The Century of Science, a multicultural, international team of authors examine the global rise of scholarly research in science, technology, engineering, mathematics and health fields, providing insightful historical and sociological understandings of the ways that higher education has become an institution that shapes science and society.

We must all hang together or surely we will all hang separately. Benjamin Franklin The significant apathy that characterized relationships between indus try and universities and the adversarial nature of relationships between industry and government have both faded rapidly in the 1980s as the realities of global competition have surfaced in the United States. Both industry and government leaders articulate a number of constructs for regaining our competitiveness in world markets. One of the more fre quent strategies prescribed in this new competitiveness era is cooperation. Different individuals or groups may espouse different definitions, inter pretations, or areas of emphasis, but the overall importance of this concept is substantial. Although examples of cooperative research have existed for several decades, the number and variety of relationships have expanded rapidly in the 1980s as corporations, universities, and governments have embraced this strategy. Joint ventures involving two or three firms increased from under 200 per year in the 1970s to over 400 per year by the mid-1980s. Multiple-firm cooperative arrangements are a more recent phenomenon, made possible by the National Cooperative Research Act of 1984. By mid- 1988,81 of these industry-level consortia had formed under the provisions of the 1984 Act. The rapid growth in cooperative research and development (R&D) is primarily a response to the pressures of international competition. As a corporate strategy, cooperative R&D meets short-term needs for assets to implement new approaches for coping with intensifying competition.

Science and Technology for Development: The Role of U.S. Universities examines the role of U.S. universities in helping to build an indigenous science and technology (S&T) base in developing countries. U.S. university involvement in engineering, agriculture, and science is analyzed, along with conditions for success or failure and limitations to involvement. Successful experiences in developing countries are highlighted. This book is comprised of seven chapters and begins with an overview of the past legislative mandate for U.S. university involvement in S&T for development. The reader is then introduced to U.S. university activity in three fields: engineering, agriculture, and science. Within the analysis of each field, specific past involvements, current thinking, and field-specific issues are explored. The subsequent chapters discuss future roles for U.S. universities, including types of involvement, mechanisms for involvement, and forms of cooperation among U. S. institutions. Eight legislative changes are outlined for expanding U.S. university involvement in international S&T cooperation. This monograph will be of interest to S&T policymakers and university officials.

This influential report described science as "a largely unexplored hinterland" that would provide the "essential key" to the economic prosperity of the post World War II years.