EPILOGUl SUMMARY OF CHAPTERS 1019 



had rhe full and free right as elected bodies to accept or reject the 

 materials. Teague, Wydler, and Mrs. Lloyd contended that it was 

 shocking that the Federal Government should spend tax money on 

 materials which were degrading. The House voted down by 218 to 196 

 Conlan's efforts to require Congressional committee review and ap- 

 proval of all MACOS materials before their release for use locally. A 

 number of review committees were appointed, including a citizens 

 committee which Teague appointed, headed by Dr. James M. Moudy, 

 chancellor of Texas Christian University. The Moudy Report recom- 

 mended that the MACOS materials be used only with care, with 

 thorough training of the teachers who might use the materials, and 

 also added: 



From reports reaching us, we believe that the surest success of MACOS has 

 come in those schools where ample preparations were made, including conferences 

 with parents to show them in advance the MACOS materials, and to explain the 

 purposes and methods of the course. 



Starting in 1976, McCormack and Harkin had an annual clash 

 over the "Science for Citizens Programs," inserted into the NSF 

 authorization bill by Senator Kennedy to improve public under- 

 standing of science and technology issues. McCormack and many of 

 the committee members looked on the measures as funding environ- 

 mental extremists and intervenor groups to file delaying lawsuits, 

 while Harkin viewed it as a natural extension of enlightening more 

 people through the exercise of the democratic process. Generally, the 

 result was to fund the program at a compromise le^el halfway between 

 the House and Senate figures. 



Until the end of the decade, the committee continued to stress the 

 need for greater emphasis on science education by NSF, and increased 

 the funding in this category. The perennial flap occurred over the 

 "silly-sounding projects" nearly every time the NSF authorization 

 bill was considered on the House floor. Teague cited the studies of the 

 sex life of the flv which led to the elimination of the dreaded screw- 

 worm which afflicted cattle. Harkin related that NSF grants to research 

 'The Excretion of Urine in the Dog" and "The Excretion of Insulin 

 in the Dogfish" led to the discovery of "vital information on the 

 function of the human kidney and the relationship of hormones to 

 kidney functions." 



Among the major pieces of legislation originating in the com- 

 mittee, and passed exclusively through the committee's initiative, was 

 the establishment of the Office of Technology Assessment. The first bill 

 was cosponsored in 1969 by Daddario and Mosher, growing out of a 

 phrase, popularized by Daddario, that Congress needed a "techno- 

 logical early warning system." The legislation set up a Technology 



