When Rand Made Magic in Santa Monica

RAND's heydays were during the period of WW-II and post-war period including the so-called Cold-war era.

From my point of view, RAND during its golden days was very much like Google or Bell Labs during their peaks, with many historically prominent computer scientists and mathematicians having worked at RAND in some capacity. Several people I had worked with were there during the golden days and would reflect on them with great nostalgia...

Back then, special names we use today like "computer science" or "data science" were not commonly used. In this era, this field was simply called "Operations Research" (i.e. the application of quantitative methods and data analysis to improve operational and strategic decision making). - Without going off course too much, I previously made the case that places like the RAND Corporation for all practical purposed invented the field of what we call data science today, but may so-called data science practitioners would not know what the RAND Corporation was, nor would many people at the RAND Corporation in modern times have connected the dots to recognize that they had pioneered this field.

For anyone interested in reading more on the theme of applying quantitative methods / operations research in the area of US public policy, it's reading about the "Whiz Kids": - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whiz_Kids_(Department_of_Defen...

Eisenhower's famous comments about the military industrial complex are well known, but the later bits of that speech are worth reading (and contrasting to a certain recent spectacle of ignominious incompetence):

> "Today, the solitary inventor, tinkering in his shop, has been overshadowed by task forces of scientists in laboratories and testing fields. In the same fashion, the free university, historically the fountainhead of free ideas and scientific discovery, has experienced a revolution in the conduct of research. Partly because of the huge costs involved, a government contract becomes virtually a substitute for intellectual curiosity. For every old blackboard there are now hundreds of new electronic computers. The prospect of domination of the nation's scholars by Federal employment, project allocations, and the power of money is ever present — and is gravely to be regarded. Yet, in holding scientific research and discovery in respect, as we should, we must also be alert to the equal and opposite danger that public policy could itself become the captive of a scientific-technological elite."

> "It is the task of statesmanship to mold, to balance, and to integrate these and other forces, new and old, within the principles of our democratic system — ever aiming toward the supreme goals of our free society."

The USAF was insanely well funded in the 1950's. The military got about 40% of the US government budget back then. The USAF bought most of the world's transistors. They ran several ICBM programs, a bomber program, SAGE, and accumulated huge fleets of aircraft. Even the mediocre airplanes where produced in large quantity. The B-47, the first good jet bomber, was built in quantity 2,042. In comparison, only 744 B-52 bombers were ever built, and many of those are still in use.

https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RB9119.html

The above links to a more comprehensive PDF.

My questions are to what extent that report affected the openness and credibility of RAND?

[1] - https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR3063.html

Add in a couple of big names to justify the cost, staff it with jr people/post grads, shine it up with some fancy graphics and quant-ish formulas and poof, a million dollar study.

Of all the FFRDC beltway bandit think tanks, they felt the most like an MBA consultant shop. Lots of overhead, questionable return on investment. While they do have history and prestige, I'm not convinced anything they deliver is uniquely insightful.

(this was much later than most of the events described in here(

Well, that's about to change.

> One day, to my surprise, I turned the corner, and there, sitting in his cell, was none other than Manuel Noriega, the ex-dictator of Panama. Seeing as how I did not know him personally, but recognized him from his many media appearances, I hastened to introduce myself. “How are they treating you?” I asked. “Si si, not so bad. Every now and then some junior CIA type comes in and we do some more – what is it, water-surfing? Boogie-boarding? No, no, water-boarding. But it is more for his pleasure, than mine.” I told him that the U.S. actually had given Panama the canal. “Yeah, I heard about that,” he replied. “But how about all of the new peoples who are there now, think of all of the opportunities for a little friendly mordida!” I said I was gonna mosey on, but I’d be back. “Please bring me some of the CDs by the band Pink Floyd,” he said. “They are like the thinking man’s AC/DC – I got so sick of all that puerile metal crap they were blasting at me when I was in the compound.” “Better than Sadam Hussein,” I replied. “They got him in a spider hole, and it didn’t look as though he was enjoying any music!” “They got Sadam, too?” he replied, querulously.

- David Kronemyer, My Days at RAND Corporation

https://web.archive.org/web/20080815050205/http://kronemyer....

https://www.amazon.com/If-Then-Simulmatics-Corporation-Inven...

describes the rise and fall of a would-be competitor to RAND that I enjoyed.

These days its not possible to innovate something like switched ethernet (which RAND had a hand in) unless you submit bids from forty GSA vendors and hold fifty meetings on which third party implementation consultants you need to hire for the work neoliberalism insists you not do anymore as a corporation because outsource culture is king. wrap it all up in a mountain of project managers and "best practices" because youre too chicken-shit to do anything that 200 other companies dont do, and viola. the punishment for failure FAR outweighs the reward for any breakthrough you think you can achieve.

youre not a thinktank anymore youre just a consulting firm with a particularly attractive media spend.