Tired but happy, the Paulings returned to California and started a new phase of their life. Pauling's hopes for his course of research at the Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions were surely ambitious. He noted to himself

"I suggest a program of (1) Analyzing the world problem; (2) Deciding on some basic questions or possible axioms; (3) Discussing them, and approving or rejecting them (those approved would constitute a system of ethics); (4) Then using them to reach, one by one, a series of theorems, conclusions about the world that would have to be accepted."

Ultimately such grand ambitions were not well-suited to the CSDI. Established "to promote the principles of individual liberty expressed in the Declaration of Independence and Constitution of the United States" and not at all equipped for scientific research, the Center lent itself more to talk than action. The Paulings soon began looking for another intellectual home, a university perhaps, a place where Linus could conduct scientific research as well as ponder world affairs. In the meantime, he and Ava Helen traveled the world from Mexico to Australia, continuing to advocate for disarmament and world government.