main ideas/concepts

Question 1

What was the early cold war consensus?

Answer 1

Science recieves overall more support
Government is the primary funder of science

Question 2

What were the cold war tensions?

Answer 2

Building secrecy within the scientific community
Scientists have little input in weapons development

Question 3

What is the debate between Linus Pauling and Edward Teller?

Answer 3

Pauling was arguing that nuclear weapons were dangerous and testing shoud be banned
Teller advocated for hydrogen bombs due to anti-communist beliefs

Question 4

Soviet Union vs. US?

Answer 4

Science in the west was more open and democratic
Capitalistic science!
Soviet communism is oppressive and controlling
Western science supremacy

Question 5

Why did the government support basic research?

Answer 5

They hoped that science would eventually have practical applications in the future
It had already proven itself in radar and other beneficial technologies

Question 6

When and how did the Cold War end?

Answer 6

Ended in 1990/91
Soviet Union fell into disarray after the fall of the Berlin Wall due to global committments and pressure from the US

Question 7

What significant new developments in scientific research are represented by Stanford University’s patenting of rDNA tech?

Answer 7

More emphasis on applied research and technology
Biotechnology and genetic engineering are growing
Capitalization and ownership of intellectual property debate

Question 8

How did government sponsorship of defense-related research and development in the 1980s resemble such sponsorship in the 1950s and 1960s?

Answer 8

More private companies began to partner with scientists and scientists began to make their own companies
More direct link between scientists and industry

Question 9

What government policies in the early 1980s led universities to form partnerships with the private for-profit industries?

Answer 9

PATENTS were allowing scientists to patent their discoveries and lease them to these corporations

Question 10

How did the relationship between universities and the federal government change over the course of the 1960s and early 1970s?

Answer 10

The main change was that military involvement in university research experienced a dramatic decline due to Vietnam tensions

Question 11

Why did some American scientists criticize national defense policy in the 1950s and early 1960s?

Answer 11

It was aligned with scientific research and state power
Governments were abusing scientific research to focus on nuclear weapons

Question 12

How did university change in the 1950s and 1960s?

Answer 12

A greater emphaiss on education
More funding, more enrollments, larger campuses and faculty
Needed more scientists
Caused by the launch of Sputnik

Question 13

Which scientific fields most benefited from government funding priorities in the 1950s and 1960s?

Answer 13

High energy physics, engineering, biology, chemistry, and nuclear science

Question 14

How did WWII change the relationship between scientists and the government?

Answer 14

The role of secrecy become more significant due to the competition with the Soviet Union (fear of spies)
Building tension on the relationship

Question 15

Why did government spending on scientific research increase after WWII?

Answer 15

US felt that need to demonstrate scientific superiority over the Soviet Union
Funding all the research at the universities and laboratories working with the military
LARGE portion went to basic research

Question 16

What role did universities play in the “military-industrial complex” that emerged during the Cold War?

Answer 16

Worked directly with the military for the advancements of scientific weapons
Hosted the research laboratories that conducted much of the research for the military

Question 17

Before 1957 did most federal funding of science go to civilian or military research?

Answer 17

Most federal funding went to military research specifically national security
Most funding came from quasi-military agencies

Question 18

What actions does Bush recommend the US government take to promote science?

Answer 18

Recommend that the US government focus on the education of scientific professional
Scientific advancement should be supported by higher education

Question 19

How did women get professions in science and engineering?

Answer 19

Small number of women scientists/engineers attempted to organize opportunities for women within these fields

Question 20

When did women involvement accelerate?

Answer 20

1970s

Question 21

Why was there a growth of molecular biology?

Answer 21

Exponential increase in private funding
A lot of long term potential with molecular biology

Question 22

What was the Cold War scientific concensus?

Answer 22

Government should be primary patron of scientific research

Question 23

What was the radical critique of Basic Research?

Answer 23

Scientists don’t percieve applications for their research
“Pure” science is a myth
Questioning the basic/applied distinction
Science is never politically neutral or value free

Question 24

What happened to molecular biology?

Answer 24

It was quickly molded to entrepreneurial science and became known as industry science
Went against the idea that science shouldn’t be owned

Question 25

Why has funding for high energy physics decreased?

Answer 25

The government no longer sees a need for that kind of research due to its connection with national security