The modern world exists thanks to science, so Fred Cawley hopes that the funding he provides for research in astrophysics, neuroscience and nanoscience will pave the way for the future
Sally Lerman, Scientific American
Fred Cawley collects Norwegian oil paintings and Asian ornate vases, and lovingly places them in his magnificent and spacious home (more than 1,100 square meters) in Santa Barbara, California, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. But the greatest love of his life has nothing to do with art or antiquities. Cavalli looks up at the orange sunset and begins to talk about the fundamental questions of life. He wonders about the study of the processes of the universe, the production of non-polluting forms of energy and the development of light and strong materials on a nanometer scale. He does not waste his fortune on the treasures of the past, but instead dedicates it to promoting the possibilities of the future.
In the past five years, the Norwegian-born businessman, who is now 77 years old, has funded ten research institutes in the field of basic sciences, established an operational fund to examine selected research questions and prepared a plan to offer three biennial prizes, each worth a million dollars, that would compete with the Nobel Prizes. "Because I believe in it," the unusual benefactor replies simply, as if the reasons should be self-evident. "Life as we know it today would not be possible without science."
The Cavelli Foundation began relatively modestly, donating $7.5 million to the Center for Theoretical Physics at Santa Barbara University in 2001, and later to the Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology at Stanford University. In 2004, the foundation joined the ranks of small and respected philanthropists in its donations to eight additional institutes at important universities. But it does not follow the path of most foundations, which seek a measurable return in short periods of time, but funds basic research in its three areas of interest: astrophysics, nanosciences and neurosciences. After Cavalli finds the right people and institutions, he cuts off contact. He only asks for annual reports, and an occasional invitation to a lecture or event.
Cavalli, who studied engineering physics at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, says he chose to support these fields because they fascinate him personally – and because he thinks they will continue to fascinate scientists for many years to come. Despite his commitment to free inquiry, he has a practical view of the expected returns. "If we acquire more knowledge about materials and the processes of the universe, it may bring benefits that we cannot even imagine for ourselves," he says. "But you have to be right to fund science without knowing what the benefit will be."
The number of scientific organizations is decreasing
The number of philanthropic organizations has indeed doubled since 1990, but the share of science dropped to 2.4% in 2003, compared to 4% ten years before, according to the Funding Center - a New York non-profit that monitors funding trends. The Cavalli Foundation stands out even among the few that provide funding for basic research, emphasizes James Langer, vice president of the US National Academy of Sciences. Cavalli's eagerness for the fields to which he contributes, combined with his willingness to let researchers "run" with their ideas, are what set him apart.
Cavelli's approach also differs from the prevailing approach in academic and government funding that increasingly focuses on the utilitarian aspect of research, notes David Auston, who serves as president of both the foundation and its sister organization, the Cavelli Operational Institute in Santa Barbara. For example, both the US Department of Energy and the US National Science Foundation - already known for their commitment to basic science - have nanotechnology initiatives.
But Auston believes that these entities are entertaining unrealistic expectations for the rapid delivery of useful tools and applications from these programs. The scientists seeking funding, from any source, usually have to present their ideas against the background of studies that have already been completed and in a short-term context. "This is a real obstacle on the way to significant discoveries," says Auston, who was once a physicist at Bell Labs. "Truly beautiful things don't come easily, they come to those who take risks."
Cavalli's strategy seems to be the natural continuation of his style as an entrepreneur - a combination of vision and practicality. He and his company, the Kavlico Corporation, took on unusual projects: their first contract, in 1958, was to build a linear position feedback sensor for an atomic-powered aircraft then being developed by the military. (The atomic project ended in 1961, after ten years of work.) By the late 70s, Cawley already had a serious business supplying both military and commercial orders for expensive and carefully constructed sensors for aircraft engines. Then, when the Ford car company asked for durable and accurate sensors in cheap mass production, the physical engineer accepted the bet and promised to change direction. He won a tender in which 41 other parties participated. "Everybody I talked to said, 'You're out of your mind,'" says Cawley.
The technological leap has paid off
The technological leap in the dark, from airplanes to cars, paid off handsomely and helped turn Cavolico into a manufacturer that generates $225 million a year and employs 1,400 people. Its devices can be found in all the vehicle's power systems and chassis - they even measure the weight of each passenger, to make sure the airbags inflate correctly. Five years ago, a Canadian electronics company paid $331 million for the business. Cavalli dedicated a significant portion of this amount, and his belief in the power of creative thinking, to science.
Cawley doesn't use application procedures or peer review, but uses a network of contacts, the way headhunters look for great managers. The fund chose fields that have already been recognized as "growth" fields, and financed the top leaders in them. Eric Kendall, for example, director of the Cavalli Institute for Neuroscience at Columbia University, shared the Nobel Prize in 2000 for his research in signal transduction in the nervous system. The name of Pasco Rakic, head of the Cavalli Institute for Neuroscience at Yale University, also appears in the textbooks; His research laid the foundations of the scientific understanding of the development of the human brain.
The progress of these established researchers will be crucial, notes neurobiologist Susan M. Fitzpatrick, vice president of the St. Louis-based James S. McDonnell Foundation. "Will they engage in a type of research that would otherwise not be conducted?" Fitzpatrick asks. Small funds (capital of 100 million dollars or less) can play an important role than just "add-ons" to government grants. The Cavalli Institutes in Chicago and Santa Barbara, for example, already receive funds from the US National Science Foundation. They will serve science best if they respond flexibly to new needs, Fitzpatrick believes.
In his quest to give scientists a free hand to try to realize their dreams, says Cavalli, he first mobilizes the support of the institutions where they work, then he establishes new research centers, or expands existing centers: "What we try to do is use leverage at a very high level; That's the secret." He and Austen hope that the researchers of the Cavalli institutes will dive to new depths following their meetings in interdisciplinary seminars. One field could lend strategies to other fields - for example, the computational skill of cosmology might help neuroscience and nanoscience. At the Cavalli Operational Institute, such collaborations have spawned research in areas such as beach weathering.
Cavalli is also looking at options throughout the Pacific Ocean basin, and would like to fund at least one more institute in Europe, besides the one at the University of Technology in the city of Delft in the Netherlands. It will also begin awarding its three million-dollar prizes—in astrophysics, neuroscience, and nanoscience—in 2008, in Norway. These awards will help increase public awareness of science and add prestige to it, Kavli hopes.
For now, he is focusing on his commercial investments in real estate, which will be essential to maintaining the flow of funds. In his bedrooms you won't find scientific journals, but various tomes about travel, art collecting and business. "No, I don't have the chance to do science," he laughs. "I try to make money, so I can spend money." About science, of course.
Translation: Emmanuel Lotem
Scientific American website in Hebrew where you can purchase a subscription to the journal
Knowledgeable of science and society
https://www.hayadan.org.il/BuildaGate4/general2/data_card.php?Cat=~~~361234314~~~127&SiteName=hayadan
