by L. Ron Hubbard

or about thirty-eight years at this writing I have been engaged upon basic research into life and the humanities. This is basic or pure research and has the same genus as the effort of the early philosophers -- to attempt to establish the identity of life as independent from matter and as associated with the material world and forms which subjects are embraced by basic and developed sciences. The difference is that the research has been done from the viewpoint of scientific methodology in which I am trained.

The subject was, in fact, sufficiently unknown and insufficiently nomenclatured to have a clear-cut name. I say it was unknown because it has so markedly failed to keep pace with the natural or physical sciences and is in fact threatened by physical science. For example, we find physical scientist protests are based on life violations or the misuse or abuse of life by incautious physical applications (Science and Survival, by Barry Commoner).

To protect something one has to know what it is, scientifically know what it is. The DNA biological theories apply to life plus matter and all efforts to cause matter to produce life have, so far, failed.

This common denominator to all interests, to all efforts to protect, to all "scientific benefits" had not been studied and had no name connected with any rationale which led to a pure and predictable identification or result. Bergson’s "elan vital" and other philosophic hazarding was not in keeping with what we think of in this century as orderly, controlled scientific methodology. Supposition and authority is a poor rock on which to base all predictions.

Not having any real name embracing the study itself, it was, of course, impossible to take courses in it. It could not have its answers in known fields since it itself was unknown in not only its identity, but its characteristics.