Evening star., 1961-01-16


ing peak. It still enjoys the
topmost DIX priority for ma
terials, NASA officials said.
The new Mercury request
swells the mar-in-space pro-
grams total to $367 million
well above the $343 million
presented to Congress last year
as the total probable cost Of
the project. The end of Mer-
curry spending is not yet in
sight.
Actually slightly larger than
NASA's request was that for
research and development in
the Atomic Energy Commis-
sion. The Acc would receive
$1,116,500, 900 for science out o.
a total Of $2.423, 100000 new
contract authority for thu
agency. Roughly one-quarter o.
a billion dollars. was set aside
for construction of major R&r
facilities. .t
Aces budget detail men.
toned the two-mile-long, atom
smasher proposed but not vel
funded for Stanford Univer.
sity, Palo Alto, Calf. Authori.
cation for this huge linear &C.
celerator - estimated to cost
well over 500 million-will be
sought later, the budget said
H-Power Funds Cut
Not all the Governments
pet scientific projects got ex-
ira money. There was a cut
back Of about 16 per cent ir
requested funding for Project
Sherwood, Aces effort-so fal
unsuccessful to harness the
hydrogen bombs atomic fusion
reaction for peaceful power
generation purposes. Sherwood's
reduction was from $31.146,0 ,00C
To x26. q million.
The farther-advanced ACC
reactor development program
based on the nuclear fission
process, also was cut-by about
3la per cent-from $437.4 mil
lion to $422.4 million.
A heavy increase in funding
Of oceanographic research was
a feature of the new budget
This study, involving IL Gov
ernment agencies and virtually
all Of the natural sciences, will
cost $81.6 million in 1862 COM
pared with $6l.7 million this
year, according to the request,
Boost for PHS
The Public Health Service
and particularly its subordi-
nate National Institutes OF
Health. received a hefty R&D
fund boost. Mr.. Eisenhower
asked $377.6 million for re-
search supported by NH al
colleges and hospitals through
out the country. This figure Is
up "a per cent over last years
Public Health's total for sci
entific purposes-$459.4 mil
lion, including the NH funds
is up about 20 per cent. In ad-
dition, the Health, Education
and Welfare Department got
$23.2 million for other scienti-
fic work, swelling HEW's grand
total to $482.6 million, up 81
per cent over fiscal 1861.
R&D money for other
agencies followed the general
upward trend. Agriculture's re-
quest was $153.8 million. up 10
per cent; Interior was on the
list for $81.1 million, also up
10 per cent; Commerce was
listed for $68.2 million, up 76
per cent, and the Federal Avi-
alton Agency got a $73 million
request, up So per cent.
The National Science Foun-
dation, which bankrolls schol-
arly research projects and
such scientific ventures as the
Antarctic scientific program.
was put down for $l19.4 million
for these activities, a 80 per
cent increase. It was UNDER
stood the continuing Antarctic
program, funded for about 81
million last year, would get a
substantial increase perhaps
as great as so per cent. This
probably. could be done with
little or no increase in the SIS
million annual logistic support
costs borne by the Navy.
Notable in the budget fol
science and technology were
three features:
1. How R&D has grown over
the years. A comparison over
q 10-year period shows an in
crease of 3l2 per cent in the
total Federal funding of RID
from $3,l01,0 100000 in fiscal
1853 to $9,443,000,000 in the
latest budget.
e., How military domination
Of Government-supported sci
ence Is waning. Major national
security" funds have grown by
263 per cent from 1853 to 1862,
while other Government
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