President Nixon's 1973 Reorganization Plan No. 1: Where Do Science and Technology Go Now?

Abstract

The presidential science advisory apparatus, inaugurated by President Eisenhower nearly 20 years ago, has been ousted from the White House under President Nixon's Reorganization Plan. Its functions have been transferred to the National Science Foundation. How effective can the Foundation be in carrying them out? The question is a critical one for the American scientific community, for it bears directly on the future of federal support of scientific research and education and of the effectiveness of science and technology as a national resource.In this article, Franklin A. Long, a former member of the President's Science Advisory Committee and a consultant to federal agencies, examines the Implications of the reorganization plan as it affects the relationship between the scientific community and the President. He assesses the capability of NSF of carrying out the functions of the defunct Office of Science and Technology, the President's Science Advisory Committee and the Science Advisor and his deputy. Pro...