Science: Basic Report

The U.S. must increase its support of basic scientific research if it does not want to fall behind Soviet Russia in both pure science and the practical technology that is based upon it. This is the considered opinion of the Government-supported National Science Foundation, which last week issued a 64-page report called Basic Research—A National Resource.

After defining basic research as fundamental investigation in science which may or may not have ultimate practical significance, the report estimates that about 14% of all Soviet scientists spend their time in this sort of long-range work, on which the advances of the future will be based. The percentage is between one-fifth and one-third greater than in the U.S.

The NSF urges the U.S. Government to give universities much more money for basic research, and to help state governments in their own educational and research programs. It also suggests that the income-tax laws be changed to favor non-profit research institutes and to encourage gifts for basic research from both corporate and individual taxpayers.