A Minor Miracle: An Informal History of the National Science Foundation |
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activities Administration American AMSOC Committee applied research asked Assistant basic research began Bronk Brown & Root Budget Bureau called Carey chairman Chapter Chron File colleges Conant conference Cong Congress congressional contract coordination country's Directorship draft drilling early educational effort enabling act engineering Federal agencies fellowships Foundation's funds going Government grants Handler Haworth hearings Ibid institutions IRRPOS Isaiah Bowman issue Kilgore Kitt Peak laboratory later legislative letter McElroy memo million National Science Board National Science Foundation neutron stars Nixon NSF Director NSF's operating organization OSRD Philip Handler plans plate tectonics President presidential problems Project Mohole proposed PSAC pulsars RANN request research and development responsible says Science Adviser Science Advisory Science and Technology scientific community scientific research scientists Senate Smale staff Steelman Stever subcommittee suggested telescope took Truman University Vannevar Bush Washington Waterman White House York
Popular passages
Page 134 - Solving Our Water Problems: Water Renovation and Reuse," reprinted in Hearings before the Subcommittee on Science, Research and Development of the House Committee on Science and Astronautics, The Adequacy of Technology for Pollution Abatement Vol.
Page 93 - To evaluate scientific research programs undertaken by agencies of the Federal Government, and to correlate the Foundation's scientific research programs with those undertaken by individuals and by public and private research groups; 7.
Page 195 - Chairman of the Subcommittee on Science, Research and Development of the House Committee on Science and Astronautics, introduced HR 6698, "to provide a method for identifying, assessing, publicizing, and dealing with the implications and effects of applied research and technology.
Page 1 - What Art was to the ancient world, Science is to the modern: the distinctive faculty. In the minds of men the useful has succeeded to the beautiful. ^Instead of the city of the Violet Crown,) a Lancashire village has expanded into a mighty region of factories and warehouses. Yet, rightly understood, Manchester is as great a human exploit as Athens.
Page 3 - You see I have given a loose to imagination, but I approve much more your method of philosophizing, which proceeds upon actual observation, makes a collection of facts, and concludes no farther than those facts will warrant.
Page 35 - ... requirements" defined by military staff work. This notion was exploded as it became apparent that what scientists discovered by unrestricted research might be of greater military importance than the things the military officers thought they wanted — in short, that the means might determine the ends.
Page 136 - ... to foster the interchange of scientific information among scientists in the United States and foreign countries...
Page 41 - A nation which depends upon others for its new basic scientific knowledge will be slow in its industrial progress and weak in its competitive position in world trade, regardless of its mechanical skill.
Page 19 - Oh leave the Wise our measures to collate. One thing at least is certain, LIGHT has WEIGHT One thing is certain, and the rest debate — Light-rays, when near the Sun, DO NOT GO STRAIGHT.
Page 205 - By restricting its programs to "basic" research, the National Science Foundation may be causing some scientists, and particularly some engineers, to direct their research activities and, hence, their educational impact also, away from their legitimate applied interests. 3. There is a genuine need for support, at academic institutions, of applied work which will help to bridge the gap between fundamental findings and socially useful systems or concepts. 4. There are many large and serious problems...