66 



scientifically creative and risky enterprises fare very well. The 

 qualified majority system exists only in the management entities of 

 JOIDES, which do not have authority to alter the scientific decisions 

 of the panels. 



On policy and budget issues, as I have indicated, compromises are 

 sometimes necessary. For example, a few years ago it was proposed to use 

 microfiche rather than hard copy printing for certain DSDP publications. 

 This would have resulted in considerable savings, and a clear majority of 

 both U.S. and foreign members were prepared to vote for the change. 

 However, two of the international members do not have microfiche readers 

 available in their research centers and universities, and therefore depend 

 entirely on the availability of hard copy. In light of this problem, the 

 proposal was dropped, despite the existence of a majority in support of 

 it. 



7. Should some or all future "big science" facilities be developed on the 

 basis of international cooperation ? 



Certainly not all. There are many instances in which a national community 

 can fully utilize a big facility, and if costs represent an acceptable 

 fraction of the funds available for the particular category of research, 

 then a national facility may be preferable. If a research activity is 

 closely tied to national security or industrial competitiveness, 

 international cooperation may be totally inappropriate. 



But these leave many other cases in which international collaboration may 

 greatly enhance the capabilities which can be afforded and the quality of 

 the science that can be performed. 



8. What does "world leadership" in oceanography mean? Is there a "world 

 leader" in oceanography? Has the Ocean Drilling Program made it possible 

 for the U.S. to be the world leader in oceanography? 



The last part of the question is easier to answer than the first. The 

 U.S. is pre-eminent in marine geology and geophysics. The enormous success 

 and influence of ocean drilling in the evolution of plate tectonic theory 

 has been a major contributing factor to U.S. leadership in all of the 

 geosciences, and certainly in marine geology and geophysics. 



The larger question is difficult to answer in any field of science. It 

 is particularly so for oceanography, which includes basic research in a 

 number of quite diverse fields -- marine biology, physical oceanography, 

 acoustics, marine geology and geophysics, marine chemistry -- and such 

 applied activities as environmental monitoring, mapping and charting, and 

 fisheries research. 



The United States community is widely regarded as the world leader in 

 basic ocean research. This is measured by the dominance of U.S. trained 

 scientists in forefront research worldwide, the leadership of U.S. 

 institutions in international undertakings in virtually all of the ocean 

 science disciplines, and the degree to which U.S. research sets the 

 standards of excellence and relevance everywhere. 



