NOVEMBER 1 8 , 1957 V O L . 35r N O . 46 APPLIED JOURNALS, ACS

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THE NEED TO KNOW Unnecessary Barriers Prevent Full Use of Much-Needed Ability of Thousands of Scientists

τ HE U. S. TODAY has the largest number of scientists and engineers of any country in the world. Most are native Americans. But for many years we also had a liberal immigration policy which brought to the U. S. many highly competent persons seeking refuge from persecution and gave them opportunity to choose careers in science. In recent years, however, we have set up barriers that have kept many topflight foreign scientists from coming here to live.

U. S. scientists compare favorably in quality with their counterparts elsewhere in the world. The public is currently being told that we lack sufficient high-caliber scientists who have a bent toward basic research. Like any half truth, this is misleading. A study of Nobel Prize winners in the physical sciences shows that Americans have contributed substantially in pushing back the frontiers of basic scien­tific knowledge.

On the other hand, scientists on both sides of the Iron Curtain con tribute to the "well" of basic research, as President Eisenhower pointed out in his address to the nation last week. We have no monopoly on brains, and we are just plain naive if we fail to realize that science has no national boundaries. We should definitely be concerned about our failure to reward basic researchers in this country, both monetarily and in recognition and prestige.

But we need many more to work in the basic research that should be done. No other country comes anywhere near us in the amount drawn from the "well" for use in applied research and technology, where American private enterprise tends to place its emphasis.

Until recently, our Government has given only minimum support to basic research in contrast to other countries, especially Germany. Furthermore, the time lapse between basic discovery and its practical application is becoming shorter and shorter, particularly in the area of military weapons. Therefore, it is now essential that the U. S. do considerably more in basic research and at the same time improve lines of communication between the research men and those who trans­late their discoveries into something practicable.

Perhaps we have belabored some of these ideas, but the relation of basic to applied research does not seem to be thoroughly understood by many in high places.

Government agencies have built up unnecessary barriers which pre­vent thousands of scientists and engineers from participating in im­portant research programs. We do not advocate, of course, widespread disclosure of classified information. Yet it should be possible to hold seminars in various parts of the country which thousands of scientists, cleared for briefing on secret research programs, could attend. As things stand, a company must demonstrate specific reasons why it wishes to participate in a given area of classified research. But how can a company know the areas where it potentially could make a con­tribution until it has been briefed on all phases of our secret research?

Some large companies have no research contracts with the Govern­ment or only minor ones. These and others with large research groups could make important contributions if they could only find out what is needed.

Perhaps, as a result of the new attitude toward science being dis­played in Washington, the "need-to-know" regulation will be modified, making it possible to enlist the brains of many scientists employed by industry in an all-out drive to regain supremacy in the missile field.

Walter J. Murphy

HIGH-GRADE3