Scientists Criticize Budget Reductions

A national conference of nearly 100 scientists, among them five Harvard professors, this week expressed concern over the future of American advancements in science and explored the possible impact of Reagan's budget cuts on university-based research.

"It's a question of how much American science can stand, "Lawrence L. Bogorad, Cabot Professor of Biology, said yesterday. "The government has this notion that science is strong. It's strong, but it's been on a starvation diet. It's not in any kind of shape for a major operation," he said.

Bogorad attended the conference with Paul Martin, dean of the Applied Physics division; Richard Goody, professor of Applied Physics; Norman Ramsey, Higgins Professor of Physics; and Alastair Cameron, professor of Astronomy.

Bogorad said that the organization hardest hit by the budget cuts was the National Science Foundation, mentioning the toll cuts would take on the Foundation's ability to disperse grants to worthy applicants.

Martin echoed this concern. "We don't think science should be above it all, but the cuts should be made wisely, and not so precipitously. They should be made in a time-scale small enough that people can react to them" he said.

Members of the conference suggested in an official announcement Tuesday that Reagan could minimize the damage of budget cuts by diverting funds from development and other scientific applications to basic research. But the Harvard professors expressed concern for other scientific funding that might be affected by the cuts, specifically mentioning instrumentation programs and pre-doctoral fellowships.

Encore

"The man from the OMB said the government felt the need to be supporting basic research. And yet, as far as I can see, the cut's across the board; it's not just development," Bogorad said.

Martin said the federal government usually pays for University research costs, mentioning that educational institutions provide salaries and teaching space, but not equipment. Computers, spectroscopes, and electron microscopes would not be available without assistance from the National Science Foundation, he added.

Martin expressed similar concern for the pre-doctorate fellowship program that the foundation has sponsored, suggesting that the program was ideal for selecting young researchers on merit.

Many apologists for the Reagan cuts have said private industry will take over the research effort University's abandon. Bogorad disagreed, saying that representatives from the private sector at the conference--among them vice presidents from Exxon and Ford--said theirs and other companies could not make up for the basic research.