Mission-oriented R & d

Mansfield's Section 203 has triggered a searching review by DOD of its research. Using the general budget constraints of the past few years as an effective springboard, Mansfield went on to question and then challenge all of the federal government's policies for R & D. The entire post-World War II institutional machinery and rhetoric for R & D are now in some disarray and, thus, are open to imaginative, constructive change. Mission-oriented R & D, still central to progress toward our national goals, must be comprehensively rethought in order to restore the public confidence necessary for adequate support of science and technology.     

Building R & d policy from strength

Many proposals have been made for new initiatives in our nation's research and development system. But before rushing into untried approaches, we need to look to the foundations of the system that has worked so well for us in the past. We have a climate for venture capital that has never been better; the world's greatest research universities; an industrial base that is moving aggressively into high technology, spurred by competition; and a defense effort that can be a major asset to civiliarn R & D. We should build our future by understanding and using these existing strengths.