[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 36 (Tuesday, March 28, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E437-E438]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 ON THE OCCASION OF THE DEDICATION OF THE KAVLI INSTITUTE FOR PARTICLE 
  ASTROPHYSICS AND COSMOLOGY AT THE STANFORD LINEAR ACCELERATOR CENTER

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. ANNA G. ESHOO

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 28, 2006

  Mrs. ESHOO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Stanford 
University and Stanford Linear Accelerator on the dedication of the 
Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology on March 17, 
2006. The institute is dedicated to advancing the understanding of the 
cosmos in its search for ``dark matter'' and ``dark energy,'' which 
compose an estimated 96 percent of the universe.
  This was all made possible by Fred Kavli, a world renowned physicist, 
through his extraordinary generosity and vision.
  The following are his inspirational remarks at the dedication of the 
institute which bears his name.

       It is a special pleasure to be here today for the 
     dedication of this beautiful building in the service of 
     science.
       First I want to remember and pay tribute to Leland Stanford 
     and his wife, Jane, who laid the physical and spiritual 
     foundation for this great university, and who in their 
     foresight provided the ample land on which this building 
     stands today.
       We owe our gratitude to the many people who have been 
     instrumental in making the Kavli Institute for Astrophysics 
     and Cosmology and the building come about, and give special 
     recognition to President Hennessy, Provost Etchemendy, and 
     the Department of Energy, represented by Robin

[[Page E438]]

     Staffin. We appreciate the capable work of Roger Blandford, 
     Jonathan Dorfan, and Steven Kahn, who are the prime engines 
     in this effort, and we recognize Steven Chu for his 
     contribution in starting the Institute.
       We truly have a great building on a wonderful site, and I 
     want to recognize the architectural firm of EHHD for a 
     beautiful and functional design.
       The building will be an important focal point for the 
     activity of the Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and 
     Cosmology. It is especially important since the Institute is 
     a joint effort of Stanford and SLAC, and the new building 
     will help to integrate the scientific effort of the two 
     institutions, and will be a common meeting ground for 
     participants from each as well as for visitors from many 
     other institutions.
       The prominent location is symbolic of the central role it 
     will play in this function.
       But the building cannot fulfill its function without 
     content, and we are especially thankful to Pierre Schwob who 
     donated the computer center, and Pehong Chen who donated the 
     Chair for the director of the Kavli Institute.
       The Kavli Foundation supports basic science because we 
     believe in its long-range benefit to humanity. We are looking 
     for benefits which may lie far into the future, benefits that 
     may be hard to predict, but as we look at the past, the 
     benefits of science have been proven over time. The fruits of 
     research are not always immediate and are often not 
     predictable. Often the benefits are the result of 
     unpredictable outcomes of an exploration that was initially 
     motivated purely by intellectual curiosity.
       Heisenberg, Schrodinger, and Dirac were not motivated by 
     practical applications when they and their colleagues 
     developed the quantum theory of matter, and yet, their 
     research led to, among other results, an understanding of 
     electronic conduction in solid state materials, which led to 
     the invention of the transistor, which made possible the 
     development of integrated circuits, computers, the internet, 
     and the IT world in which we live today.
       I believe there is a strong relationship between the level 
     of a nation's science and its technological and industrial 
     leadership in today's high-tech world.
       For many years, Bell Laboratories was the strongest and 
     best scientific research institution in the world. The 
     research from Bell Labs was freely publicized throughout the 
     world, but who was to take primary advantage of it to 
     build a high technology industry? It was the home country, 
     the United States of America. It is not just a matter of 
     knowing the theory, it is the foundation that is built 
     step by step by scientists, the engineers, the 
     technicians, the suppliers, the scientific infrastructure, 
     and it is the whole underlying knowledge base that 
     transfers pure science into industrial benefits. I believe 
     that without the Bell Labs, the U.S. would not be the 
     strong world leader we are today in high technology.
       Similarly, the Silicon Valley would not be among the very 
     top world technological centers without Stanford and SLAC.
       It is well known and widely accepted that investments in 
     research yield enormous benefits to society through improved 
     standard of living, better health, and stronger national 
     security.
       I believe that basic science is the primary driver for 
     human progress and increased knowledge about the human being, 
     nature, and the universe.
       It is for these reasons that we must be willing to make 
     investments with a long horizon, and it is important that our 
     leaders in government duly recognize the importance of our 
     scientific standing in providing a superior standard of 
     living. Sacrifices that we make today will build our future 
     of tomorrow.
       The benefits of basic science can be hard to predict, but 
     based upon the past, the future will be more spectacular than 
     we can ever imagine.
       And to the scientists I want to say, I envy you out there 
     looking back to the beginning of time, playing among the 
     galaxies. You guys are really good packing 100 billion 
     galaxies with a hundred billion stars each in the space of a 
     subatomic particle, but when you tell me there are 11 
     dimensions, I like to remind you of Paul Dirac's statement 
     that said ``physical laws should have mathematical beauty and 
     simplicity.''
       Today we are grateful to have this beautiful facility with 
     an outstanding team of scientists backed up by two great 
     institutions. I am confident that you will make new 
     discoveries and advance our understanding of the cosmos.
       Let us dedicate this house of science to take us on a ride 
     among the stars to answer some of our most fundamental 
     questions.

  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in paying tribute to a 
remarkable scientific endeavor, the Kavli Institute for Particle 
Astrophysics and Cosmology at SLAC, and to extend to its creator, Fred 
Kavli, our gratitude for his leadership, his vision and his generosity.