Date: 1993-06-23
Speaker: EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. being a Texan. I have known about the supercolilder before its inception. and many States wanted to get the supercollider. and some tell me that they are not supporting it now because it is not In their State. Well. this really is not a State project. It is a project for this. our America. Mr. Speaker. I rise today in support of the superconducting super collider. I. like many of my colleagues. have heard the claims of the detractors of this project who claim it is too expensive for too few returns. But I would like to highlight why this project is important to me and why I urge my colleagues to support the project. Over the past decade. we have seen the United States fall behind in the race of economic competitiveness. We have seen industry after Industry shipped overseas to Japan. to Germany. or Southeast Asia. There is. however. one area that we retain a significant edge and that is basic research. We are not stealing from our children or our childrens children or their children yet unborn. We are looking out for them. because we have been looked out for in the past. Just think of the things that we have today because somebody believed in research. We have lights. we have the technology of letting our voices go out. we have x ray. we have scans we have all kinds of testing. Mr. Speaker. I stand here today alive and well because of testing that tests for cancer and was able to catch it in time to treat it. So I understand the meaning of research and the outcome of research. Many of you probably have had the results of good research and not recognized that this is what we are attempting to invest In now. Now many of the arguments against this project are based on the. uncertainty of what benefits this project would yield. I would argue that this project is about research. basic research. Mr. Chairman. I stand here today as a living. breathing example of what benefits basic research yields. I was stricken by cancer twice and I survived. Had it not been for the many nameless. faceless. research scientists who delved into the complex nature of matter. explored- the properties of atomicsized particles. I might not be here. Let me share a few of the benefits of basic research. Through the study of particle physics in the fifties. research scientists were able to refine radiotherapy treatments to the point where the amount of radiation necessary in the treatment of breast cancer was reduced by 90 percent. saving the stress and wear and tear on the body. saving the money and yet getting the treatment done. Particle physics research ld to the principles which have enabled the development and improvement of imagIng capabilities which allow us to Identify tumors early on in their development. Mr. Speaker. the scan machines. all of these developments came about because somebody 30. 40. 20 years ago did the research. and nobody complained because we knew it was great investment for the future. In 1963. a study conducted by the health insurance plan of greater New York found that only 40 percent of breast cancers were discovered through mammography. A subsequent study conducted by the National Cancer Institute found that by 1982 91 percent of all tumors were discovered through mammography. Much of this progress was based on that investment In basic research 40 years ago. We now are poised on the brink of new discoveries. Highenergy physics research. basic research. has given way to the use of the cyclotron in proton emission therapy and has proved to be a promising new treatment in the fight against cancer. Two weeks ago. I met a young woman. who had undergone proton emission therapy treatment at Loma Linda University Medical Center. She had been diagnosed with a type of ocular cancer. which If treated by traditional means would have -left her with a 30percent chance of keeping her eye and no chance of keeping her vision. Conventional treatments would have also required her to check into the hospital undergo invasive surgery. incur the costs of a prolonged hospital stay and loss of time on the job. But through proton emission treatment. this woman was treated on outpatient basis at a tremendous savings to her and the health care system. She lost no time from her job and was able to keep her eye. To me this illustrates the value of highenergy physics research to society. The research that will be conducted at the SSC will extend the study of those particles and that technology to one level beyond which it currently stands. There .Js no telling what will be revealed through the pursuit of this research. Now the opponents of the SSC are passing out literature that says "the SSC is an inefficient way (at best) to conduct cancer research." No one is saying it is. But what the opponents of the project are actually saying is that they do not even want to pursue the basic knowledge that Js necessary to create better and more efficient cancer research and treatment. I realize that it is difficult to explain highenergy particle physics research to lay people.. But the need to pursue basic research is not. The results are selfevident. Over the past 50 years. we have built in this country the finest research complex on the face of this Earth. The ability to pioneer technological advances has been the backbone of American industry. both manufacturing and high technology and driven the innovations which have created the society In which we live. I would like to remind my colleagues of our heritage as Americans. We are the Nation which developed the vaccine for polio. and put the first man on the Moon. We are also the Nation which made the investment in basic research which made these achievements possible. We have never before questioned the value of the quest for pure knowledge and we should not begin now. I urge my colleagues to reflect carefully before they cast their vote on this project. We cannot pull the plug on the future of this Nation. Mr. Speaker. I simply want to close by saying that we have a responsibility to look out for our children. We have a responsibility to our children. We have talked about waste of money. This is arm investment. I would urge you and plead with you. do not pull the plug on our future. This is America. We must look out for our country. our children. We are here holding their trust.