<p>Well, in answer to your first question, it ALWAYS has to do with marketing to some extent, but then that just elicits a different question - presuming that MIT simply outmarketed Caltech (and I don’t think it’s quite that simple, but let’s presume that’s true), then why didn’t Caltech do a better job of marketing ? It’s not like Caltech never knew about the power of marketing. George Hale (one of Caltech’s early Trustees) specifically brought in guys like Millikan because he knew that by doing so, he would be able to market Caltech as one of the leading lights, if not THE leading light of American science. By the late 30’s, as I said before, Caltech was arguably the most prestigious school in the US for science research. Clearly Caltech was well aware of the power of marketing and used it to startling effect.</p>
<p>The point is that I think it is indisputable that Caltech had a significant headstart on MIT when it comes to both substance and style. True, MIT is about 25 years older than Caltech, but I think that extra time didn’t really help MIT much at all. After all, in the year 1900 (when Caltech was 9 years old), MIT was in such financial distress that it almost merged with Harvard (the horror!). Caltech established itself as a major research center before MIT did, and Caltech was already experiencing its first golden age of Nobel-after-Nobel before MIT had ever really gotten off the ground. </p>
<p>I think your second paragraph contains the real truth - it is precisely MIT’s ‘special arrangement’ with the Department of Defense that supercharged its growth. Ever since WW2, MIT has been heavily heavily associated with national defense and with the military-industrial complex. </p>
<p>But it’s not like Caltech didn’t have a hand in defense expenditures as well. JPL was founded in the 30’s specifically to study rockets, and was obviously heavily involved with not only the Space Race, but with the development of missiles and jet-fighters. Until the late 50’s, JPL was basically a military research center, and of course the Space Race/ Race to the Moon was one of the most extensive and expensive science research projects in world history, of which Caltech benefitted enormously (hence contributing to Caltech’s ‘2nd’ golden age). </p>
<p>Hence, you can’t really say that Caltech did not benefit from military expenditures at all. However, MIT almost certainly benefitted significantly more - which elicits the question, why is that? MIT did indeed become the golden boy of the Pengaton, but why couldn’t Caltech have done that?</p>