"Colonel Phillips, if the Strategic Scientific Reserve is looking for scientific advisers and core researchers, there's no way around the Howlett Advanced Technology Institute. The whole of America—"
"I know that perfectly well, Lieutenant, but the scientists and technicians at Howlett Institute are already far too closely tied to Howlett Group. It's a giant that spans America's military-industrial and civilian technology sectors. A special, secretive organization like the Strategic Scientific Group shouldn't get entangled with a behemoth like that."
Colonel Chester Phillips was in charge of the Strategic Scientific Reserve, a wartime scientific research department established by President Roosevelt to address the rapidly changing world situation and the pressure from the German Weapons Research and Equipment Department. It was also known as the Strategic Scientific Talent Reserve Department.
He had been racking his brains over the choice of a core scientific adviser.
Howlett Institute encompassed most of America's leading scientific talent across every field. This family-owned conglomerate, which had begun its rise during the Civil War, was almost inseparable from the history of American industrial development.
It had been the first to perfect and popularize the gasoline internal-combustion engine, swiftly ushering in an era that replaced traditional steam engines. It had also pioneered breakthroughs in electrical equipment, digital machines, and newer technologies known as computers.
The Howlett Family seemed to have anticipated the future, prospecting for and acquiring land across the American South and even around the world. Its oil and gas reserves put it near the top among America's energy giants.
The family had donated generously to establish universities. Harvard, Yale, New York University, MIT, and other elite institutions had all received substantial donations or investments. The Howlett Family name could be found at virtually any Ivy League school.
They had also established enormous scholarships and binding contracts at