Harvard professors and administration hosted seven prominent scientists from the People's Republic of China yesterday. The scientists, the first from China to visit the United States since 1949, are currently touring American educational and research institutions.

Harvey Brooks, dean of Engineering and Applied Physics and Harvard's official host for the scientists and their aides, welcomed the delegation at the Science Center yesterday morning.

The scientists toured the undergraduate Science Center before breaking into groups yesterday Brooks and Dean Dunlop discussed the issues of science and public policy with several of the Chinese, while a second group attended a demonstration of a join chemistry computer science project.

During the afternoon, part of the Chinese delegation visited the Honeywell Information Systems Laboratory in Cambridge William N. Lipscomb, Jr. Lawrence Professor of Chemistry, and Stephen C. Harrison '63, assistant professor of Biochemistry, demonstrated some of their research findings at the Gibbs Laboratory for the rest of the delegation.

Jerome A. Chohen, professor of Law, hosted a luncheon for the Chinese visitors at the Law School yesterday.

Contacts

Carol L. Rogers, associate public information officer for the National academy of Science, said yesterday that the Chinese visit to America was arranged to give the Chinese as idea of current developments in science in America and to help renew contacts between American scientists and citizens and the Chinese.

"Exchanges are in their early stages right now, but if everything goes smoothly, there should be many reciprocal visits in the future," Rogers told. She added that the Chinese are "getting an overwhelmingly warm reception from everyone they encounter in the United States."

The Pei-Lin. a correspondent from China's Hsinhua News Agency, said yesterday that this visit represents a "common interest to promote understanding between the two countries and to further the number of exchanges."

Pei-Lin normally reports from Hsinhua's United Nations Bureau in New York City, but is now covering the scientist's tour for Hsinhua.

State Department security personnel have accompanied the Chinese throughout their American tour. Security precautions at Harvard were very tight yesterday. The schedule visit was not made public until had returned to their hotel last night.

"The State Department even sent agents to check out the food before the Chinese ate it." Jane A. Draper, administrative assistant in computing technology, said yesterday. Draper helped to arrange the schedule for yesterday's visit.

The Chinese visit was originally sponsored by the Harvard Academy of Sciences, but most of the arrangement for the tour were made by the Committee on Scholarly Communication with the People's Republic of China (CSCPRC). The CSCPRC is a joint committee made up of delegates from the National Academy of Sciences, the Social Science Research Council and the American Council of Learned Societies.

Invitaiton from the Academy were originally sent to Kuo Mo-Jo, head of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The Chinese responded favorably to the invitation in the fail and the trip was arranged.

The Chinese delegation to Sweden, Great Britain, and Canada before they came to the United States. They have visited New York and Washington since their arrival in America on November 20. They will travel to Chicago, Ann Arbor, Michigan and San Francisco before leaving for home on December 15