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The difference in emphasis between the U.S.S.R. and the U.S. in the
"heavy industry" and "high technology" sectors respectively, raises the
following point: close track of the foreign literature is kept in the high-
technology areas, but one wonders whether the same close track is kept of the
heavy-industry foreign literature from which, judging from the publishing
rates, the U.S. has relatively more to learn.
Because the Chemical Abstracts patent coverage is not comprehensive, At
does not represent an unbiased cross section of world-wide patent activity.
For example, direct comparison of the U.S. and U.S.S.R. patent activity based
on CA is risky. Nevertheless, some conclusions may be drawn concerning the
distribution of materials patent effort within a particular country. Areas
in which patents are generated strongly in the U.S., such as plastics,
electric phenomena, and radiation chemistry, are also areas in which papers
from the U.S. are published at a comparatively high rate. Japan, Germany and
the U.K. have relatively high patent rates in the categories of polymers,
plastics, and textiles. Japan also has a relatively high patent rate in the
category of electric phenomena.
It is worth mentioning that in the U.S. very few patents are filed by
institutions in the educational, governmental or "other" classes.
The growth rate of the materials literature is rapid and represents a
significant and expanding man-power investment. The categories of strong
publication seem to reflect the areas of strong industrial activity in various
countries.
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
Philosophical Background
Science and technology are international exchange currencies. Science in
particular, which in its purest forms is based on universal truths, is generally
regarded as transcending geographical, political, ideological, and cultural
boundaries. It is a natural vehicle for promoting international cooperation.
Quoting G. P. Miller, Chairman of the House Committee on Science and
Astronautics, in 1965:
"I believe that one of the most important characteristics of science is
that it can be, and usually is, outside the realm of politics. It has provided
us areas of peaceful dialogue and cooperation between ourselves, our friends
and our potential enemies that have hardly been possible in any other field of
activity. The International Geophysical Year Programs were great testimony
to this fact."
Glenn T. Seaborg, Chairman of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, said in
1966 that the "essential internationalism of science... may ultimately be
mankind's greatest blessing". Continuing, he gave two reasons:
"The first, and more obvious, is that international cooperation in
science will accelerate those advances of mankind which, if applied wisely and
equally around the world, will help to eliminate the causes of political and
economic strife.
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"The second idea is that internationality in science extends the national
processes of science to other human activities in all countries, and that the
ascendancy of scientists within their respective countries will influence
national leaders and their people to deal with problems in a more rational
and hence more peaceful and productive way. ... If He view science in its
broadest terms, that is, as a highly organized and penetrating pursuit of
knowledge and truth, some good is going to come by having the attitudes and
approaches of science applied to other areas."
However, the limitations of science and scientists should also be recog-
nized. While the lingua franca of science can help remove barriers between
societies, as Secretary of State Dean Rusk said: "But the burden is not all
on one side. Scientists and engineers must, of course, recognize very real
progress in many fields outside their own specialties, and they should be
conscious of the difference between the values of society and the verifiable
truths of the natural sciences."
And as V. A. Ambartsumian, Chairman of the International Council of
Scientific Frion, has said: "It will be wise, when we ~scientists) consider
that we don't understand anything in politics, and yet I know that many
scientists are very critical of politicians. But nobody had proved that
scientists can be better politicians than the real politicians themselves."
It is pertinent to to include a number of observations that were made by
Herman Pollack in summarizing the proceedings of a meeting on International
Science Policy of the Panel on Science and Technology of the House Committee
on Science and Astronautics in 1971. Pollack notes the following recurring
themes in discussions of international science policy:
"Ca) The importance of insulating science from the imperatives of parochial
politics.
(b) The habit of cooperation, which is fostered by scientific reJation-
ships, in itself is of high value and a justification for the relationship.
(c) The importance of more effective use of science and technology in
support of the developmental aspiration of the poorer countries of the world.
(d, The importance of the free movement of scientific infor-~ation among
the countries of the world.
(e) The necessity of employing science and technology more effectively
in the achievement of the great social aims of this age."
Elaborating on some of these points, Pollack went on: "international
scientific relationships must be insulated from transitory political con-
siderations and they have possibly unique capabilities of transcending
political differences." But, "the absence of political agreement, frequently
occasioned by national ambitions or concerns regarding soverignty, is an
effective barrier to many necessary endeavours in science and technology which
can be accomplished only by international cooperation ... We may sometimes
unbalance our perspective by overly emphasizing the necessity to free
science from political considerations... (but) we have not emphasized nearly
enough the importance of obtaining the political agreement which will be the
necessary precedent to the multilateral undertaking of major scientific and
especially technological ventures such as those that are foreseeable, for
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example, in the use of outer space and in the management of international
environmental problems."
More Tangible Incentives for International Cooperation
J.-J. Solomon, in an article in Minerva in 1964 entitled "International
Science Policy" stated that:
"Experience has shown that governments will not undertake large-scale
combined action and set up scientific organizations for extend the compliance
of some existing organization to cover scientific questions) except when
prompted by one or more of the four following motives - only the first of
which is purely scientific:
1. The research is to be devoted to an essentially extra-national
subject (meteorology, oceanography, etc.~.
2. It requires expenditure which no country could meet from its own
resources (nuclear research, space research, etch.
3. The scientific activities in question are believed to contribute to
some wider economic, or military project for which the countries are pooling
their efforts.
4. Participation in this form of scientific cooperation is likely to
enhance or maintain the international prestige of the individual countries."
Quoting Pollack again: "The overall objective of governments in fostering
international cooperation in science and technology is to advance their
national interests and to strengthen their international relationship ...
Inherent in all such cooperation is the d-sire to extend, improve, or expedite
the acquisition and diffusion of knowledge. Such cooperation, furthermore, is
often activated or motivated by humanitairan, political, or economic consid-
erations.
"From this cooperation, each government expects to obtain particular
benefits, direct or indirect. In some cases, these will be tangible and of
an economic nature. Others will be less tangible, such as improvement of
health, safety, the quality of life, and the advancement of science, the
thread which binds the entire enterprise.
"These goals and benefits are not unilateral. Cooperation would not be
possible or meaningful if the goals sought were not mutually compatible and the
benefits derived did not flow to each nation involved. ...CStudies show that
there are) many instances of direct economic benefit: through sharing with
other nations the costs of essential research; through the incorporation into
key U.S. research programs of instrumentation, techniques, and essential data
generated in programs supported by other nations; and through opportunities
for U.S. scientists to utilize unique research facilities created by and
financed by other nations."
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Many examples of indirect economic benefits accruing from international
. = .
cooperation in science and technology have also been identified. Thus, there
are the new markets for U.S.-manufactured scientific instruments which
result from international cooperation in research, the adoption by U.S.
producers of economically important new technologies developed abroad and
brought to our attention as a result of cooperative programs, and the ability
to avoid unproductive, and expensive, directions for our research efforts or
to "leapfrog" in our research planning on the basis of results coming to us
through international cooperation.
International Science Policy
While the value of international cooperation in science and technology is
widely recognized, the instances of it, with only a few exceptions, have tended
to arise on an uncoordinated, ad hoc basis. But the extent of these disjointed
though often lively activities raises the question of whether some form of
international science policy can take, or is taking, shape. James E. Webb (in
the meeting already referred to) has pointed up some of the issues that can
underlie such an evolution:
"Have we learned enough about the conditions essential for advancement
of science and the gathering of its benefits to propose a joint or cooperative
policy of a deliberate fostering of those conditions which produces scientific
advancement by many nations within their own economic, political and social
structures and patterns of life?
"Is there a common set of criteria by which the leaders of the nation can
guide themselves in doing those things which they can reasonably expect to
lead to scientific advance and without which they are not likely to get it?
"Could a major international policy goal be to substantially increase
throughout the world the amount of effort dedicated to scientific research in
an area where every nation needs to know more than is known today?
"Can we build on our experience in the International Geophysical Year and
the International Year of the Quiet Sun so as to evolve an international
policy related to further study of the sun under which all subscribing
nations could justify national investments and the undertaking of a commitment
to follow the agreed international policy through the level of sophistication
was very different in each of the countries?
"Could one goal of an international scientific policy be to increase the
ability of all nations to use the scientific method itself in approaching
their own national problems and thus increase, on an international basis, the
total effect of the values to be derived from the scientific method?
"Is it possible that under some form of international science policy, a
steady increase in the competence of scientists in all nations could be made
available to the political leaders of those nations so that each nation would
have leaders and diplomats in a better position to negotiate those inter-
national arrangements most condusive to the achievement of its national
objectives?
"Is it possible to approach this problem of defining goals for an inter-
national science policy by assuming that for a particular nation the state of
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scientific inquiry and its relationships to education and technology can be
assessed and understood within the forces at work in the total of the economic,
social and political system of that nation?"
Webb goes on to propose some concepts that might be starting points from
which an international science policy could evolve:
(a) The use of the power of nations together over the forces of nature
for the benefit of mankind.
Cb) Make clear in policy statements and relevant actions the value that
the competent scientist and researcher has in areas beyond the extension of
scientific or theoretical knowledge - that is his value to his own national
leaders in their international relationships, his value to engineers and
others who are working in the developmental areas to determine that boundary
beyond which scientific knowledge at that time and place does not permit the
reliable or safe operation of machines, equipment and systems - in technology
assessment.
(c) Advances in the education of future generations is directly linked to
the existence and participation of scientists in a country, particularly at
the graduate level.
(d) We need a policy statement and commitment that investments in basic
research will yield important economic returns.
(e) We need to make clear through policy or experience that when a nation
moves from the area of scientific research, and then the advance of knowledge
to engineering design and to organized use of resources, there is a competence
in the area of organization and administration that is necessary for successful
cooperation between nations in these related fields.
Themes for Cooperation in the Materials Field
The "international commons" of the oceans, the air, and space appear
manifestly appropriate for international cooperation in relevant science and
engineering. The environment and its protection concerns everyone and every
country. Any undesirable actions at one part of the globe can spread across
the whole world. Pollution of air and water by effluents and other agents,
and disturbance of the upper atmosphere by terrestria~ly-released gases or
high-flying aircraft can lead, if unchecked, to disastrous consequences for
all mankind. Enough has been written on this subject of environmental
hazards elsewhere to make it unnecessary to elaborate these dangers further.
With the appearance of technologies of global impact and influence, the
question of international regulation begins to be asked CThe Evolution of
International Technology, Congressional Research Service, December 1970~:
"As technology has made the world more a "village world", there has been
a growing tendency since the foundation of the United Nations for inter-
national bodies to concern themselves with matters...wh~ch were formerly held
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to be the exclusive province of a nation-state. It is in the fields of
science and technology that this need for international rather than national
action is most strongly felt, and for many reasons."
These reasons are: the traditionally international character of science,
the need for international cooperation in inherently global activities such
as civil aviation, the need for control of dangerous technologies like atomic
energy, and the regulation of global dissemination of pollutants. With
respect to the last item:
"Combating pollution will inevitably require international rather than
national regulation as its starting point. First, pollution originating in a
single nation-state might well spread, through one of the components of the
environment such as the air or oceans, into the territories of other nation-
states. Secondly, in the context of current patterns for modernization of
economics by the export from the most advanced countries of capital equipment
for technological manufacturing, a plant which fails to contain adequate anti-
polluting equipment will spread pollution by the very fact of its export.
Thirdly, the measures to combat pollution need to be internationally prescribed
and enforced for they will undoubtedly affect costs, and states which fail to
observe them will gain a competitive advantage over those who do." ~
The point to be emphasized here is that aside from regulation there might
be no better area for international technical cooperation than these environ-
mental problems.
There is a need for a global effort to identify sources of existing
pollution, to monitor pollution levels in air and water, and to arrive at
internationally-agreed standards for air and water quality. At the same time,
developing technology has to minimize or eliminate pollution as far as is
practicable. Much of this bears directly on the materials field. Mineral
and industrial operations with materials are major sources of pollutants as
are the chemical reactions that occur in such industrial products as internal
combustion engines.
There are two major hindrances to cooperation in developing pollution-
control technology: Ha) a company or country that succeeds in developing a
suitable product or process might feel that this gives it a competitive
advantage over others who have not succeeded, and (b) developing countries,
for example, may be willing to accept some dirty processes in return for the
economic improvements that they bring. These are both legitimate objections
in contemporary terms but ones which can be got around, and will have to be,
by making equitable international arrangements.
Besides stimulating improvement of the existing environment, another
matter for international cooperation is technology assessment. There is
need for such an activity to foresee, as far as possible, the effects that
new technological developments would have on the environment, public health,
and the quality of life, generally.
The oceans also pose problems of territorial rights. These will become
all the more aggravated as they and the coean-floor are exploited in the
future as sources of various raw materials. There will be need for inter-
national agreements on the winning of these resources and the ways of so
doing in order not to cause unacceptable environmental harm. Ocean tech-
nology may well become another arena for international cooperation.
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Increasing concern over future supplys of minerals suggests another area
for international cooperation, namely, geological mapping and prospecting.
This could cover not only the field work itself, but also the development of
improved geophysical and geochemical techniques. Such programs could be of
particular value to the developing countries. An ancillary need is for a
global geological information center.
Space technology has led to earth resource satellites for surveys of
global resources of agricultural and mineral wealth, and for the management
of these resources. Possible applications of satellite data include:
geologic mapping, mineral resource investigation; thermal activity in connect
tion with volcanic eruptions; observations of magnetic and gravity fields on
a global basis; tectonic analysis of earthquake belts; data useful in planning
site selection for large engineering works; continuous mapping of subaqueous
deposition, channel-filling, and excavation; and effects of floods and other
natural changes in large coastal deltas. The international nature of space
technology makes it one in which it is appropriate to seek various modes of
international cooperation. One such mode is the cooperation in joint experi-
ments that has been agreed to by the U.S. and the U.S.S.R., the only nations
thus far with a space-technology capability.
The last example underscores another aspect of international cooperation.
As technologies grow in size, cost, complexity, sophistication, and range of
effects, they may tax the willingness (if not indeed the physical means) of
individual nations to support such developments. This effect has already
been observed in the case of the Concorde supersonic transport aircraft,
whose development is currently being shared by France with the U.K. As
Basiuk notes2 ~~
"First, confronted by rising costs and problems of increasing scale, even
the superpowers individually may lack the capability of taking advantage of
the full potential of future technology. This factor will increasingly gen-
erate pressure for international cooperation among the middle-rank powers
(e.g., Britain, France, Germany, Japan), between the superpowers and the
Western European powers and Japan -- and perhaps between the superpowers
themselves. Second, some forms of future technology such as large-scale
climate modification, will require international cooperation not so much
because of the costs involved but because more than one geographic region will
be affected and the participation of those concerned will be essential."
Energy-generation and distribution technology will increasingly offer
occasions and needs for international cooperation. This will be particularly
true of the newer or longer-range methods of power generation including
thermonuclear fusion, solar, and geothermal energy. These are likely to be
less sensitive areas than the more current technologies, such as fossil-fuel
and conventional nuclear technologies, which are already very much in the
commercial phase. As European experience with EURATOM has shown, the con-
flects that arise when a government is supporting an international effort to
develop nuclear technology at the same time as it is fostering its own nuclear
\asluk, "Technology and World Power," Foreign Policy Association, Headline
Series, page 16, April 1970.
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industry may lead to failure. Perhaps somewhat more assured of success
would be a cooperative program aimed at developing the technology of energy
conservation - more efficient use of space-heating and air-conditioning,
solar-heating of buildings, more energy-efficient industrial processes, and
so on.
Europe provides some interesting lessons in international cooperation in
technology. In the late 1960's, the Common Market countries undertook a
study, headed by P. Aigrain, which considered seventy-one projects proposed
for international cooperation. The Aigrain study resulted in seven being
endorsed: data processing; telecommunications; pollution and noise; meteorology
and oceanography; new means of transport; and metallurgy.
Data processing produced an early casualty - the development of a large
European computer was viewed as much too costly and the European computer
industry felt there would be little market for it. On the other hand, a much
less costly venture - the development of a European data-transmission network -
was given the go-ahead. A proposal to create a European Institute for Data
Processing and Technology - to provide training - was not pursued, but the
setting up of a European computer-program library was considered further.
The telecommunications proposal was adopted more or less in full.
The pollution proposals received fairly general acceptance and several
countries declared they would coordinate parts of their national research
efforts in this field. They also declared that relevant laws in the
European Economic Community (EEC) should be harmonized, as should methods of
management. Many people felt, however, that the program was nowhere near
bold enough.
It is interesting that the Aigrain group settled on metallurgy as an area
ripe for development on a European basis, particularly work on materials for
gas turbines and for desalination plants.
Since making its proposals for technical projects, the Aigrain group has
been looking into the problems of interchanging scientific information,
comparing the national research programs of the various EEC countries, and
singling out areas of radical research which might be suitable for European
collaboration.
Returning to materials areas which seem generally appropriate for inter-
national collaboration, the matter of international standards and-testing
methods would seem high on the list. As was proposed in Nature (231, 222,
1973) in a European context, "this is one field, at least, in which it could
be expected that the present work of six (national) laboratories, or ten
perhaps' could either be concentrated in one or two or, more realistically,
could be shared out much more efficiently than at present among standards
laboratories specializing in the kind of work which they do best.'
Organizations and Institutions
While there are numerous international organizations and institutions
concerned with science and technology, very few are in existence specifically
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for the materials field or MSE. As in so many other spheres, materials
activities tend to be subsumed into organizations with broader activities.
Prominent among these are the following:
United Nations
Many of the activities in the U.N. that relate to the materials field
come under the environmental category. The U.N. has convened international
congresses (e.g. at Stockholm in 1972) and committees with the aim of
developing international agreements on such matters as air and water quality
and quality standards. A persistent question is how to reconcile the
aspirations of the developing countries to build up their basic materials
industries in the face of pressures to invest in cleaner processes - developing
nations may prefer to accept the pollution problems in return for the economic
benefits of industrialization.
Another pertinent activity that was organized by the U.N. was the
International Geophysical Year in which various nations generated and pooled
basic information about the planet, earth. Further such exercises in inter-
national cooperation would seem timely, particularly in generating more
detailed and calibrated information about mineral resources.
The area of statistics and information in general is one which could well
be usefully conducted unver the auspices of the U.N. as could efforts to
evolve internationally-agreed materials standards.
An increasingly urgent problem for the U.N. is to foster international
agreements on sharing the resources of the international "commons" of the
oceans and Antarctica.
Overall, the U.N. is seen as the most global and international of agencies
and, therefore, one which should have a strengthened role in trying to bring
about international agreements on the sharing of resources and the diffusion
of knowledge. The minerals and environmental sectors deserve particularly
urgent attention. In this connection an intriguing suggestions the
sponsorship of an International Technology Assessment Agency. The basis for
such a proposal is that (a) there is already a considerable assessment
activity in international bodies, (b) adverse secondary consequences of
technology are often international in their impacts, and (c) assessment of
technology is important to developing countries with respect to their own
policies in the adoption of technology, in evaluation of imported technology,
and in evaluating technological trends and their social consequences in the
developed countries. Such an agency could ~) contract out specific
technology-assessment studies, (ii) provide liason and foster cooperation
among national technology assessment bodies, (iii) insure annual reports on
the use of science and technology for mankind, and (iv) provide fact-finding
and mediation services.
= .
Tennis Livingston, "International Technology Assessment and the United
Nations System," Ame J. of Int. Lath Vol. 64, pages 163-172, September 1910.
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Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
This organization serves the more advanced nations. It generates
valuable comparative information concerning such topics as national economies
and trade, national science policies, and a host of technical and educational
matters. However, its efforts specifically directed at the materials field
have, to date, been rather meager. In a previous group, now disestablished,
subjects such as education, national policies for materials, technological
forecasting, and biomaterials were investigated. The OECD should be well
placed to serve the materials field and it is to be hoped that a more vigorous
role in various aspects of the materials cycle, including materials, energy,
and environmental conservation, will evolve.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
This is a regional organization, born out of a military pact, which also
tends to be concerned with the affairs of the more advanced North American
and West European nations. NATO tends to be oriented towards high technology
and the related basic and applied sciences. Nevertheless, its role in science
and technology has been broadening, based on Article 2 of the NATO treaty -
"the Parties will contribute toward the future development of peaceful and
friendly international relations by strengthening their free institutions,
by bringing about a better understanding of the principles upon which those
institutions are founded, and by promoting conditions of stability and well-
being". NATO has implemented this policy, among other ways, by awarding
NATO Fellowships to enable scientists to spend periods working abroad' by
aiding scientific publications and libraries, and by sponsoring international
conferences and winter and summer schools on a wide range of topics. On the
while, NATO serves science and technology, including materials technology,
usefully. However, inasmuch as many of its activities result in funds from
donor countries essentially being returned to the donor countries minus the
"overhead costs", some may regard NATO as an excess bureaucratic mechanism
for the purposes under discussion here.
European Economic Community (EEC)
Slowly, Europe seems to be fashioning a community of nations that have
agreed to abide by common policies in various commercial sectors - food,
agriculture, energy, etc. - as well as more general principles of cooperation.
In the technical area, some of its earliest major efforts were concentrated
in the energy sector, mainly through EVRATOM, a joint effort to harness
nuclear energy for certain purposes. This program has had indifferent
success, not purprisingly, because of the inevitable conflicts between the
commercial interests and desires of individual member nations who wish to
build up their own nuclear energy industries. There have been difficulties
also with ELDO (development of satellite launching rockets) and ESRO
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(organization for space research). Conflicts of interest are partly
responsible, but so are poorly defined charters for these organizations.
In spite of inauspicious beginnings with EURATOM and other activities,
the role of science and technology in EEC is likely to grow stronger. It is
to be expected that common science and research policies will evolve as well
as cooperation in the environmental sphere. One suggestion is the formation
of a European Council in R&D. So far materials technology has not figured
very prominently in the EEC other than through the Aigrain proposals
described earlier, although this situation is likely to change.
There is also motion towards greater cooperation in scientific affairs
through the creation of a European Science Foundation. A prime concern of
ESF would be, like the NSF, the "health of science."
Other topics likely to deceive increasing attention within the EEC are
technology assessment, and the mobility of scientists and engineers. The
latter area is one in which already much has been done by the various
scientific academies and equivalent organizations in the various countries.
Some lessons that might be learned about international cooperation in
scientific institutions from European experience so far appear to be: (a)
No purpose is served by the development of common institutions for tasks which
are unnecessary; (b) common institutions are most valuable when they can be
seen, especially by those who contribute to the cost, to be credible sub-
stitutes for national institutions already in existence; (c) the development
of common institutions should not be regarded as a means of safeguarding the
interest of individual countries in maintaining, perhaps uneconomically, a
stake in some technical field that should be abandoned.
It is hard to see why industrial enterprises by themselves should not
be driven by purely commercial considerations to form consortia to perform
technological tasks perceived to be internationally appropriate. On the
whole, the best subjects for formal common institutions are those in which
the public interest is predominant. And the materials field, along with
energy and the environment, will increasingly offer such opportunities. It
likely that nations will increasingly acquire the habit of working together
not because of some philosophical rationale of the virtues of collaboration,
but because it will become steadily more apparent that they cannot all "go
it alone" and that they are interdependent.
European Center for Nuclear Research (CERN)
is
CERN appears to be invariably regarded as a success. Located in Geneva,
Switzerland, it provides scientists from many countries with large accelerator
facilities for basic research on the fundamental particles and forces of
nature. No doubt, a major factor in its success as a venture in international
cooperation is that its field of endeavor is generally regarded as far
removed from commercial and nationalistic interests. This is not a feature
that the materials field can so easily exhibit.
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Scientific Societies
Europe displays evidence of increasing collaboration among scientific
societies in various countries. Perhaps the most notable recent development
is the formation of a European Physical Society. This exercise in cooperation
will bear watching. Some of the most obvious activities that joint activity
by national societies, or tranenational ones, can undertake include:
coordination of conferences, promotion of international exchanges of
scientists and engineers, and more rationalized approaches to the publication
of scientific periodicals.
On a more global scale there are the International Unions of Pure and
Applied Physics (IUPAP) and Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), principally
active in the planning and coordination of conferences. There seems no
reason why more scientific societies in the materials field could not under-
take more such activities.
U ~ S e - U.S.S.R. Cooperation
In a special category are the opportunities for scientific and techno-
logical cooperation between the O.S. and the U.S e S.R. In recent months,
agreements have been reached to cooperate in 25 project areas. Of these, the
topics that have a substantial component of materials technology are:
chemical catalysis, electrometallurgy, forestry, metrology, standardization,
environment, water resources, space, health, atomic energy, oceans, artificial
heart, energy, transportation, and housing. Under this program there is an
exchange of scientists for periods ranging up to six months and joint seminars
are being planned.
Some Further Possibilities
This brief review of some of the existing programs and mechanisms of
scientific and technological collaboration, with examples shown mostly from
Europe, raises the question of what further could be done in this direction,
particularly on a more global scale and involving the U.S.? Progressional
societies in the U.S. might try to form stronger links, for instance, with
their counterparts abroad. And why not, under the U.N. for example, start
exploring the prospects for an International Science Policy Council, an
International Science Foundation, and even a World University concerned
primarily with the technological problems that confront society as a whole?
An International Materials Year has also been suggested.
Cooperation with Developing Countries
The materials field forces attention on cooperation between the advanced
countries (AC ' s ~ and the less developed countries (LDC ' s ~ . As the LDC ' s occupy
a much larger fraction of the planet's land area than do the AC's, then by
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tile nature of things, they can be expected to own the major fraction of the
world's mineral (and fuel) resources so needed by the AC's. It is often as
if the supply side of the materials cycle lies in the LDC's while the use
side lies in the AC's.
But the LDC's, almost by definition aspire to and move towards raising
their own level of technology. Justifiably they are not content to remain
material suppliers but wish to embrace progressively more and more stages
around the materials cycle. Thus, there is an almost inevitable sequence of
technology transfer, by various mechanisms, from the AC's to the LDC's. For
example, from the beginning as a straightforward supplier of raw materials,
an LDC may wish to acquire process and refining capabilities. From there, it
may move on to invest in transport systems and often ancillary industries.
Then comes broadening of the industrial base into other bulk-material
industries. The next step is local manufacture and assembly of somewhat
simple products but this leads eventually to more sophisticated manufacturing
industries. In time, the LDC will want to strengthen its technology by
engaging more and more in the appropriate R&D. And in concert with this
build-up of its technological fabric, the LDC will likely develop appropriate
administrative and financial institutions. Thus, there are many levels at
which technology transfer occurs, depending on the stage of development of
the LDC.
A particularly potent instrument for this technology transfer and inter-
national cooperation in technology is the multinational corporation. Quoting
Walter Orr Roberts: 25 "I am much impressed with the important technology
transfer that sometimes materializes, under favorable circumstances, when
multinational corporations take up the task of establishing industrial plants
in developing regions. In areas where the prints of advanced technology are
to be brought to a poor area, the sophistication to install environmentally-
sound plants, the skill to integrate local managements, and to develop local
markets in concord with local mores -- these things seem often to be especially
well done by multinational corporations, and at small public cost." (See also
next section.)
Pursuing this theme, Emilio Daddario26 foresees much broader, even
"mandatory", cooperation in future among sovereign nation-states. "For
today, we possess the technological and organizational capabilities to begin
not only to manage human affairs on a worldwide scale, but to feed, clothe,
educate and otherwise care for all those who wish it. On the economic plane
we have already begun to see evidence of this kind of capability in the form
of large-scale private multinational corporations whose activities span many
different sovereign and market boundaries. I believe that we could begin to
do the same if man would only express finis will to do so."
Continuing, Daddario notes, however, that before there will be any real
global cooperation, there must be far greater consensus on its purposes and
priorities among, say, enhancement of material well-being, intellectual
International Science Policy Meeting, loc. cit., p. 29.
26 loc. cit. p. 74
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development, economic growth, education, arms control, peace-keeping, health
care, or housing, etc. He explores the area of exploitation of natural
res`'urces, observing the consumption rates by the AC's, the finiteness of
the eartI~'s resources, and the political sensitivities of the LDC's. "And
Yet, most of us in the developed world are still unwilling to restrict our
own activities, to restrain our voracious appetites to consume, and to con-
t`~'lace seriously the long-term implications of present-day action. We
Prefer-, rattler, to go it alone as nations, exploiting and competing for these
-usuries. We favor the near-term material benefit to the potential long-
term loss, with only minor consideration of the real and present social costs,
both to international political stability and to the developing countries,
themselves." 27
As to more specific mechanisms of cooperation Harrison S. Brown has
·~cluded that "expanded transfers of capital from the rich countries to
the poor are essential if development is to be accelerated. It is doubtful,
however, that a really major increase in capital flow (a factor of two, for
example) could be effectively absorbed at the present time for the reason
that there simply are not enough trained persons in the poorer countries who
tare able to make the decisions which must be made and to solve the problems
w}~i`~ must be solved if development is to take place. Nor is there adequate
`~rga~izationa1 structure which would permit decisions to be transformed
ft-~tively into action or which would permit development problems to be
Bled systematical!:. Nor are there adequate numbers of technically-trained
p~rs`~s who cart carry out the multiplicity of tasks which are essential in
even a quasi-technological society. Indeed, this appears to be a really
basic limiting factor to the rate of development."
Of equal importance to capital transfer is scientific and technical
assistance. This is needed for "the solution of national development problems
and for the building of the organizational structure which will make this
possible. The basic aim of technical assistance should be to help a develop-
ing nation select, adapt, and develop technologies which will help to achieve
its social and economic objectives ... Research, analysis and problem-
solving are major keys to development ... and here the United States, with
the highest technological problem-solving capacity in the world, can play a
major role." Wars of implementing policies to strengthen local scientific-
tecl~nological problem-solving competence are for governments and their agencies
in the AC's and their counterparts in LDC's to engage in joint technology
programs, to create research councils and institutes to help modify educational
approaches, and to develop guidelines for industrial research which will be
cognizant not only of technical and economic considerations but also of the
long-term effects of the proposed technology on the society as a whole.
A sound R&D infrastructure is an essential element, particularly for the
transfer of the more sophisticated technologies. Consulting engineers,
university staff and other specialists can play important roles in aiding such
transfer, although again it is worth emphasizing the importance of choosing
appropriate technologies, taking into account the potential local markets,
uses, skills, and knowledge.
. .
loc. cit. p. 127.
-
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In general, broadly-based incentives designed to encourage transfer may
often result in the transfer of irrelevant or inappropriate technology.
Incentive programs need to be carefully and specifically framed so as to
achieve the desired results. Other elements in facilitating technology trans-
fer are to foster cooperative industrial research, business management training,
international standardization and quality control.
However, underlying all technical cooperation and technological transfer
is an adequate level of education and training. The U.S. and its agencies
can help considerably in this sphere, by the education of foreign nationals in
appropriate materials technologies at universities in this country, by
cooperative programs between U.S. and LDC universities, and by facilitating
personal contact and experience between the AC's and the LDC's.
Finally, in addition to capital transfer and technical assistance, much
will depend on legislative and fiscal measures which influence the terms of
trade, both in the donor and the recipient countries. Factors that can have
these significant effects' positive and negative, include patent agreements,
inventor and licensee protection, export and import restrictions and taxes,
and local tax laws and regulations.
Much of the above discussion is reinforced by recommendations made
recently in an O.E.C.D. publication.28 They apply as much to the materials
field as to science more broadly.
"The needs of the developing countries for science and technology are
undoubtedly different from those of the developed countries. National science
and technology policies within the developed countries should therefore be
formulated with attention to the particular situation of those countries."
It was recommended that "problems relating to science, technology, and under-
development be considered (by the AC's) as an integral part of their national
science and technology policies". As a first step, it was proposed that an
inventory should be made of science and technology activities in the AC's that
are relevant to the LDC's. It was also proposed that the AC's, "as a matter
of conscious and explicit policy, devote a certain fraction of their R&D
activities to problems relevant to underdevelopment"... "Policies should be
developed in two directions: (a) fostering in the LDC's the development of
indigenous capability in science and technology relevant to the socio-
economic situation of those countries, and (b) formulating research programs
in favor of the LDC's in the laboratories of the AC's, as a part of science
policy.
"Only by creating institutions in the LDC's themselves does it seem
possible, on the one hand, to become sufficiently close to the prevailing
economic and social environments to respond to their real research and
development needs." They recommended a pooling of AC resources with this aim
in view, and stressed the value of centralizing knowledge of these actions to
ensure that, so far as possible, they fit in with an overall plan of inter-
national action for the installation of centers of research and advanced
studies in the developing countries.
science Growth and Society, O.EeCeD. ~ page 106, Paris, 1971.
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The study proposed further ways to facilitate international cooperation
and technology transfer including: Ca) aid in creating in the LDC's technical
information-evaluation centers manned and organized by specialists capable
of informing themselves of technological development abroad and of advising
on the importation of technologies, (b) fostering within the LDC's information
banks for research on the 'Third World', and (c) availability of training
assignments and visits by specialists from the LDC's to centers of excellence
in their own disciplines in the AC's, to assure them of frequent consultation,
without thereby inducing them to quit their own countries.
The report concluded by recommending that "governments organize formal
arrangements permitting scientists and engineers from AC's to spend periods of
time in LDC's both to provide technical assistance and education, in situ, and
to familiarize themselves with problems and conditions".
Interactions with LDC's Particularly Concerning Materials
Almost all relationships in the materials field with LDC's involve
ownership of mineral resources and involve issues related to the degree of
integration from ore to manufactured products. Except for stone, clay, and
glass products, which can be produced and consumed locally, discovery and
exploitation of natural resources are dependent on high-grade ore supplies
needed by resource-limited industrial nations, notably in Western Europe. A
strong impetus for late l9th-century imperialism and colonial empires rested
upon the search for an assured supply of basic metals to feed the fabricating
and manufacturing industries of the mineral-poor European countries. Because
of the Monroe Doctrine, Latin America escaped direct colonialism, but the
rich mineral resources of Chile and Peru were developed for the benefit of
European and American consumers. Following World War II and its accompanying
breakup of colonial empires, distinct national strategies were established
regarding the exploitation of indigenous natural resources, and discernible
patterns have emerged with particular minerals and in different mineral
regions. These will be examined in more detail in the following paragraphs.
Common to all national strategies is the assertion of ownership of local
resources by the country possessing them.
After wood, stone, clay, and glass products, all of which are globally
abundant and necessary to preindustrial societies, development of domestic
iron and steel resources was given major priority in a large number of develop-
ing nations. While iron ore and limestone, both necessary raw materials, are
widely distributed, sources of coking coal are less abundant. In addition,
supplies of scrap were relatively low. In spite of these drawbacks, however,
large integrated steel mills were constructed in the early post-war years in
a number of Latin American countries as well as in some parts of Africa and
India. Products were mostly simple carbon-steel shapes Reinforcing bars,
structural sections, rails, etc.) all necessary for construction projects.
Alloy and other specialty steels were imported, as well as flat-rolled
products necessary for consumer-oriented products such as appliances and
automobiles. In some areas, electric power projects instigated electric-
furnace steel plants. Technology was derived from the U.S. and Western
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Europe, with capital supplied by U.S. Foreign Aid programs. Technical
management was often supplied by foreign nationals, although local univer-
sities eventually provided trained technical management.
In contrast to iron and steel, almost all other metal-producing projects
depended on supplies of high-grade, readily-exploitable mineral deposits,
whose economic viability depended on demand by industrialized nations. Copper
deposits in South America and Africa were developed, owned, and operated by
foreign capital and manpower. Forward integration was limited to production
of blister copper, the primary output of the smelting process, although a few
electrolytic refineries were built in areas where power projects provided
cheap electricity (particularly in Africa). Similarly, aluminum projects
were based on exploitation of local supplies of rich bauxite. Nickel and
ferroalloy projects (manganese and chromium) likewise were developed as
sources of raw materials. In almost all cases, local manpower provided only
a source of cheap labor, with supervision and management remaining the province
of the educated foreign engineer.
With increasing political independence, national strategies started
taking form, primarily centered in the political demand for (a) local
management, and (b) forward integration, in order to add value to the exported
products. Two types of tactics were commonly employed - first, granting of
special incentives to invite investment in forward-integration projects; and
second, threatening loss of control of the ore body unless further investments
were made. In either case, the exported products provided foreign exchange
useful for other sectors of local development, either industrial or social.
In almost all countries with an advantageous natural-resource position,
this strategy has been successful in shifting the interface of product trans-
fer from a simple upgraded mineral to a more sophisticated semifinished
product. Efforts to develop local fabricating and product manufacturing
facilities have been less successful, largely due to lack of local demand (or
funds); moreover, metal industries are often capital intensive with relatively
low manpower requirements. Process equipment, design and construction equip-
ment are almost invariably provided by foreign sources. Thus, the plant
owners are almost completely dependent on foreign technical innovation for
process equipment. As a result of these factors, opportunities for employment
of technically-trained people are limited to operating and management positions.
Some countries have created scientific research institutes, and creditable
technical university research is conducted, but the lack of infrastructure
represented by equipment and process-design capabilities severely limits the
development of a complete MSE structure. Since most innovation in metals
production has been in the area of process conception and design, the lack
of matching capital-goods industries slows down the widespread transfer of
technology by means other than importing process equipment from highly-
developed countries.
The trend in extractive industries based in LDCts is toward increasing
local autonomy in ownership, management, and technical supervision. Process
equipment is almost exclusively supplied by well developed nations. Design
and construction of facilities (with the exception of process and control
equipment) now tend to be provided from local resources. Despite strong
efforts to forward integrate, most resource-based products are exported to
!
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consuming countries in a relatively simple form. Until a satisfactory local
demand develops, this situation is likely to continue; thus, one of the
principal sectors for MSE is growing only slowly in the developing countries.
Absence of a major capital-goods manufacturing sector also limits the needs
and opportunities for MSE. Finally, governmental financial policies which
direct foreign exchange derived from raw-material exports towards other sectors
of the economy, have also inhibited technical development in the LDC's.
With respect to commodities, iron and steel production have reached the
highest level of development, followed by aluminum, copper, ferroalloy ores
(particularly manganese and chromium), lead, zinc, tin and minor metals.
Emphasis on particular raw materials is almost exclusively determined by the
availability of local raw materials.
Educational and research facilities tend to reflect the state of product
integration achieved in a given country. Hence, the evolution of an identi-
fiable MSE educational and R&D community depends to a large extent on the
nature and course of future economic developments in the particular LDC.
Technological Interactions with LDC's - Example of India
The standard of living in a country is, to a considerable degree, linked
to the level of technological sophistication achieved in the means of
producing industrial, consumer, and agricultural products. The technological
gulf between the AC's and the LDC's is widening steadily and the question we
are facing is how to bridge it. The immensity of this problem becomes apparent
when one reflects upon the principal reason advanced for expanding the
membership of the European Common Market: by pooling the technological
resources of its members, it may be possible to achieve technical parity with
the U.S.
In the following paragraphs, attention is given to the steps taken, in
collaboration with the developed countries, for the development of technical
education facilities in India and the relevance of this education to the
present phase of industrialization. Some additional alternatives for achieving
the desired objective are then examined.
During the past twenty years, five advanced technological institutes
have been established in cooperation with the U.S., U.K., U.S.S.R., and
West Germany; these collaborations were arranged under the auspices of UNESCO.
In this scheme, the AC has provided the laboratory equipment and other
accessories and also pays for the visiting faculty members. These specialists
are responsible for evolving the technical curricula in consultation with
their Indian counterparts and nurturing the institute through its infancy.
These appointments are initially for one year, but are expendable. In the past
the basic difficulty has been in attracting best-qualified foreign personnel
to this scheme. The problem stems from the fact that an active research
scientist usually does not want to disrupt his research program for a period
as long as a year; this is particularly true for the experimentalists. In
order to rectify the situation, the following steps have been taken: Ca) the
visiting faculty members are now appointed in consultation with the department
concerned; and (b) appointments for shorter durations are also now possible.
, . .
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The primary objective of such institutes of technology is to impart
technical education in the following disciplines: (a) Engineering (Electrical,
Mechanical, Civil, Aeronautical, Architecture, Naval, Metallurgy and Ceramics,
and Chemical); (b) Science (Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics). The
departments are organized along the traditional disciplinary lines rather than
on an interdisciplinary basis. These departments are also actively engaged in
research, and are authorized by the University Grants Commission to confer
advanced research degrees, such as the M.S. and Ph.D.
For a B.S. degree in a particular discipline, a student has to complete
the prescribed curriculum, which includes courses from various other related
disciplines. However, he has little choice in the selection of these courses;
this organizational aspect is more in line with the British pattern than with
the American. Consequently, there is no opportunity for him to evaluate
whether or not he has chosen the discipline compatible with his interests.
In these institutes, the education facilities are extremely good and the
quality of education compares very favorably to that of the good schools in
the technologically-advanced countries. However, the education may have
little relevance to the technical needs of the present phase of industriali-
zation. This point will be illustrated by taking specific examples. (a)
Presently the metallurgically-oriented industry needs well-trained extractive
metallurgists and engineers familiar with the fabrication of metals and alloys,
whereas the current educational trend is towards physical metallurgy. A
student will be well versed in such esoteric areas as dislocation theory,
electron optics and electron microscopy, deformation behavior of single
crystals, experimental methods in physical metallurgy, metal physics, phase
transformations in solids, etc., but may not know the fundamentals of ore
dressing, recovery of ferrous and nonferrous metals from their ores, fabri-
cation of metals and alloys, nuclear metallurgy, and corrosion-protection of
metals. (b) In electrical engineering, the emphasis is shifting towards
solid-state electronics, but the need for engineers who can design and build
better vacuum tubes, electrical motors, generators, etc., is still there.
(c) In aeronautical engineering, the students learn about supersonic planes,
but there is hardly any real opportunities for these engineers in the country.
All this is in contrast to more essential engineers who can man hydroelectric
power plants, chemical fertilizer plants, steel plants, as well as design and
build roads and dams efficiently.
The Indian faculty members are largely responsible for the aforementioned
unbalance. This could stem from the fact that there is little coupling
between these institutes and the industries they are meant to serve. It is
very likely, of course, that redressing of this imbalance will lead to less
comprehension of the new technical developments in the AC's, but a possible
solution may be to offer only to some fraction of a class the choice between
research and industrially-oriented curricula, whereas the rest would study
the latter.
The technical collaboration on a purely commercial basis with industry
in the developed countries can be a very effective avenue for the transfer of
technology to a developing country. This could include: Ca) obtaining
technical information and machinery through a licensing agreement; fib)
providing expert guidance in the creation of indigenous industries; (c)
setting up of applied R&D laboratories.
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In developing certain basic industries, such as steelmaking, machine
tools, etc., in an LDC, the advantages to an AC are relatively short term.
Nevertheless, the establishment of labor-intensive industries can offer long-
term benefits to both participants: Ca) cheaper finished products to export
to the AC; (b) a possible market for other industrial products; Cc) increased
opportunities of employment in the LDC.
Advantages to an AC in participating in the aforementioned schemes are the
following: (a) development of mutual understanding and opening of communi-
cation channels; (b) cheaper finished products; (c) increased opportunities
for trade. There can also be an undesirable gain in the osmosis of talent,
i.e., the "brain drain" from the LDC to the AC.
Korean Institute for Science and Technology - Example of U.S. Aid
This Institute can be examined as a possible model for LDC's, especially
those which are poor in conventional natural resources, South Korea is one of
the world's most rapidly developing nations, having at present relatively low
labor rates and thereby encouraging industrial activity as Japan did earlier.
Playing a part in this evolving picture is the Korean Institute for Science
and Technology (KIST), an organization that was established with U.S.
financial and technical assistance during the latter 1960's. Its subsequent
development has been guided by Battelle Memorial Institute. Modern laboratory
facilities have been built, talented staff recruited from among Korean
expatriates, and contract research for government and industry has started.
The aim of KIST is to bring science and technology to Korea quickly, to
spur economic development by applying science to local industrial needs, and
to reverse the "brain drain". KIST is attempting to fill what would otherwise
be a scientific vacuum in the country; to help industry select and adapt
technologies already developed abroad; to improve production methods; to
determine the best areas for investment; to find new ways for using local
materials, to upgrade the quality of exports; and to produce important
products that must now be imported such as machine tools and mechanical
equipment. KIST also holds training sessions for scientists, technicians, and
managers from industry' universities' and government. The President of KIST
is a metallurgical engineer who received his higher education in the U.S.
KIST is an autonomous, not-for-profit institute which serves the needs
of government and industry without being subject to the political control of
either. A special law was enacted to allow the government to donate money to
KIST without exerting power over its plans and operations. Another law has
encouraged industry to use KIST by providing special tax incentives.
KIST succeeded in attracting a very competent staff; it mounted a
determined recruiting drive, offered relatively high salaries, excellent
fringe benefits, and fine research facilities. It also offered skilled
Koreans an opportunity to use their talents in the service of their country --
"You have to be interested in solving our industrial problems rather than
building up your academic reputation. If you're after a Nobel Prize you'd
better stay in the United States."
1
Representative terms from entire chapter:
materials field
