SUMMARY OF THE REPORT 



Scientific Progress is Essential 



Progress in the war against disease depends upon a flow of new scientific 

 knowledge. New products, new industries, and more jobs require continuous 

 additions to knowledge of the laws of nature, and the application of that 

 knowledge to practical purposes. Similarly, our defense against aggression 

 demands new knowledge so that we can develop new and improved weapons. 

 This essential, new knowledge can be obtained onlv through basic scientific 

 research. 



Science can be effective in the national welfare onlv as a member of a 

 team, whether the conditions be peace or war. But without scientific prog- 

 ress no amount of achievement in other directions can insure our health, 

 prosperity, and security as a nation in the modern world. 



For the War Against Disease 



We have taken great strides in the war against disease. The death rate for 

 all diseases in the Armv, including overseas forces, has been reduced from 

 14.1 per thousand in the last war to 0.6 per thousand in this war. In the 

 last 40 vears life expectancy has increased from 49 to 65 vears, largelv as a 

 consequence of the reduction in the death rates of infants and children. But 

 we are far from the goal. The annual deaths from one or two diseases far 

 exceed the total number of American lives lost in battle during this war. A 

 large fraction of these deaths in our civilian population cut short the useful 

 lives of our citizens. Approximately 7,000,000 persons in the United States 

 are mentally ill and their care costs the public over $175,000,000 a vear. 

 Clearly much illness remains for which adequate means of prevention and 

 cure are not vet known. 



The responsibility for basic research in medicine and the underlying 

 sciences, so essential to progress in the war against disease, falls primarily 

 upon the medical schools and universities. Yet we find that the traditional 

 sources of support for medical research in the medical schools and universi- 

 ties, largely endowment income, foundation grants, and private donations, 

 are diminishing and there is no immediate prospect of a change in this trend. 

 Meanwhile, the cost of medical research has been rising. If we are to main- 



