Thursday. Nov. 5, 1964 University Daily Kansan Page
Page 3
Research Enables Business To Grow Socially, AT&T Says
The role of research in business enterprise, the chairman of the board of American Telephone and Telegraph said today, is to enable business to grow in social function and utility.
In a speech prepared for delivery at the Spencer Memorial Lecture Thursday afternoon, Frederick Kappel, chairman of the board, explored the role research plays in business enterprise.
Kappel said that a business invests in research to grow. "I am not suggesting," he added, 'that if a business invests in research, growth will then follow."
DEVIATING FROM the basic "Why invest in research?" Kappel considered some alternatives like buying others' research results.
He said, "... The fact that you conduct research of your own does not lessen your interest in what others are doing ... it makes you more alert and aware of what is going on in the whole world of science."
Kappel also said that private industry should not rely on government supported research. Instead, Kappel suggested that the government give business enough leeway to make the money they need to support their own research.
KAPPEL ALSO pointed out that research can have a dollars-and-cents effects on a company. Their research gives them access to the whole range of available knowledge by placing a company in a sound bargaining position. They need not always buy the information they need.
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"Whatever field you are working in," Kappel said, "there is no substitute for learning a good deal about it through your own efforts. . . How can you understand a field unless you are doing work in it yourself?"
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In this speech, Kappel enumerated some conditions that have made research profitable for his company (1) research relevant to the goals of the business. (2)framework of purpose broad enough to give scientists full freedom for research. (3) the first two factors combine to form a scientific community that is attractive to a considerable number of people with uncommon ability.
Kappel said, ".. For successful development depends on being sure you know what you think you know, and developments that do not use the best available knowledge can be terribly wasteful."
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KAPPEL FELT IT is important that industry take advantage of the research communities formed by many universities and that the researchers be willing to work with industry.
"I would hope that many university researchers might find as much satisfaction working in partnership with private business as in fulfilling government contracts", he said.
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In conclusion, Kappel said that although AT&T has always been actively involved in the search for new knowledge, they felt the prime need in modern technology is for wiser, smarter thought and action about what we have, rather than reliance on a headlong hunt for miracle solutions, or brute-force, extraagent efforts to find out what we do not have.
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