Show ECONOMIC highlights happenings that affect the future of every individual national and international problems inseparable from local welfare the genesis ot of all material progress Is found in endless research and experiment articles running the gamut from machines to drugs may have their roots in discoveries that were made in past centar centuries acs and which had no practical value at the time they may be the whole which is made up of parts ct contributed by scores or even hundreds of scientists living in different eras and different lands the december issue of fortune I 1 offers a graphic example of this the newest addition to the arts and techniques of mass communication is television the first experimental peri mental U S broadcasts were made only about a quarter cen tury ago and the first regular broadcasts start until I 1 1 1939 9 progress in both broadcasting and receiving equipment has been astonishing toni shing but as fortune points out u t television never had an inventor ve antor it was instead a development and Is the result of a century and a half of experimentation and research much of it conducted by inspired dreamers who had no way of knowing where their work was leading scientists from a long list of nations made essential contributions the united states italy france england german holland and sweden it is obvious that in these chaotic and swift moving times any nation which falls fails to keep up with the march of research both an article contributed to the jour fundamental and applied li Is inviting trouble and according to nal of commerce by william C foster president of the manufacturing chemists association we are lagging behind in fundamental research both in comparison with our needs and with advances in ill other countries particularly soviet russia he points out incidentally ci that it Is difficult to narrowly define the term fundamental research and for the purposes ol of his discussion he regards it as any research which produces new fundamental knowledge also he does not think that the scientist I 1 engaged in fundamental research I 1 should be regarded as superior to one engaged in application research that is research which has a definite objective whether it be a new drug or a new bomb both types of research he believes are of equal importance much fundamental research Is done by industries yet there are some obstacles here As mr foster says most moet fundamental research is highly speculative A business concern naturally expects its research investment like any other investment to show a reasonable return in a reasonable length of time the shorter range objectives usually are given precedence so to quote him again experience ha has 9 shown that industrial laboratories are not the environment best suited to produce results in fundamental research As a consequence a number 01 companies both within and without the chemical industry which budgets some a year for research are making substantial contributions to college university and other laboratories removed from the commercial world the only restriction is that the tha funds be used for fundamental research alone in mr fosters view the problem is here now but the solution is a long way off more support both moral and financial is needed and american industry has the greatest reason to provide it it is clearly a problem that affects not only our prospects for future material advancement but our security and survival as a tree free nation |