ABSTRACT
The role of the President's Science Advisor includes answering specific questions, drawing attention to new possibilities or new dangers, and clarifying scientific issues. If the public were better informed on scientific topics, the Science Advisor would be much better able to perform his other roles of providing advice on specific issues and alerting the President to needs and possibilities. A Science Advisor must have access to government leaders when he recognizes that an important issue is not receiving adequate attention. The Science Advisor may advise actions that are advantageous to science only in so far as they are clearly necessary for the country as a whole. Even if the Science Advisor enlightens the public with the help of a Science Court, and even if he provides good advice aided by appropriate ad hoc committees, his job will remain frustrating.
