The Allied Occupation and Japan's Economic Miracle

Building the Foundations of Japanese Science and Technology 1945-52

Bowen C. Dees

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2013
• Topic: Social Sciences
• eBook ISBN:
  9781134247899
• Subtopic: Ethnic Studies
• Index: Social Sciences

There is virtually nothing - until the arrival of this study - addressing the significance of the enormous contributions in science and technology towards the realization of Japan's 'economic miracle' during the occupation period. Describes the Scientific and Technical Division of McArthur's GHQ.

■ Chapter 1
Japanese Science and Technology Before 1945

Early Science and Technology

Not much science as we know it had come to or been developed in Japan before the mid-1800s. For centuries, the Japanese willingly sought to adopt and adapt Chinese ideas and techniques, and numerous concepts based on China's state of development became available.

Thus, Chinese crafts were widely introduced into Japan at an early period. But the Japanese apparently had little interest in the more theoretical and speculative contributions of the Chinese who were much concerned with cosmological thought; in China, observational astronomy was developed early, and this led to much speculation as to the nature of the heavenly bodies. There is virtually no evidence of Japanese contributions in such areas in the early centuries of contact between the two countries.

Japan's scientific and technological achievements prior to the middle of the nineteenth-century were neither outstanding nor insignificant. This is not the place for a discussion of those achievements. James R. Bartholomew, in The Formation of Science in Japan has given a detailed treatment of how science was dealt with in Tokugawa times and later - up to about the 1920s. His book also contains references to the work of many others interested in the history of science and technology in Japan.¹

This account will be primarily concerned with the period from the end of World War II until the end of the Allied Occupation. However, some comments on the history of Japanese institutions concerned with science and technology may prove useful.

Organization of Science Before 1945

Soon after reopening its borders, and especially in the last three decades of the nineteenth century, Japan set up new organizations to deal with the problems and opportunities associated with scientific and technological matters. The government took the lead in this as in many other aspects of the nation's life. A Ministry of Technology was established, and was made responsible for much of the fast-paced activity that took place in the decades immediately after Japan 'opened' to the West.

As already noted, a number of technologically-based industries were established by the government, but they were not profitable. In due course these industries were sold at very low prices to upper-class Japanese who proved to be good entrepreneurs, quickly turning the plants they had taken over from the government into profitable concerns.

The steps taken to bring knowledge of modern science into the class-rooms of Japan at first focused more strongly on the physical than on the biological sciences. In its rush to 'modernize' Japan early on placed much emphasis on science and technology in its educational system at all levels. Science and mathematics represented about 30% of the school curriculum in the first four years and two-thirds in the final four years of elementary education; the scarcity of trained teachers led to a less than desired result, however. In the 1880s, at the university level, 85 percent of the graduates of Tokyo University received degrees in the scientific disciplines.²

Tokyo University was the first major institution established (in 1877); and it was important not only to science and technology but to all fields of scholarship. An amalgam of schools that had been established earlier, some during the Tokugawa shogunate, Tokyo University was at first concerned mainly with the importation of Western knowledge, but eventually developed its own research programmes.

Tokyo University did not just copy foreign universities; for example, it included engineering (1886) and agriculture (1890) in its curriculum, giving these areas of knowledge a status higher than they had in Europe.

By the year 1900, a number of other institutions had been established to deal with various aspects of science; some of these were:

• □ The Hydrographic Department of the Navy (1871)
• □ The Drug Control Station (1874)
• □ The Central Meteorological Observatory (1875)
• □ The Mita Plant Nursery (1877)
• □ The Geological Survey (1878)
• □ The Forestry Experiment Station (1878)
• □ The Nishigahara Silk Experiment Station (1886)
• □ The Misaki Institute for Marine Life Studies (1887)
• □ Tokyo University Observatory (1888).

Kyoto University was established in 1897, but there were difficulties in obtaining adequate faculty members. Moreover, two years later the President of the university bemoaned the lack of books and equipment needed to provide an appropriate educational experience for the students.

In the years of institution building around the turn of the century much more money was provided by government for the support of teaching and research in medical fields than in other scientific areas. This was probably due to the fact that there were a number of physicians in the Diet - some quite influential - but no mathematicians, physicists or chemists.

The Japan Academy also traces its origin to the early period of institution building, for its predecessor organization, the Tokyo Academy, was established in January 1879 with the encouragement of officials of the Ministry of Education. The Tokyo Academy began with high hopes. There were to be 40 members, the initial membership being chosen by a group of seven individuals who were assembled by the Ministry to discuss the formation of the Academy. Each member of the Academy was accorded official governmental recognition, had membership for life, and was given a modest stipend by the government. In principle, all fields - the sciences and learning in general - were to be represented in the membership.

Things did not go well with the Tokyo Academy during the next few years. One element contributing to its lack of success was that it had no obvious function. Much emphasis was being placed on building up Tokyo University. Those concerned with science and technology saw no need for a body which had little if anything to contribute over and above that which was expected of the University.

Nonetheless, the Tokyo Academy endured. Early in the 1900s, there was a general feeling in Japan that still more should be done to give impetus and recognition to scientific endeavours. Thus, when Austria invited Japan to send a delegation to a meeting of national academies, rather than attempting to create an entirely new body the government chose to transform the Tokyo Academy into the Imperial Academy

The transformation brought with it several significant changes. The membership was increased from forty to sixty members. Scientists were by regulation to constitute one half of the membership; in the Tokyo Academy, the majority of members had been from law and the humanities. Within a few years the Academy obtained funds to award prizes for outstanding published work, to begin the publication of several journals, and to provide modest grants to support on-going research. (In 1947 the name was again changed: from Imperial Academy to Japan Academy.)

Numerous additional universities, both private and governmental, were established after 1880. In 1886 Tokyo University was designated Tokyo Imperial University. At the end of World War II Japan had a large number of institutions of higher education, including seven major 'Imperial' universities.³

As science began to make a significant place for itself in the universities, it became evident that there was very little interaction taking place between the scientists in those institutions and the leaders responsible for the development of new products and processes in industry - and that in the advanced countries of the West there was clearly much more such interaction. Various means were sought to assure a more direct connection between the findings of science and the further development of Japanese industry.

One early and significant Japanese scientific innovation was the establishment of the Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (IPCR), known to the Japanese as Riken, a contraction from its Japanese name, Rikagaku Kenkyu-jo.' This organization, established in 1917, was set up - with both private and governmental support in an attempt to bridge the gap between science and industry. In soliciting contributions to establish the new institution, the sponsors pointed out that the new research institute would help in the development of manufacturing and other technological industries 'by carrying out research on such extensive fields as physics and chemistry using new ideas and originality, while encouraging their widespread introduction. From this, it can naturally be assumed that the primary objectives lay in promoting basic studies of science, thereby contributing to the industrial development of the country.'⁴

Over the decades, Riken developed many patentable ideas. Papers written by its staff were available in English in the late 30s and early 40s, and I remember consulting several of those when I was in graduate school. As we shall see, Riken encountered trouble with the SCAP authorities because of its success in 'spinning off' subsidiaries which marketed a number of its patentable discoveries.

The National Research Council (NRC) was established in 1919 as a result of a recommendation of the Imperial Academy; the Council's members were appointed by the Cabinet. In its early years, the primary responsibility of NRC was to represent Japan in its dealings with the increasing numbers of international scientific organizations, but its functions increased in the period between World Wars I and II.

During World War II the National Research Council was heavily involved in Japan's attempt to utilize science and technology more fully in the war effort. Its membership rose substantially (from 400 to some 700 members), and it became involved in assigning specific research work to scientists and engineers throughout the country.

As the war ended, NRC reduced its membership to 300; its primary role post-war was to provide advice to the Ministry of Education regarding the distribution of research grants. Its leadership was drawn in large measure from faculty members of Tokyo University. The relatively large numbers of Tokyo University scholars in other national advisory bodies such as the Imperial Academy caused Japanese scholars in other universities (and especially those outside Tokyo) to feel they were too often without appropriate representation in the decisions being made at the national level concerning the support of science.

By 1930, the number of national laboratories and experiment stations operating in Japan had increased substantially. (See Table 1.)

In the period between the two World Wars - and especially after the Great Depression reached Japan - a movement developed to find ways of improving Japan's industrial technology. In March 1931, the Diet passed a resolution urging the government not to 'delay in seeking concrete measures for the promotion of scientific research as fundamental for the furtherance of the nation's fortune and the enhancement of living conditions'. By December 1932, it was generally agreed that some new body was needed to help overcome the results of the depression, and the government approved the formation of the Japan Society for the Promotion of

Table1 Japanese National Laboratories and Experiment Stations Established During the Period 1914-1930

Science (JSPS).⁵ JSPS was established as a juridical foundation, and its support came both from governmental appropriations and civilian donations. Government support increased rapidly, but private donations fell off. Basic research received very limited support from JSPS.⁶

In its first year JSPS received one million yen from the Ministry of Education, and in 1933 began providing grants to the humanities and social sciences as well as the 'hard' sciences. From its inception until World War II, JSPS was the major mechanism for providing research grants to a wide variety of organizations (universities, independent laboratories and even military and governmental units), with virtually all the money coming from the Japanese Government.⁷ Thus JPS, a private agency, performed functions that in most countries only governmental units are permitted to discharge. The organization did not always perform to the complete satisfaction of the country's scientists; typically, JSPS selected for investigation the most urgent problems and assigned each problem to a special committee of engineers and scientists. Projects ranged from pure science (such as nuclear physics) to such industrial areas as synthetic oil, synthetic rubber, and improved carbon brushes for electric motors. The committees did not always work together as well as was desirable: engineers from industry did not always want to share their companies' 'know how' - and security interests led the Army and Navy representatives to keep their special information secret. Even so, JSPS support led to Japanese scientists working more directly with practical problems than they had before the advent of the new body.⁸

Scientific and Technical Mobilization

During World War II many scientists in Japan were mobilized along with nearly everyone else to aid in the war effort, although not many were called up for military service. Many scientists and engineers were required to undertake special research and development work of interest to the military authorities. Understandably, engineering research was favoured over basic research, and some engineers looked back upon their war-time experience as 'their happiest time,' when they had abundant financial support and adequate equipment and materials.

There was a general feeling after the war that not nearly enough emphasis had been given to science and technology in Japan prior to World War II, and that this had contributed to Japan's defeat. The war mobilization effort was not successful, and many scientists resented the degree to which the military had run roughshod over their sensibilities.⁹

Americans who examined the results achieved by Japanese scientists and engineers during World War II found there was little evidence of coordination of effort between the Army and Navy on R&D matters.

However, the importance of research in improving Japan's military capacity had not gone unrecognized. As early as 1939 efforts were made to mobilize Japanese science and technology. A Science Division was set up in the Planning Board (which was an adjunct of the Prime Minister's office). This group and the Ministry of Education took a number of steps intended to assure the fuller use of science and technology in pursuing the war effort (already under way in China). The same year a major expansion in the number of science and engineering students was begun, and this led to an estimated three-fold increase in the production of scientific and technical manpower.

In 1940 the Planning Board recommended establishment of a Technology Board and expansion and improvement of the nation's public and private research institutions - including appropriation of more funds for their support. This plan would result in a significant level of governmental control over private laboratories and academic research, and substantial opposition was voiced by many of those likely to be affected.

Nevertheless, in early 1942, the Cabinet approved the establishment of the Technology Board, to provide central control and coordination of technological endeavour throughout Japan. The Director General of the Board was to have ministerial rank, and distinguished individuals were chosen for that post. (The second Director...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• Foreword
• Chapter 1 Japanese Science and Technology Before 1945
• Chapter 2 Scientific Investigations and Initial Controls
• Chapter 3 First Steps
• Chapter 4 Settling Down to Work
• Chapter 5 Atomic Energy Controls
• Chapter 6 First Full Year of the Occupation
• Chapter 7 Dual Democracies at Work: The Riken Story
• Chapter 8 Striving for Democracy in Science
• Chapter 9 The Two National Academy Missions
• Chapter 10 Controls versus Assistance
• Chapter 11 Standards and Quality Control
• Chapter 12 Technology and the Economy
• Chapter 13 The End of the Story
• Chapter 14 Five Decades Later
• Notes
• Appendix A: Microfiche Used
• Bibliography
• Index