DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER 



Much of this expenditure is to meet the current and practical 

 needs of the federal government. The size of these federal 

 expenditures and the policies and practices of the federal govern- 

 ment inevitably have a substantial effect on the nation's private 

 scientific institutions. But again we remind ourselves that the 

 whole program would be self-defeating if it were allowed to 

 limit the freedom of its own research. 



During recent months we have made many moves to 

 strengthen the management of your government's scientific 

 activities. These include a number of advisory committees and 

 several new legally authorized agencies; all are designed to 

 point up and enhance and coordinate scientific research. 



Now, let me cite one example which illustrates an appro 

 priate way for the federal government to further our basic 

 scientific research effort. Recently the General Advisory Com- 

 mittee to the Atomic Energy Commission and my Science Ad- 

 visory Committee, under the chairmanship of Dr. Killian, 

 appointed a special panel of scientists to undertake a compre- 

 hensive review of the federal government's participation in the 

 high-energy accelerator physics field. 



On the basis of this report, I am recommending to the Con- 

 gress that the federal government finance the construction as a 

 national facility of a large new electron linear accelerator. Physi- 

 cists consider the project, which has been sponsored by Stanford 

 University, to be of vital importance. Moreover, they believe it 

 promises to make valuable contributions to our understanding 

 in a field in which the United States already is strong, and in 

 which we must maintain our progress. Because of the cost, 

 such a project must become a federal responsibility. This pro- 

 posed national facility, which will be by far the largest of its 

 kind ever built — a machine two miles long — has the endorse- 

 ment of the interested government agencies — including the 



140 



