The President's Science Advisory Committee (PSAC) was created on November 21, 1957, by President of the United States

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

, as a direct response to the

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launching of the

Sputnik 1 Sputnik 1 (, , ''Satellite 1''), sometimes referred to as simply Sputnik, was the first artificial Earth satellite. It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957 as part of the Soviet space program ...

and

Sputnik 2 Sputnik 2 (, , ''Satellite 2'', or Prosteyshiy Sputnik 2 (PS-2, , ''Simplest Satellite 2'', launched on 3 November 1957, was the second spacecraft launched into Earth orbit, and the first to carry an animal into orbit, a Soviet space dog named ...

satellites. PSAC was an upgrade and move to the White House of the Science Advisory Committee (SAC) established in 1951 by President

Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. As the 34th vice president in 1945, he assumed the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt that year. Subsequen ...

, as part of the

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(ODM). Its purpose was to advise the president on scientific matters in general, and those related to defense issues in particular. Eisenhower appointed James R. Killian as PSAC's first director. In 1961, President John F. Kennedy renamed the agency the Office of Science and Technology (OST). This lasted until

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

's administration in 1973. In 1976 the

Office of Science and Technology Policy The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) is a department of the United States government, part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, Executive Office of the President (EOP), established by United States Congres ...

was established.

First report

The first report of the newly formed Science Advisory Committee, commonly known as the Killian Report (February 14, 1955, officially "Meeting the Threat of Surprise Attack"), suggested that any defense in the nuclear age was pointless, and outlined scenarios in which up to 90% of the US population would die in an all-out exchange. It suggested the only defense was deterrence, and set in motion the policies that would later be known as

mutually assured destruction Mutual assured destruction (MAD) is a doctrine of military strategy and national security policy which posits that a full-scale use of nuclear weapons by an attacker on a nuclear-armed defender with second-strike capabilities would result in ...

. It also suggested that the lag in US missile technology was a systemic problem in the education system, which led to widespread reform in the public school system.

Committee members

The President's Science Advisory Committee included many noteworthy scientists and non-scientists, including: * Oliver E. Buckley (Chairman 1951–1952) * Lee Alvin DuBridge (Chairman 1952–1956) * Isadore I. Rabi (Chairman 1956–1957) * James R. Killian (Chairman 1957–1959) * George Kistiakowsky (Chairman 1959–1961) * Jerome Wiesner (Chairman 1961–1964) * Donald F. Hornig (Chairman 1964–1969) * Lee A. DuBridge (Chairman 1969–1970) * Edward E. David Jr. (Chairman 1970–1973) * Lloyd Berkner * Hans Bethe * Lewis Branscomb * Melvin Calvin * Britton Chance * Thomas Gold * Philip Handler * Franklin Long * Gordon J.F. MacDonald * William McElroy * George Pake * Frank Press * Edward Purcell * Frederick Seitz * Charles P. Slichter * Alvin Martin Weinberg * Benjamin Willis 1962–1966 *

Herbert York Herbert Frank York (24 November 1921 – 19 May 2009) was an American nuclear physicist of Mohawk origin. He held numerous research and administrative positions at various United States government and educational institutes. Biography Her ...

PSAC's activities

The committee had no operating responsibilities. Its purpose was to provide advisory opinions and analysis on science and technology matters to the entire

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and specifically to the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

. About one-half of the panels' studies were directed to the question of how science could support the

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objectives. The creation of Arms Limitations and Control, Limited Warfare, and

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Panels, for example, reflected the national security concerns of the committee. Two important themes common to many of the studies are the budgetary problems of funding projects, and the administration's concern over competing successfully with the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

in science and technology. In 1965, the PSAC environmental pollution panel issued a major report outlining water, air, and soil pollution, from sewage and lead pollution to atmospheric carbon dioxide. During the administration of President John F. Kennedy, the PSAC advised against pursuing a human Moon landing due to cost. Kennedy rejected the committee's recommendation and aggressively pursued the goal of putting an American on the Moon before the end of the decade.

The end of the PSAC

In 1973, shortly after winning re-election in a landslide, President

, eliminated the committee. Nixon was frustrated with what he saw as a lack of support from the committee for his administration's agenda, including a member of the committee that spoke publicly against his administration's support for research into supersonic transport. The White House Office of Science and Technology and the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

were made to rely on federal agencies for guidance in scientific policy. A similar entity, the United States President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology ( PCAST), was established in 1990 by President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...

, and renewed by three subsequent presidents.

External links

U.S. President's Science Advisory Committee Records, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential LibraryDiary of George B. Kistiakowsky, Dwight D. Eisenhower LibraryHans Bethe talking about his time on the President's Science Advisory Committee
on webofstories.com.

''history.aip.org''
The Papers of the President's Science Advisory Committee, 1957–1961

References