In 1993, the U.S. Congress canceled one of the most ambitious scientific research projects of all time, the superconducting supercollider for high-energy physics. One of the major reasons for canceling the project was its cost, which was estimated to be at least $8.5 billion. In the years that followed, the U.S. government continued to support the international space station, a project that will end up costing more than $100 billion by the time it is completed. Why has one project received financial support while the other was killed? Was the perceived scientific value of the projects the paramount concern of congresional decions makers?