New Ways of Looking at US Science and Technology

SEP 01, 1994

For 50 years Federal science policy was rooted in cold war perceptions of a world in which the US had one military rival and virtually no scientific and technological equals. The nation must redirect science and technology to objectives that sustain social progress and economic growth while preserving our planetary habitat.

DOI: 10.1063/1.881403

George E. Brown

It is curious how I have gained a reputation as a curmudgeonly commentator on science and technology issues. I like to think that the term “curmudgeon” is inappropriate, because I believe I’m just more outspoken and possibly more realistic than most self‐appointed gurus in the embattled field of science and technology policy. So to maintain my status, I will stick my neck out to speculate on some trends and patterns in science and technology as well as in higher education.

This article is only available in PDF format

References

1. S. W. Leslie, The Cold War and American Science: The Military‐Industrial‐Academic Complex at MIT and Stanford, Columbia U.P., New York (1993).
2. J. P. Clark, M. C. Flemings. Sci. Am., October 1986, p. 50.
3. The Economist, 19 March 1994.
4. World Commission on Environment and Development, Our Common Future, Oxford U.P., Oxford, England (1987).
5. The Economist, 25 December 1993, p. 72.

More about the authors

George E. Brown, US House of Representatives, California.