Overheard: It is the privilege of man to learn to understand

Science has a simple faith which transcends utility. It is the faith that it is the privilege of man to learn to understand, and that this is his mission. Vannevar Bush

Bush, FDR’s Science Officer, is generally credited with changing the way scientific research in the U.S. gets funded. His work to create a relationship between the government and the scientific establishment during WWII fostered the environment in which the Internet was born.