The Pretechnology Agricultural Sciences

This chapter argues that explicit recognition of a category of scientific activity termed "pretechnology science" is required for a more complete basis for understanding the contemporary agricultural research system in the US The conventional distinction between applied and basic research is misleading in many ways. It suggests that a strong division exists between bask science, which is only generally influenced by economic considerations, and applied research, which is strongly influenced by economic considerations. The essential issue on the supply side is that intellectual property is produced in a "sequential building block" process. The growth of private sector Level III agricultural research makes an understanding of intellectual property exchange processes even more important. The general science establishment holds what might be termed a supply side view. It essentially contends that Level I and Level III research are independent of each other in terms of their production processes.