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Science policy making in the United State and the Batavia Accelerator
Book Reuiews
SCIENCE POLICY MAKING STATES AND THE CELERATOR, by Anton pages, diagrams, 6~ 9 linois University Press, 1975. price, $8.95.
INTHE UNITED BATAVIA AcG. Jachim. 208 in., Southern IlCarbondale, Ill.,
Anton Jachim has essentially presented a study of public science policy formation at the national level. He employs a social systems perspective for exploring the nature and implications of the relationship between the scientific community and the American political system under changing conditions. The period, 1963-1967, provides the historical setting while the complexities surrounding the decision by the now defunct Atomic Energy Commission to locate a 200-Billion Electron-Volt (BEV) high-energy physics research accelerator at Weston, Illinois, supply the particular empirical focus for this investigation. “Science Policy Making In The United States and the Batavia Accelerator” consists of three interrelated sections. Chapters l-3 constitute the first portion of the book and are primarily devoted to the analytical task of delineating the work’s scope and method. These chapters present the study’s design, review the existing literature, and analyze the essence and consequences of the normal connection between science and government in the United States. Chapters 4-6 form the elements of the second section. This part of the book concentrates upon the various events, institutions, and actors involved in the Weston siting decision. It documents the character of the changes occuring in the relationship between science and government during this interval, and analyzes their significance. A synopsis of the investigation as well as the development of some tentative propositions regarding
203
leadership behavior during periods of change in the scientific community’s association with the political system are the main features of the concluding section. The author of this work makes a valuable contribution to the study of American science policy. Besides presenting an informed, readable account of the complicated Batavia Accelerator controversy, the analytical and theoretical dimensions of Professor Jachim’s investigation are noteworthy. Four aspects of the book exemplify its analytical and theoretical utility. These include the author’s ability to transcend the limits of a specific case by relating the Weston conflict to its broader socio-policitcal context; the author’s concise, coherent, and exhaustive synthesis of the disparate findings of previous researchers concerning the nature and structure of the social system of science as well as the relationship between the scientific community and the federal government; the book’s insights regarding the essence and implications of the normal sciencegovernment linkage; and Professor Jachim’s development of a series of propositions specifying the “rules of the game” followed by the leadership of the scientific community in dealing with a changing political system. A brief review of the pertinent chapters of this study will illustrate these elements. Chapter 1 lays the foundation for the investigation of public science policy by introducing the major problems and issues to be addressed, as well as providing a justification for this particular study. The major thesis advanced by the author is “that the social process of the rapid accumulation of knowledge has led to changing expectations which cause pressure for change in the relationship between science and the political system as well” (p. 8). Professor Jachim explains that the ensuing chapters will analyze
Book Reviews three major questions. These include: a description of the nature of the relationship between science and the political system within the setting of value conflict over decreasing federal Research and Development (R&D) funds; an investigation of the “rules of the game” conditioning the behavior of the scientific community’s leadership under such circumstances; and an evaluation of the adequacy of those rules for present and future action. The 1963-1967 period and particularly the Batavia Accelerator decision is used as a case study of national science policy formation under these conditions. This focus is justified by noting that two major issues, the redistribution of American scientific resources and continued governmental support of basic scientific research, posed serious challenges to the autonomy and integrity of science during this interval and were pervasive throughout the Batavia Accelerator controversy. A decrease in the rate of national governmental support for R&D activities, an increase in the number of applicants vying for these scarce resources, and Congressional questioning of the scientific community’s value system characterized this general period as well as the Weston decision. The social structure of science, the place of high energy physics within that structure, and the general nature of the linkages between high energy physics and the political system are the major subjects discussed in Ch. 2. Professor Jachim’s well-integrated synthesis of the findings of such scholars as Talcott Parsons, Robert K. Merton, Don K. Price, and Daniel S. Greenberg, among others, provides the basis for this chapter which is supplemented by an extended methodological discourse in Appendix A. Five features of the social structure of science are identified and analyzed. Autonomy in decision-making among researchers; the importance of status amongst members of the scientific community; the stability of the status structure within and among various scientific specialties; the importance 204
of such values as organized skepticism, universalism, and communality in the normative structure of the scientific community; and a description of the penalties associated with the violation of this value system are the major traits explored. The crucial role of the formal and informal leadership for the social system of science is investigated. According to the author, scientific leaders are significant actors because they are primarily responsible for the performance of two important social functions: social maintaining control within the scientific community and providing the major contact points between the community and the political system. It follows that the behavior of the scientific leadership as they interact with the leadership of the political system provides the key for analyzing the relationship between science and politics. An exploration of the nature and consequences of the normal pattern of national science policy making before the Batavia Accelerator controversy is incorporated in Ch. 3. The author’s analysis of the importance of Washington in the entire spectrum of R&D activities since the New Deal precedes a general outline of the organizational anatomy of science and government as well as a delineation of the exchange patterns among the high energy physics research community, the Atomic Energy Commission, and the Congressional Joint Committee on Atomic Energy. An investigation of the implications of this policy making process in terms of the distribution of federal R&D resources concludes this chapter. Three major insights regarding the context of federal science policy making result. The first concerns the author’s explanation of the dramatic increase in the rate of federal R&D expenditures, especially in basic scientific research, during the 20year period following the end of World War II. With the aid of official federal reports, selected speeches and testimony by governmental and scientific leaders, Professor Jachim documents how mem-
Book Reviews
bers of the scientific community, particularly the leadership, have successfully manipulated the value system of the nonscientific community for the purpose of funding basic research. The pervasiveness and uncritical acceptance of the belief that investments in basic scientific research will pay dividends in terms of such desired social goals as enhanced economic development and the solution of basic social problems is highlighted. Autonomy in federal science policy making on the part of the scientific community provides the second major finding of this chapter. While the political leaders formally control the character and volume of federal scientific expenditures, the scientific community shapes the decision-making process in so far as the norms of science dominate and underlie this system. Finally, the author’s discussion of the distributional outcomes of the federal R&D allocation process merits attention. Professor Jachim uses an ample amount of data which demonstrates that in ail sectors of R&D activities, federal spending tends to be concentrated around certain industries, universities and private research organizations. This outcome seems natural given such features of the scientific’community’s social structure as the value commitment to research excellence and the importance of status. However, it engenders a basic public policy dilemma because the resulting concentrations conflict with other nonscientific values held by important members of the political system. An equitable geographic share of the benefits associated with the location of large government sponsored research facilities exemplifies one such political value. The latent controversy between the scientific and political value systems became observable during the course of the period under investigation. Analysis of the behavioral changes generated by these events provides the central theme of this book. The nature and complexities of these alterations as they emerged during the battle over the siting of the Batavia Vol.307,No.3, March 1979 RintedinNorthernIrelmd
Accelerator constitutes the core of the book’s second section and are detailed in Ch. 4-6. A description of the intracacies of the Weston case lies beyond our current scope. A common critique of most works, like the present, by behavioral, social and political scientists has been their nearly universal failure to specify the norms tempering the actions of those involved in the studied social relationships. Professor Jachim overcomes this obstacle by devising a series of tentative propositions elucidating the “rules of the game” affecting scientific leadership behavior under normal as well as changing circumstances. These propositions are found in the final chapter and provide the most theoretically significant aspect of “Science Policy Making In The United States and the Batavia Accelerator”. Although the listing of these behavioral norms is exploratory, it establishes the basis for future studies regarding this important feature of the connection between science and government, Those interested in such diverse endeavors as the general study of public policy, the relationship between the scientific community and the American political system, the operations and biases of the national scientific allocation process, and the Batavia Accelerator controversy, will profit by a reading of this book. Anton Jachim has produced a first rate exploration of national science policy formation which is framed in such a manner that its appeal transcends the traditional boundaries of the social sciences. EUCENEJ. GLEASON,JR. Department of Political Science Siena College Loudonville, NY
THEORY
AND
ARRAYS,
APPLICATION
by M.T.
Ma.413
OF ANTENNA pages, 171
figures, 6X9 in., John Wiley, York, 1974. Price, $22.50.
New
This book has not a single Maxwell equation. Although the temptation to
205
SCIENCE POLICY MAKING STATES AND THE CELERATOR, by Anton pages, diagrams, 6~ 9 linois University Press, 1975. price, $8.95.
INTHE UNITED BATAVIA AcG. Jachim. 208 in., Southern IlCarbondale, Ill.,
Anton Jachim has essentially presented a study of public science policy formation at the national level. He employs a social systems perspective for exploring the nature and implications of the relationship between the scientific community and the American political system under changing conditions. The period, 1963-1967, provides the historical setting while the complexities surrounding the decision by the now defunct Atomic Energy Commission to locate a 200-Billion Electron-Volt (BEV) high-energy physics research accelerator at Weston, Illinois, supply the particular empirical focus for this investigation. “Science Policy Making In The United States and the Batavia Accelerator” consists of three interrelated sections. Chapters l-3 constitute the first portion of the book and are primarily devoted to the analytical task of delineating the work’s scope and method. These chapters present the study’s design, review the existing literature, and analyze the essence and consequences of the normal connection between science and government in the United States. Chapters 4-6 form the elements of the second section. This part of the book concentrates upon the various events, institutions, and actors involved in the Weston siting decision. It documents the character of the changes occuring in the relationship between science and government during this interval, and analyzes their significance. A synopsis of the investigation as well as the development of some tentative propositions regarding
203
leadership behavior during periods of change in the scientific community’s association with the political system are the main features of the concluding section. The author of this work makes a valuable contribution to the study of American science policy. Besides presenting an informed, readable account of the complicated Batavia Accelerator controversy, the analytical and theoretical dimensions of Professor Jachim’s investigation are noteworthy. Four aspects of the book exemplify its analytical and theoretical utility. These include the author’s ability to transcend the limits of a specific case by relating the Weston conflict to its broader socio-policitcal context; the author’s concise, coherent, and exhaustive synthesis of the disparate findings of previous researchers concerning the nature and structure of the social system of science as well as the relationship between the scientific community and the federal government; the book’s insights regarding the essence and implications of the normal sciencegovernment linkage; and Professor Jachim’s development of a series of propositions specifying the “rules of the game” followed by the leadership of the scientific community in dealing with a changing political system. A brief review of the pertinent chapters of this study will illustrate these elements. Chapter 1 lays the foundation for the investigation of public science policy by introducing the major problems and issues to be addressed, as well as providing a justification for this particular study. The major thesis advanced by the author is “that the social process of the rapid accumulation of knowledge has led to changing expectations which cause pressure for change in the relationship between science and the political system as well” (p. 8). Professor Jachim explains that the ensuing chapters will analyze
Book Reviews three major questions. These include: a description of the nature of the relationship between science and the political system within the setting of value conflict over decreasing federal Research and Development (R&D) funds; an investigation of the “rules of the game” conditioning the behavior of the scientific community’s leadership under such circumstances; and an evaluation of the adequacy of those rules for present and future action. The 1963-1967 period and particularly the Batavia Accelerator decision is used as a case study of national science policy formation under these conditions. This focus is justified by noting that two major issues, the redistribution of American scientific resources and continued governmental support of basic scientific research, posed serious challenges to the autonomy and integrity of science during this interval and were pervasive throughout the Batavia Accelerator controversy. A decrease in the rate of national governmental support for R&D activities, an increase in the number of applicants vying for these scarce resources, and Congressional questioning of the scientific community’s value system characterized this general period as well as the Weston decision. The social structure of science, the place of high energy physics within that structure, and the general nature of the linkages between high energy physics and the political system are the major subjects discussed in Ch. 2. Professor Jachim’s well-integrated synthesis of the findings of such scholars as Talcott Parsons, Robert K. Merton, Don K. Price, and Daniel S. Greenberg, among others, provides the basis for this chapter which is supplemented by an extended methodological discourse in Appendix A. Five features of the social structure of science are identified and analyzed. Autonomy in decision-making among researchers; the importance of status amongst members of the scientific community; the stability of the status structure within and among various scientific specialties; the importance 204
of such values as organized skepticism, universalism, and communality in the normative structure of the scientific community; and a description of the penalties associated with the violation of this value system are the major traits explored. The crucial role of the formal and informal leadership for the social system of science is investigated. According to the author, scientific leaders are significant actors because they are primarily responsible for the performance of two important social functions: social maintaining control within the scientific community and providing the major contact points between the community and the political system. It follows that the behavior of the scientific leadership as they interact with the leadership of the political system provides the key for analyzing the relationship between science and politics. An exploration of the nature and consequences of the normal pattern of national science policy making before the Batavia Accelerator controversy is incorporated in Ch. 3. The author’s analysis of the importance of Washington in the entire spectrum of R&D activities since the New Deal precedes a general outline of the organizational anatomy of science and government as well as a delineation of the exchange patterns among the high energy physics research community, the Atomic Energy Commission, and the Congressional Joint Committee on Atomic Energy. An investigation of the implications of this policy making process in terms of the distribution of federal R&D resources concludes this chapter. Three major insights regarding the context of federal science policy making result. The first concerns the author’s explanation of the dramatic increase in the rate of federal R&D expenditures, especially in basic scientific research, during the 20year period following the end of World War II. With the aid of official federal reports, selected speeches and testimony by governmental and scientific leaders, Professor Jachim documents how mem-
Book Reviews
bers of the scientific community, particularly the leadership, have successfully manipulated the value system of the nonscientific community for the purpose of funding basic research. The pervasiveness and uncritical acceptance of the belief that investments in basic scientific research will pay dividends in terms of such desired social goals as enhanced economic development and the solution of basic social problems is highlighted. Autonomy in federal science policy making on the part of the scientific community provides the second major finding of this chapter. While the political leaders formally control the character and volume of federal scientific expenditures, the scientific community shapes the decision-making process in so far as the norms of science dominate and underlie this system. Finally, the author’s discussion of the distributional outcomes of the federal R&D allocation process merits attention. Professor Jachim uses an ample amount of data which demonstrates that in ail sectors of R&D activities, federal spending tends to be concentrated around certain industries, universities and private research organizations. This outcome seems natural given such features of the scientific’community’s social structure as the value commitment to research excellence and the importance of status. However, it engenders a basic public policy dilemma because the resulting concentrations conflict with other nonscientific values held by important members of the political system. An equitable geographic share of the benefits associated with the location of large government sponsored research facilities exemplifies one such political value. The latent controversy between the scientific and political value systems became observable during the course of the period under investigation. Analysis of the behavioral changes generated by these events provides the central theme of this book. The nature and complexities of these alterations as they emerged during the battle over the siting of the Batavia Vol.307,No.3, March 1979 RintedinNorthernIrelmd
Accelerator constitutes the core of the book’s second section and are detailed in Ch. 4-6. A description of the intracacies of the Weston case lies beyond our current scope. A common critique of most works, like the present, by behavioral, social and political scientists has been their nearly universal failure to specify the norms tempering the actions of those involved in the studied social relationships. Professor Jachim overcomes this obstacle by devising a series of tentative propositions elucidating the “rules of the game” affecting scientific leadership behavior under normal as well as changing circumstances. These propositions are found in the final chapter and provide the most theoretically significant aspect of “Science Policy Making In The United States and the Batavia Accelerator”. Although the listing of these behavioral norms is exploratory, it establishes the basis for future studies regarding this important feature of the connection between science and government, Those interested in such diverse endeavors as the general study of public policy, the relationship between the scientific community and the American political system, the operations and biases of the national scientific allocation process, and the Batavia Accelerator controversy, will profit by a reading of this book. Anton Jachim has produced a first rate exploration of national science policy formation which is framed in such a manner that its appeal transcends the traditional boundaries of the social sciences. EUCENEJ. GLEASON,JR. Department of Political Science Siena College Loudonville, NY
THEORY
AND
ARRAYS,
APPLICATION
by M.T.
Ma.413
OF ANTENNA pages, 171
figures, 6X9 in., John Wiley, York, 1974. Price, $22.50.
New
This book has not a single Maxwell equation. Although the temptation to
205