Pure Science with a Practical Aim: The Meanings of Fundamental Research in Britain, circa 1916–1950

Abstract

Historians tell us that the term "fundamental research" entered the discourse of science in the interwar period as a synonym for "pure science" and that both terms referred to work concerned with the search for knowledge, without thought of application. The aim of this paper is to show that when the expression "fundamental research" was used in Britain during and after World War I, it had a particular status that was not equivalent to pure science. In the annual reports of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) "fundamental research" was endowed with multiple meanings, including work that was orientated towards some practical goal. The fluidity of the meaning of "fundamental research" in the reports of the DSIR can be understood as a strategy; "fundamental research" was a rhetorical term that served to persuade more than one audience of the legitimacy of the DSIR and its policies.

Rethinking policy ‘impact’: four models of research-policy relations

“…The current focus on 'research impact' reflects a longerstanding concern with the societal return on public funding of science (Brewer, 2011;Clarke, 2010). This agenda was given particular impetus by New Labour government commitments to taking a more 'evidence-based' approach to policymaking (Labour Party, 1997), with official statements evoking a simple, linear conceptualisation of the relationship between research and policy (e.g., Cabinet Office, 1999Office, , 2000Blunkett, 2000).…”

Rothschild reversed: explaining the exceptionalism of biomedical research, 1971–1981

“…Historians and sociologists of science have drawn attention to the mutable qualities of terms such as 'basic', 'applied' and 'fundamental' research and to their variable usage by actors, depending upon context and intent. 71 This should prompt us to pay close attention to the language used in the Rothschild controversy and, more specifically, how this was used to shift the grounds of the debate. The language initially adopted by the MRC in preparing its response to the Green Paper was that of 'applied medical research'.…”

The changing identity of research: A cultural and conceptual history

“…In the last five years a few scholars began conducting conceptual analyses of basic research and applied research and trace the origins and meanings of these concepts (e.g. : Clarke, 2010;Pielke, 2012;Schauz, 2014). These studies dealing with the emergence of the new semantics already indicate that in the early 20 th century the public and political discourse had developed an interest in research activities beyond the enclosed sphere of academic science.…”