peripheral to the major problems of those Departments. These groups should 

 remain where they are, and continue to perform their present functions, 

 including the support of agricultural research by grants to the land grant 

 colleges and experimental stations, since then- largest contribution lies in 

 apph'ing fundamental knowledge to the special problems of the Departments 

 within which thc\ are established. 



By the same token these groups cannot be made the repository of the new 

 and large responsibilities in science which belong to the Government and 

 which the Government should accept. The recommendations in this report 

 which relate to research within the Go\'ernment, to the release of scientific 

 information, to clarification of the tax laws, and to the recovery and develop- 

 ment of our scientific talent now in uniform can be implemented by action 

 within the existing structure of the Government. But nowhere in the gov- 

 ernmental structure recei\'ing its funds from Congress is there an agency 

 adapted to supplementing the support of basic research in the universities, 

 both in medicine and the natural sciences; adapted to supporting research 

 on new weapons for both Services; or adapted to administering a program of 

 science scholarships and fellowships. 



A new agenc\' should be established, therefore, bv the Congress for the 

 purpose. Such an agencv, moreover, should be an independent agency 

 dex'oted to the support of scientific research and advanced scientific education 

 alone. Industr\' learned manv vears ago that basic research cannot often be 

 fruitfulK' conducted as an adjunct to or a subdixision of an operating agency 

 or department. Operating agencies ha\e immediate operating goals and are 

 under constant pressure to produce in a tangible wav, for that is the test of 

 their value. None of these conditions is favorable to basic research. Research 

 is the exploration of the unknown and is necessarily speculati\e. It is in- 

 hibited bv con\'entional approaches, traditions, and standards. It cannot 

 be satisfactorily conducted in an atmosphere where it is gauged and tested 

 by operating or production standards. Basic scientific research should not, 

 therefore, be placed under an operating agency whose paramount concern 

 is anything other than research. Research will always suffer when put in 

 competition with operations. The decision that there should be a new and 

 independent agencx' was reached bv each of the committees advising in 

 these matters. 



I am con\ inced that these new functions should be centered in one agency. 

 Science is fundamcntalK a unitary thing. The number of independent 

 agencies should be kept to a minimum. Much medical progress, for example, 

 will come from fundamental ad\'ances in chemistrw Separation of the sci- 

 ences in tight comjiartments, as would occur if more than one agency were 

 involved, would retard and not ad\'ance scientific knowledge as a whole. 



Five Fiindanieiilnls 



There are certain basic principles which must underlie the program of 

 Government supjiort for scientific research and education if such support is 

 to be effecti\c and if it is to a\()id impairing the \'erv things we seek to 

 foster. These principles are as follows: 



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