Is the basis on which science policy has been conducted since World War II still valid for the twenty-first century? Does a close partnership between the scientific community and the government offer unique advantages in the progress of research and development? Since its publication in 1945, the report by Vannevar Bush - Science: The Endless Frontier - has been the touchstone of all discussions about science policy. That report, formulated out of the experience of World War II, set forth a case for an enduring partnership between scientific institutions and the federal government both as a means for generating new technology and as the foundation for achieving technological superiority over America's potential foes. In this timely reexamination of such issues, a group of the most distinguished economists who have written on science policy over the past decade evaluates the continuing relevance of Bush's arguments and conclusions.

1.Introduction and Overview / Claude E. Barfield -- 2. The Bush Report after Fifty Years -- Blueprint or Relic? / David C. Mowery -- 3. Why the Bush Report Has Hindered an Effective Civilian Technology Policy / Richard R. Nelson -- 4. Science: The Endless Frontier a Half-Century Later / Murray Weidenbaum -- 5. National Science Policy and Multinational Enterprise / Raymond Vernon -- 6. R&D and Economic Growth -- Cautionary Thoughts / William A. Niskanen.