Therefore to obtain the two institutions contribute their names, faculty, staff and money - money - to a joint Research Institute was akin to negotiate a truce between Capulet and Montaigu.
Eric Lander, founder of the Institute, laid the groundwork for a joint venture: for its centre of genomics at the Whitehead Institute at MIT, he had tapped the expertise of physicians and scientists of Harvard Medical School and its affiliated hospitals.
"Eric felt, rightly, that whereas MIT had wonderful computer, engineering, physical, search, unless you Harvard officially involved and hospitals and medical science, you would get into trouble," said Dr. David Baltimore, Nobel laureate biologist who introduced Dr. Lander for the billionaire philanthropist Eli broad.
Mr. Broad and his wife, Edythe, has agreed to be the keystone of the new Institute supporters. But first the two giants at each end of the Avenue of Massachusetts had to be satisfied.
The first formal to discuss meeting, it was held during the lunch at the Harvard Faculty Club. One of the few things that all those who attended to can agree is that it was almost a disaster.
Dr. Steven e. Hyman, then the Provost of Harvard, recalled that the Presidents of the institutions - Lawrence h. Summers of Harvard and Charles M. Vest of MIT - he approached from different angles: Dr. Vest it was relationships, while Dr. Summers "was very transactional and impatient, as it always is."
Dr. Summers does not dispute that. "It had been a certain amount of keep it on happy talk," he said in an interview, "and I thought better to certain problems that would reach surface."
Dr. Vest had to cope with the reluctance of its own trustees to share resources and prestige of the Whitehead with Harvard. "They kept saying, ' why do you want to let the camel nose under the tent".?"Recalled."
But he realized that to achieve the vision of Dr. Lander, MIT was in need of medical resources of Harvard. After the terrible breakfast, Dr. Vest called Dr. Summers. "It is a kind side warm and altruistic Larry", he said, adding that finally we have two decided that it is just the right thing to do."
The two Presidents left their Vice-Presidents to forge the agreement in a long series of small lunches and dinners, much with "lawyers, guns" and the money - and much worse that the lunch at the faculty club, said Dr. Hyman, now itself researcher invited to offshore.
MIT has ordered, centralized decision-making; Harvard is highly decentralized. Hospitals of Harvard - Massachusetts General, Dana-Farber and Brigham and women - were concerned that the new Institute would cannibalize their best investigators. Decisions must be made on such issues as intellectual property and how funds would be allocated to the different partners. "It was a process disordered involving different cultures, from misunderstanding and great figures," said Dr. Hyman. Yet, as noted by Dr. Summers, "it was obvious that Harvard should be part." He added: "I doubt there is something more important that Harvard was in the last quarter century."
Today, the broad Institute is an autonomous entity which is still a joint venture of Harvard and MIT Mr. and Mrs. Broad promised a total of 600 million dollars in support. For their part, said Mr. Broad, who built two large companies - houses KB and the insurance of the SunAmerica company, which now belonged to A.I.G.-"my wife and I believe the most important thing we will have in our lives is to be involved in the creation of the Broad Institute."
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