ABSTRACT
Dollars for science are a big topic these days. We hear about enormous budgets for the Superconducting Super Collider (now at $8 billion and rising)* and the space station, or for research agencies like the National Institutes of Health. These total $21 billion a year. It’s natural for legislators and citizenry to wonder, why do those scientists ask for so much? As a participant in Washington’s science scene, I know this is an important question. As a working research physicist, I know part of the answer: We ask because we are driven by the same romantic imperative that propels artists.
