1493 



The general thrust of this discussion is not to implj^ the need for 

 elaborate reorganization of the Foreign Service or the Department, 

 but to suggest that opportunities might usefulh' be sought to increase 

 the technical competence and resources available to the Department. 



Differing Treatment of Scientific and Technological Matters 



It serves no purpose to attempt a precise distinction between 

 science and technology. They overlap and intermix considerably. 

 However, it may be useful to consider broadly the different diplomatic 

 problems presented by these two elements, and also the difference in 

 the operations of an organization in the Department of State in 

 dealing with scientific as contrasted with technological matters. It is 

 PQssible that two quite different organizational forms and stjdes of 

 management are required. 



THE SCIENCE ROLE 



It has been contended in this study that science is basically an 

 international activity, with a w^orld network of communication 

 among practitioners of the separate scientific disciplines. Government 

 funding is generally welcomed but government direction is not. Science 

 2)er se has little impact on diplomacy, and that mosth' beneficial, 

 while diplomacy can pave the way for expanded scientific exchanges 

 of persons and joint or multinational projects. Scientific programs 

 are rarely the subject of serious diplomatic controversy. They tend 

 mostl}' to low^-cost activities. 



Accordingly, the diplomatic role wdth respect to scientific activities 

 tends to be centered on facilitating international travel and informa- 

 tion flow, assuring appropriate participation in conferences, helping to 

 establish professional contacts, and maintaining information on na- 

 tional science policy and budgets. Much of this work is performed in 

 the United States by the National Science Foundation or b}- the 

 Office of the Foreign Secretary of the National Academy of Sciences 

 with funding support largely from NSF. As has been shown, NSF also 

 plays a major role in supporting a number of bilateral science agi'ee- 

 ments. And in the field of multilateral science activities the Bureau of 

 International Organization Affairs has a considerable role. The 

 science function of OES is, in consequence, a more general policy 

 overview, and the primary emphasis has for some time been shifting 

 from science to technology. 



THE TECHNOLOGICAL ROLE 



In contrast wdth science, the impacts of technolog}' on diplomacy' 

 are numerous and pow^erful. While many of these impacts are loosely 

 identified as "scientific," it is more precise to refer to them as the 

 technological applications of new scientific principles. The spread of 

 technology is increasingh' global, tending in the process to infringe 

 national sovereignties. The inroads are caused by such technical efi'ects 

 as satellite overflights and penetration of the deep oceans, and by such 

 institutional developments as the multinational corporation and multi- 

 nation cartels. On the other hand, both the uses of technology and 

 the scarcity of resources consumed in these uses may encourage a 

 more intense nationalism. Science may respond beneficiall}" to diplo- 

 matic initiatives, but technology determines in major wajs the whole 



