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PHOTO INTERPRETATION PICTURE, DISCUSSION 113
the same platform over here. Incidentally, I am
uite gratified at this mix up; I do not know how
Dr Colwell feels, he has been too nice to say.
Unfortunately, this session may further confuse
the issue. I can well imagine that someone may
say to another some time later on that he has
read Dr Colwell’s paper for the International
Society, and the other person may say, “Yes, I
heard him give it in London”. So I would like to
remind you that this paper is being given by
Coleman and not Dr Colwell.
Mr Coleman then gave an ample view of
Mr Colwell's paper and illustrated his com-
munication with a large number of slides. Mr
Coleman concluded with the words:
I would now like to don my other hat and
present you with the opportunity for discussion,
the floor is now open for discussion.
Discussion
Mr G. C. TEWINKEL: I want to put in an-
other plug for the PI Manual. You forgot to
mention that they can be purchased across the
hall at the bookstall. There are not very many
copies here, but they can be ordered. It is avail-
able, it is a very good job and we are proud of
Dr Colwell's work on it.
Mr W. T. PRYOR: I would like to compliment
Dr Colwell on his prime paper and Mr Coleman
on his presentation of Dr Colwell’s paper. I
noticed there was one point missing throughout
the paper which was the fact that the photo-
graphic interpreter must be well qualified in the
field of activity in which he is attempting to
make photo interpretations. It is almost futile
to bring in a man specialising in photo interpre-
tation, for example, to work in highway engi-
neering who is not first a highway engineer. You
cannot use it in medicine if the interpreter is not
first a medical man himself. That is one im-
portant factor.
That means then that we are required to
bring in every type of specialist almost that there
is in the world to the field of photographic in-
terpretation, because I do not believe that there
is anyone who cannot fully utilise it in one way
or another. First, he must be well qualified in
the field in which he is expecting to employ
photographic interpretation.
The PRESIDENT: I would just like to ask if
any member of the panel wishes to comment on
that particular point. Personally, I think it is a
very valid one.
Mr W. FISCHER: I happen to be a geologist
and I would like to second Mr Pryor's comment.
I think it is almost essential that anyone doing
geological interpretation should be well ground-
ed in that field. I am not a military interpreter;
perhaps in that field there may be another aspect
of the situation of which we must not lose sight.
Pictures must be scanned for all information
that is available. You cannot predict ahead of
time the type of information for which you will
be looking. Thus I think there may be in some
aspects of PI a need for people who are versatile
and well grounded in a number of fields.
Mr D. A. FRANCIS: I would like to make one
quite strong comment. Whilst supporting Dr
Fischer in some respect, I would take issue with
the previous speaker because I feel in some re-
spects a photo interpreter can do a perfectly
good job without detailed technical knowledge
of a particular subject. I think an enquiring
mind on the part of the person engaged in photo
interpretation is often much more important
than intensive knowledge of a particular aspect.
In my own profession, which is forestry, you
can take a lot of foresters who know the country
very well indeed but give them the photographs
and a course of training and they are still not
much good at it. I think this is quite an impor-
tant aspect.
One thing I would like to raise is whether or
not anyone here has a comment to make on the
psychological testing of photo interpreters. I am
quite sure a number of people here have read
the articles published by Mr Norman Simms in
Australia on interpretation testing. He really
deals just with the optical question and the
interpreter's ability in certain respects. I do not
know if anyone here has done work on the
psychological testing of men for this work. My
experience in Africa, the Middle East and
recently in Central America has been that I
have to take men with a good training in a par-
ticular profession, whether or not they have that
enquiring mind which looks at a photo and sees
something which is not known and looks into
various aspects and tries various things.
One of the points Dr Fischer made — and I
am inclined to agree with him — is the well-
rounded approach, and for that reason in many
cases I think a geographer with his training is
