A Science and Technology Policy Focus for the Bush Administration

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چکیده

1 With the administration of George W. Bush commencing under especially difficult political circumstances, careful consideration of science and technology (S&T) policy could well be relegated to the “later” category for months or even years to come. Science advocates may interpret early signs of neglect as a call to lobby Congress for a proposition that already has significant bipartisan support: still larger research and development (R&D) budgets. We believe that sound stewardship of publicly funded science requires a more strategic approach. In FY2001, the federal government will spend almost $91 billion on R&D. With anticipated increases in military R&D and proposed doublings at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) fueled by budget surpluses as far as the forecasts can project, next year’s R&D budget could easily top $100 billion. How will President Bush assure himself and the U.S. public that this unprecedented expenditure is being put to good use? The traditional approach to the management and accountability of research involved relying on scientists themselves to do everything from asking the right research questions to making the connections between their research findings and marketable innovations. However, successive administrations have broken with this tradition over the past 20 years. During the Reagan era, the Bayh-Dole Act changed intellectual property law to provide monetary incentives to researchers and their institutions for engaging in commercial innovation. The elder Bush’s administration more clearly articulated public questions for which scientific answers were sought, as exemplified by the U.S. Global Climate Change Research program. Strategic planning in research agencies, notably NIH, also began during this period, as did programs with more explicit social relevance such as the Advanced Technology Program (ATP). The Clinton administration created additional crosscutting initiatives in areas such as information technology and nanotechnology, implemented the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA), expanded ATP, and pursued other programs aimed at particular goals, such as the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles. Although these and similar policy innovations have been valuable, new challenges are arising as much from the successes of the earlier policies as from their shortD AV I D H . G U S T O N E . J . W O O D H O U S E D A N I E L S A R E W I T Z

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تاریخ انتشار 2001