ABSTRACT
George Colby Paffenbarger was a man of considerable insight. Nearing the end of his life as a result of prostate cancer, he perceived a need to educate the dental profession and the public about the enormous benefits to dentistry and public health that were being wrought through the cooperative research of the American Dental Association (ADA) and the National Bureau of Standards. Tax dollars, allocations from ADA dues, and funding from the National Institute of Dental Research were being used to support this work, and it was important for everyone to know that this investment was yielding benefits which far exceeded costs. Paffenbarger undertook this project in collaboration with John A. Tesk and W. E. Brown at NBS. Together, they documented the development of modern dental materials research, beginning with the inception of a dental research program at NBS in 1919.
