kovacs
(5) Research groups were headed by the following:
Dr Janossy - cosmic rays
Dr Tamas Tarnoczy - ultrasonics
Dr Pal Selenyi - photocells
Dr'Tibor Szelenyi - photographic emulsion preparation
Dr Sandor - radioactivity
(b) The General Chemistry Institute was located at No 11-13 Pushkin
utca within the university compound, in a three story building
adjoining the building in which, the Central Physics Research
Institute was located. The Institute was directed by Dr Bela
Lengyel and had a staff of 16-20.
(c) The Colloid Chemistry Institute was located in the same building
as the General Chemistry Institute; the director was Dr Aladar
Buzagh, Professor of Colloid Chemistry.
(d) The Chemical Technological Institute was separated from the
Colloid Chemistry Institute in the d1umrner of 1951, The Chemical
Technological Institute was concerned primarily with'industria.1
research and had a staff of four. Located in the same building
as the Colloid Chemistry Institute, it was directed by
Dr Vilmos Schezann,
(e) The Organic Chemistry Institute was located in the university
compound No 4 Muzeum Koerut, not far from the General Chemistry
Building. The director of the institute was Dr Gyoezoe Bruckner,
Professor of Organic Chemistry, Some research on synthetic
dye production was done at this institute.
(f) The Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry Institute, located in the
same building as the Organic Chemistry Institute, was directet,l
by Dr Elemer Schulek, Professor of Inorganic and Analytical
Chemistry.
(g) The Physical Chemistry Institute, located in the same building
as the Colloid Chemistry, Institute, was directed by Dr Tibor
Erdey-Gruz. It had a staff of some 30 persons.
(h) The Biochemical Institute was directed by Dr Bruno Straub,
Professor of Biochemistry.. It war located within the Univer-
sity Compound on Pushkin utca and curried out biological
research. This institute was modernized and re-equipped after
'1950.
SECRET/,sau T! INFORMA-11ON
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SECRET/SECU t INFORMATION
(i) The E1eotro croscopy Institute, set up in 1950, was directed
by Dr Mihaly Gerendas, Professor of Chemistry. The Institute
had two electron microscopes; the last one was set up in the
Summer of-1951. This Institute was under the Hungarian Academy
of Sciences,
(j) The administration office of the Medical School of the Eoetvoes
Lorand.University was located at Ualloe ut 26, a. block of
buildings about one km from the university campus. The various
institutes of the Medical School were in several buildings
within a short distance from the university. The School of
Medicine included the following divisions:
(1) Histology
(2) Biochemistry
(3) Surgery
(4) Internal Medicine
(5) Anatomy
(6) Bacteriology
(7) Physiology
(8) Gynecology
(9) Pharmacy
50X1 (k) There was a Biological Institute of the Eoetvoes Lorand Univer-
sity on Pushkin utca
(1) The Geology and Mineralogy Institute of the Eoetvoes Lorand
University was directed by Dr Blemer Vadasz.
2. In 1945 there was a brass plate on the building which housed the
Physical Chemistry Institute, General Chemistry Institute, and
Colloid Chemistry Institute; it stated that the building and all the
institutes in it belonged to the Rockefeller Institute. This was
50X1 done in order to protect the instruments and equipment from pillaging
or damag by the Soviet soldiers.
50X1
3. The number of positions in the University-was, for all practical
purposes, fixed; promotions were made only when there was a vacancy.
Suggestions for promotion were made to the director by the staffs
of the various institutes; the director made his recommendation to
the Ministry which had the responsibility for making the appointment.
A small but active group of CP members on every staff made certain
that only the'names of reliable" persons were suggested for promo-
tion. The Director and the Ministry also made a careful check.
4.
50X1
50X1 ere y staff were oordial,barring, or course, temporary incidents.
The professors' of each faculty elected a dean from among themselves
each year. The free time of the faculty was requisitioned by the
Conipt Party for propaganda work, such as writing pamphlets, and
to lating records.
SL' CRET/5. CU I Y IWOPP)jLTION
the interrelationships of the univ-
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SECRET/SECURITY INFORMATION
.Hungarian atude is Were interested in, experimental rather than
theoretical. work and in general became . skillful indepeMOnt, workers.
.There-were no graduate student societies with the excetion of the
National Hungarian Chemical Society. ' Most graduate s'Cnts of
chemistry joined this organization during the latter p of their
residence. Dues, which included subscriptions-to two ~t urnals,
were eight forints per month.
6. The students lived under very crowded conditions; as many as three
had to live in one-room. Students said teat thefood was very poor
and that very littl'e seat !as r served. The manager of one dining
room was severely reprimanded after an outbreak of ptomaine poisoning.
Worthy students who needed financial assistance were,given their
room and board free. Students had little free time. Government
regulations prohibited any' extracurricular work for pay, but required
active participation'in sports. The usual activity of the, students
for relaxation was walking in. the mountains. Western dancing was
discouraged. Movies were well attended despite the fact that most
of them were propaganda, and most university students disliked
propaganda that was too obvious.. Russian and Czech films were shown
both'in the original and Hungarian language. Some of the films
showed beautiful regions in the Us: but they were dated by-the clothes
and`"hair-does". There were some French, Italian, and Rumanian films
in beautiful colors. Movies made in the US or England were shown
only on rare occasions and then onl:r when they fitted in with the
50X1 Communist line. Russian newsreels including war
scenes had been introduced, Mores were a relatively inexpensive
form of entertainment for the students since they had to pay only
about one third of the regular price which was three to six forint.s.
-end-
Enclosure (A): Basement Institute for Colloid Chemistry
Eoetvoes Lorand University
(B): Ground Floor, Institute for Colloid Chemistry
Eoetvoes Lorand University
(C): General Physical Laboratory, Physical Chemistry
Institute, Eoetvoes Lorand University
(D): Eleetrotechnioal Laboratory, Physical Chemistry
Institute, Eoetvoes Lorand University
SECRET /SECURITY INFORMATION
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ENCLOSURE (A) SECRET/SECURITY I14FORMATION
gate Staircase
gate
T
0 Pushkin utoa
43
W Store
room
email Elementary tab
Assi
Room esearc
Lab
Stair to ground
floor '
----4 4- '1
Examination
Lab
Researth IBbfbr
2 issistanLB and
2 students
'Courtyard
Basement, Institute for Colloid Chemistry)-
Eoetvoes Lorand University
Sh;CRt'T/i1CURITY INFORMATION
0r? ase t ri
Eleetdcal
Instxw nt
Repair
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.ENCLOSURE (B) SECRET/SECURITY INFORMATION
Electrochemical Assistants
0_ Lab General Physical.Chemistr Research
Lab 15i a I Lab
Optics
Lab
Office
Professor's
Office and
Research
Lab
Trefort Garden
Ground Floor, Institute for Colloid Chemistry
Eoetvpes Lorand University
SECRET/SEGUITY INFORMATION
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-ENCLOSURE (C)
Otte worktable
04 water
M ? DC 11O-220v
A4sAC 110-220v
1`)(Ak gas
SECRET/SECURITY INFORMATT(.N
Pushkin utca
General Physical Chemistry Laboratory? ~-~
Eoetvaee Loran4 University
SECRET/sECURITy IRFO&JATIoN
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-ENCLOSURE .(D) SECRET/SECURITY IN`PORMATION
VL! i u
dozen 1
.Y..._, optic, e
shelves
for
chemicals
Pushkif utca
~K,)c0 ALI 0 44 4 SOX
w or k t a b 1 e
wt worktable
gas
o water
f`~F direct current
alternate current
Electrotechnical Laboratory, Physical Chemistry Institute,
Eoetvdes Lorand University
SECRET /SECURITY INF(: NATION
P phys chem_~,,_
lab
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