Background Analysis

America’s international competitive edge has been fueled by science since its creation. The colonies were created at the point in Europe’s history in which medieval ideas of the nature of the world were being replaced by theories based on examination and experimentation. This realism and desire to understand was funneled into the pioneers of America. Indeed, soon after settling into their new locale, many prominent members of society began to study the world around them motivated solely by a thirst for knowledge. (Science in America)
This thirst resulted in the creation of the American Philosophical Society. Founded by Benjamin Franklin, the goal of the society was simply to further develop America’s scientific knowledge and share that knowledge with the public. This was the beginning of America diverging from Europe in a scientific sense. While science in Europe was mostly speculative, America’s scientists were determined to find definitive answers through, admittedly crude, scientific method. In addition to this evolution in science, the society’s choice to share the knowledge they discovered with the public was a tremendous step forward. This created a public interested and educated in scientific advancement and excited by how new technology could improve their lives. (American Philosophical Society)

As the public become more aware of science, scientific development began to shift into the hands of the masses. Indeed, the middle class began to use their crude understanding of the world to create inventions designed to improve living and working conditions. Practical, applied science became the focus, and as new inventions were being created, the positive implications of scientific progress became increasingly apparent to the public. Science became more of a tool for success than a useless topic of discussion for the wealthy. However, just as this movement of public, practical science was fueling its existence by creating a public interest in science, it was simultaneously causing its own demise. (Science in America)


Science was becoming more complex and began to require more formal training. As a result, organizations began to form only accepting those with advance scientific education. During this period, science became more organized and standards began to be established. While science was becoming more professionalized out of necessity, Americans were still kept informed. Organizations, such as the Smithsonian and publications such as Scientific American, kept the public up to date on scientific knowledge and achievement. This was both a product and a contributing factor to the American public’s concern with modern science. (Science in America)

Jumping forward to the 20th century, science was now more theoretical and could no longer be utilized without a formal education. While scientific advances were still strongly related to public affairs — many scientific breakthroughs went into the vast urbanization of the 20th century — the government was now viewing science as a matter of national security. After Albert Einstein and other scientist lobbied the federal government to support the creation of a nuclear weapon in retaliation to German research, the Office of Scientific Research and Development was formed. Thus ,the importance of science grew beyond a social, practical, and even economic importance, it became deeply rooted in American government. (Manhattan Project)

Science continued to play a central role in American government, even becoming a symbol of national pride. Beginning 1957 when the Soviet Union launched the first satellite into space, Sputnik, the United States and the Soviet Union entered a competition in which the goal was space exploration, and the ultimate challenge was getting a man on the moon. At the time, the major purpose of the expedition was to achieve an impossible task in very little to demonstrate America’s strength as a nation. As John F. Kennedy said in his speech to Rice University, “We choose to go to the moon... because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills.” Science, at this point, had become the measure of the success of a nation. It required educated citizens, money, and organization, and, as a result, was the perfect method for demonstrating international success without conquest.

About twenty years after the end of the Space Race, the united states entered another seemingly impossible task. The Human Genome Project began under the direction of the United State, but soon became an international effort. By leading the global effort to crack the human genome, America remained on the cutting edge of scientific discovery and technological achievement. (Human Genome Project)

Throughout its history, America has remained at the forefront of science and has even lead the movements that have changed the way science operates. By constantly being at the head of this race towards knowledge and its practical applications, America has risen from a powerless group of states to an international powerhouse. An unparalleled adherence to science has made America what it is today.

JFK: We Chose To Go To The Moon

The Space Race between The U.S. and the U.S.S.R. has always an object of wonder to me. It was a story of exciting exploration, of entering the vast and harsh reaches of the unknown universe beyond our comforting blue sky. Hearing President Kennedy speak of the motivations for the United State's space program has taken a bit away from my romantic image of the Space Race, but has also done a bit to confirm it. Many times while listening to President Kennedy speak, I was shocked to hear what space exploration meant at the time. Not only was it a matter of international pride and scientific advancement, it was also a matter of national security. Kennedy spoke of traversing this final frontier for the sake of having a role in the way in which it is used. Kennedy stated, "only if the United States occupies a position of preeminence can we help decide weather this new ocean will be a sea of peace or a new terrifying theater of war." In other words, without the guiding hand of the United States, this new extraterrestrial territory could become a tool of violence instead of knowledge and peace. Thus, it was the United State's duty to participate in the Space Race for the good of mankind. Such self righteous claims of the program being a necessary watchdog over the exploration of the universe beyond the world is obviously a statement of distrust towards the soviet union, the main competitor and enemy of America at the time. Still, in the midst of this convoluted motive, there was a message of scientific advancement for the good of all mankind. Being that this was the motivation that has lasted, that drove America's desire to crack the human genome, that now drives America's desire to create clean energy, the other less noble motivating factors are negligible. Thus, the Space Race brought a new era of scientific progress for the sake of humanity instead of international competition, though not all at once. Stil, this achievement marks the Space Race as a landmark alone, before even considering the obvious turning point of sending machines, life, and eventually humans past the bounds of Earth's atmosphere.


Kennedy 's speach at Rice University on September 12, 1962

The Human Genome Project

The Human Genome Project was created to "identify all the approximately 30,000 genes in human DNA; determine the sequences of the 3 billion chemical base pairs that make up human DNA; store this information in databases; improve tools for data analysis; transfer related technologies to the private sector; and address the ethical, legal, and social issues that might arise from the project." This project was supported by the US government, but was an international effort. Indeed, the project was undertaken by the United States, China, France, Germany, Great Britain, and Japan. The project stands as a symbol of more than just human kind's scientific progress, but also as a symbol of international cooperation. Technology used to be a thing to hord, to keep to one's self to make one's country stronger. Now, science can be and is used to benefit the entire world. Such a international cooperation for the sake of improving our understanding of the human body, and thus how to keep it healthy, is a clear indicator that science is now a tool that can be used not only to place one society ahead of another, but to benefit the entire world.

"Human Genome Project." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 31 Jan. 2010. < http://www.americanhistory.abc-clio.com >.

The Manhattan Project

The Manhattan Project was a government funded research project whose purpose was to create a nuclear bomb. It was created in response to a successful creation of atomic fission in Berlin. Fearing that the Germans might use this technology against America in WWII, Albert Einstein and other scientist convinced president Franklin D. Roosevelt to fund research with the goal of creating a nuclear weapon before Germany. This lead to the creation of the Office of Scientific Research and Development in 1941 which coordinated The Manhattan Project as well as other government funded scientific R&D. Once it was determined that a nuclear bomb could be created before the end of the war, the Army took full control of the project. Through hard work and top priority treatment, the project soon proved to be a success. At the launch, some of the scientist who worked on the project began to worry about the power of the weapon and the possibility of an arms race. Despite this, the Bomb was used several months later and helped bring an end to the second world war.

I have known of the Manhattan Project for many years, but my knowledge was filled with many common misconceptions and fallacies. I always pictured the government asking for the aid of high profile scientist to create the atomic bomb, not the other way around. I also never knew that the bomb was created in retaliation to German research. My perception of the Manhattan Project has always been that it was a highly secretive, aggressive government project in which brilliant minds were assembled by the government to create a weapon so powerful that it would redefine war, and I do not think that I am alone in thinking this. Learning about the project has been another sobering moment in American Studies in which I have learned that I too have fallen victim to popular misconceptions about American history. I too have become attached to a imaginary American history that only blinds me from the inherent complexity of all events of past, future, and present time.

"Manhattan Project." World History: The Modern Era. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 31 Jan. 2010. < http://www.worldhistory.abc-clio.com >.

Eric Foner and John A. Garraty. "Manhattan Project." The Reader's Companion to American History Dec. 1 1991: n.p. SIRS Researcher. Web. 31 January 2010. < http://sks.sirs.com >.

American Philosophical Society

The American Philosophical Society was one of the first organizations formed by America for the purpose of scientific advancement. Founded by Benjamin Franklin, it was a place were high class members of society came together to discus and stimulate research. Though this research was still very crude, the society served as a symbol of America's departure from Europe's speculative form of science. One important quality of the organization was that its purpose was not only to peruse a greater understanding of the natural universe, but to share that information to the general public. This echoed the American attitude towards socioeconomic differences at the time . Though those who were wealthy and educated considered themselves elite, they also valued the population as a whole. Just as after independence the masses could vote, but only the elite would run, only the elite would lead the research while the public was merely allowed the opportunity to follow it. While this may sound negative, this was a large improvement over many established systems in which education only was given to the rich, never the poor. This attitude is what most likely lead to science becoming an individual practice among the middle class in the 19th century.

"American Philosophical Society." World History: The Modern Era. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 31 Jan. 2010. < http://www.worldhistory.abc-clio.com >.

Science In America

Much of America's success is due to its utilization of science. Early in the development of the country, many high class citizens were interested in scientific studies. In the 19th Century, scientific study changed from a hobby for the upper class to a practical occupation for middle class. Indeed, many middle class individuals began developing technologies to assist them in their every day labor. Such applied scientist received no formal training and had no standard scientific system. Still, the spirit of innovation was clear. It was commonly accepted that scientific innovations were necessary to promote the growth of prosperity. This idea was also accepted by the federal government, which funded select scientific organizations and education reform that promoted formal training in science. Science began to become more professionalized. In the mid 1800s, more organized scientific communities were being formed, scientific standards were being developed, and scientific education was being further expanded. Informing the public of scientific progress became a priority as well. New publications, such as Scientific American, were created to inform the public of such advancement and became fairly popular. It was not until the beginning of the 20th century that pure sciences, such as the studies of chemistry and theoretical physics, started to take off. America soon became a leader in these expanding studies of science as well as the applied sciences. The government continued to support this scientific development, and even hired theoretical physicists to create the atomic bomb which effectively ended WWII.This government support in matters relating to national security continued through the cold war and continues today. During the 1970s, however, there was a lot of government funding in life sciences. Even in this recent history, the federal government saw the importance in promoting science. Last night, Barack Obama spoke of further supporting scientific research. Addressing his fellow politicians, he stated, "we need to encourage American innovation." I concur, innovation is more than just a luxury, it is a necessity. Only by remaining on the forefront of scientific research and development can America remain a Superpower, for it was by pushing the limits of technology that America became the mighty nation it is today.

Science in America." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 28 Jan. 2010.
< http://www.americanhistory.abc-clio.com >.