107 



Some witnesses flatly opposed i)ro vision for social sciences in the 

 NSF. For example, C. E. MacQiiigg, dean of engineering of Oliio State 

 University, speaking for the Engineering College Research Associa- 

 tion and also as a member of the OSRD gronp that contributed to 

 the Bush report, said that "no useful purpose will be served" by 

 including social sciences in the proposed foundation. Its problems and 

 its practitioners were of an altogether disparate character from "those 

 dealing with the physical world." ^- In one straw vote reported to the 

 hearing 12 scientists favored inclusion of the social sciences, 46 favored 

 putting them in a se])arate agency, and 4 were o])i)osed to any 

 Government program of social science sponsorship or aid.-^ Bernard 

 M. Baruch dismissed the social sciences in a single sentence; they 

 should not, he said, "be included in the same setup." ^* Dr. Morris 

 Fishbein, editor of the Journal of the American Medical Association, 

 opposed their inclusion because of the "great danger of the use of 

 so-called researcli in the social' sciences for political purposes and to 

 influence legislation." ~° 



The suggestion tliat the social sciences could not be objective 

 because of their relevance to national ])roblems was advanced by 

 Dr. I. I. Rabi, nuclear ph^^sicist from Cohunbia University. He 

 noted that they were different, required a different kind of admin- 

 istration, and might jeopardize the held of science generalW, although 

 they were "a place where we need attention even more than the natural 

 sciences." On the other hand, he said: 



I am afraid of the power of this foundation, in the support of social sciences 

 through fellowships and otherwise, to make such selections as to strengthen a 

 preconceived point of view or a particular opinion. You see, social science comes 

 very closely to fundamental political questions which are questions of the day, 

 and I begin to see possibility of a Government's building up a certain body of 

 opinion, a certain direction of thinking through that, whereas in the physical 

 sciences I am not afraid of that simply because it is quite objective. You can 

 prove things b}* experiment.-^ 



Among those witnesses who favored the inclusion of the social 

 sciencies. Dr. F. R. Motdton, permanent secretary of the American 

 Association for the Advancement of Science, offered tlie judgment that 

 the physical sciences luid been overemphasized and that "if we 

 neglected social sciences, all tlie humanities that are involved in the 

 human race living together, tlien the expertness in the {physical 

 sciences would not in the long run save us from A\ar." -" A i)oll rejiorted 

 by Dr. Howard A. Meyerhoff, executive secretary of the AAAS, of 

 192 replies to a questionnaire reflecting tlie views of some 400 members, 

 indicated that 67 ])ercent believed that the social sciences "needed 

 support." He said: '' * * * all of the social scientists answering the 

 questionnaire, and a substantial nmnber of physical scientists believe 

 that the social s("iences should have an integral place in the program, 

 and that they should be classified with the basic sciences." ^* 



Most military witnesses ignored the issue entirely, but Brig. Gen. 

 John ^klagruder, director of the Strategic Service Unit (the residual 

 organization that had been the Office of Strategic Services, and was 

 later to become the Central Intelligence Agency), made a strong bid 



22 Ibid. p. 710. 



23 Ibid., pp. 1145-1146. 

 2'' Ibid., p. 910. 



25 Ibid., p. 496. 

 2« Ibid., pp. 998-909. 

 2' Ibid., p. 79. 

 28 Ibid., p. 92. 



