PART III 



THE MISSION AGENCIES 



Comparative Analysis and Historical Trends 



Introduction 



Although the sciences have been considered 

 essential to the intellectual and pragmatic needs 

 of this country since its beginning, the relationship 

 between the Federal Government and the scientific 

 community has developed slowly. During the Con- 

 stitutional Convention, James Madison and Charles 

 Pinckney attempted to make explicit provisions for 

 Government support of science but they were 

 thwarted by a coalition of two factions — those who 

 thought that the power of Government to finance 

 research was implicit and those who believed that 

 such power was totally inappropriate. ' 



Because of the omission of explicit Constitution- 

 al authority for Government support. Congress of- 

 ten rejected proposals for Government involvement 

 in science. In the early days, even Founding Fa- 

 thers who advocated scientific investigation met 

 with frustration. George Washington, for instance, 

 asked unsuccessfully for a national university and 

 for Government support of agricultural research. 

 Over the years, it was often necessary to use sub- 

 terfuge to obtain research funds. Even late in the 

 19th century, many proposals were passed only if 

 they were attached to appropriation bills as riders. - 

 Despite congressional reluctance, the Federal 

 Government gradually became more and more in- 

 volved in the initiation and support of scientific re- 

 search. In 1938, the Science Committee of the pres- 

 identially appointed National Resources Committee 

 reported that the Government had conducted scien- 

 tific investigation "from the earliest days. . .in 

 order to establish a sound basis for its legislative 

 and administrative activities," and that "govern- 

 ment agencies were pioneers in carrying on re- 

 search."^ Even early projects such as the Coast 

 Survey, various scientific expeditions, and the 

 management of weights and measures were initiat- 

 ed and administered by Government agencies. To- 

 day scientific endeavor is supported by numerous 

 mission agencies. This third part of the National 

 Science Board's report attempts to trace briefly the 

 history of each of the mission agencies, examining 

 the development of support for basic research or 

 the lack thereof in each case. First, however, it is 



'Dupree, A. Hunter. Science in the Federal Government 

 (Belknap; Cambridge, 1957), pp. 4 5. Hereinafter referred to as 

 Dupree. 



2|bid., p. 291. 



'Research— A National Resource. Report of the Science 

 Committee to the National Resources Committee (GPO; Wash- 

 ington. DC. 19.^8). p. .1. 



useful to note three sets of events which had effects 

 broader in scope than the work of individual agen- 

 cies but which spurred their increasing involvement 

 in research support. These were (1) wartime mea- 

 sures to stimulate scientific activity in pertinent 

 areas, (2) Government surveys which, from time to 

 time, assessed the role of science in Government 

 and made recommendations, and (.3) the Soviet 

 Union's initial successful satellite launchings, the 

 Sputniks, which catalyzed a great resurgence of 

 national interest in and support for science. 



Wartime Measures 



The National Academy of Sciences. During the 

 Civil War, the Navy established a Permanent 

 Commission which could answer the "questions 

 of science and art upon which the Department 

 may require information. "4 The commissioners 

 and three other scientists recommended creation 

 of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), 

 which was incorporated in 1863. Although the 

 Permanent Commission was active throughout the 

 war, the National Academy of Sciences made few 

 concrete contributions except for correcting ships' 

 compasses.-^ 



The National Research Council. In the course of 

 World War 1, the National Research Council was 

 created as a working arm of the NAS. The Coun- 

 cil was highly effective during the war, as will be 

 shown in the history of the Department of De- 

 fense; it continues to serve. 



The Office of Scientific Research and Develop- 

 ment. The threat of U. S. involvement in World 

 War II and the poor state of U. S. preparedness 

 led leading scientists to propose additional mea- 

 sures. 6 In 1941, the Office of Scientific Research 

 and Development (OSRD) was created by Execu- 

 tive order. This Office directed most of the U. S. 

 military research until after the war. Pleased with 

 OSRD's success, Roosevelt wrote to its director, 

 Vannevar Bush, that there was "no reason why 

 the lessons to be found in this experiment cannot 

 be profitably employed in times of peace.'"' One 



■"Gideon Welles, Navy Secretary, toCharles Henry Davis. Feb- 

 ruary 1 1 , 186.1. in True, F.W. . -4 History of the First Half-Century 

 of the National Academy of Sciences. /86.?-/9/.?(Lord Baltimore 

 Press: Baltimore, 1913), p. I. 



-''Dupree, pp. 144- 146; True, op. cit.pp. 216-217. 



^Stewart. Irvin, Organizing Scientific Research for WarlLittle, 

 Brown; Boston. 1948), p. 4. Hereinafter referred to as Stewart. 



'President Franklin D. Roosevelt, letter to Dr. Bush. Novem- 

 ber 17. 1944 



COIMPARATIVE ANALYSIS AND HISTORICAL TRENDS 323 



