TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Building a Better NASA Workforce: Meeting the Workforce Needs for the National Vision for Space Exploration SN - DO - 10.17226/11916 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11916/building-a-better-nasa-workforce-meeting-the-workforce-needs-for PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics KW - Education AB - The Vision for Space Exploration (VSE) announced by President George W. Bush in 2004 sets NASA and the nation on a bold path to return to the Moon and one day put a human on Mars. The long-term endeavor represented by the VSE is, however, subject to the constraints imposed by annual funding. Given that the VSE may take tens of years to implement, a significant issue is whether NASA and the United States will have the workforce needed to achieve that vision. The issues range from short-term concerns about the current workforce's skills for overseeing the development of new spacecraft and launch vehicles for the VSE to long-term issues regarding the training, recruiting, and retaining of scientists and engineers in-house as well as in industry and academia. Asked to explore science and technology (S&T) workforce needs to achieve the nation's long-term space exploration, the Committee on Meeting the Workforce Needs for the National Vision for Space Exploration concluded that in the short term, NASA does not possess the requisite in-house personnel with the experience in human spaceflight systems development needed to implement the VSE. But the committee acknowledges that NASA is cognizant of this fact and has taken steps to correct it, primarily by seeking to recruit highly skilled personnel from outside NASA, including persons from industry and retirees. For the long term, NASA has to ask if it is attracting and developing the talent it will need to execute a mission to return to the Moon, and the agency must identify what it needs to do to attract and develop a world-class workforce to explore other worlds. A major challenge for NASA is reorienting its human spaceflight workforce from the operation of current vehicles to the development of new vehicles at least throughout the next decade, as well as starting operations with new rockets and new spacecraft. The committee emphasizes further that when evaluating its future workforce requirements, NASA has to consider not only programs for students, but also training opportunities for its current employees. NASA's training programs at the agency's various field centers, which are focused on NASA's civil service talent, require support to prevent the agency's internal skill base from withering. Furthermore, NASA faces the risk that, if it fails to nurture its own internal workforce, skilled personnel will be attracted to other government agencies and industry. Building a Better NASA Workforce: Meeting the Workforce Needs for the National Vision for Space Exploration explains the findings and recommendations of the committee. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Conventional Prompt Global Strike Capability: Letter Report DO - 10.17226/11951 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11951/conventional-prompt-global-strike-capability-letter-report PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - A Performance Assessment of NASA's Astrophysics Program SN - DO - 10.17226/11828 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11828/a-performance-assessment-of-nasas-astrophysics-program PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics AB - While a number of remarkable discoveries in astronomy and astrophysics have taken place over the past 20 years, many important questions remain. Continued progress in these fields will require NASA’s leadership. To help determine if NASA can meet this challenge, Congress, in the 2005 NASA Authorization Act, directed the agency to have "[t]he performance of each division in the Science directorate...reviewed and assessed by the National Academy of Sciences at 5-year intervals." In early 2006, NASA asked the NRC to conduct such an assessment for the agency’s Astrophysics Division. This report presents an assessment of how well NASA’s current program addresses the strategies, goals, and priorities outlined in previous Academy reports. The report provides an analysis of progress toward realizing these strategies, goals, and priorities; and a discussion of actions that could be taken to optimize the scientific value of the program in the context of current and forecasted resources. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council A2 - John Kambhu A2 - Scott Weidman A2 - Neel Krishnan TI - New Directions for Understanding Systemic Risk: A Report on a Conference Cosponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the National Academy of Sciences SN - DO - 10.17226/11914 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11914/new-directions-for-understanding-systemic-risk-a-report-on-a PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Industry and Labor KW - Math, Chemistry, and Physics KW - Surveys and Statistics AB - The stability of the financial system and the potential for systemic events to alter its function have long been critical issues for central bankers and researchers. Recent events suggest that older models of systemic shocks might no longer capture all of the possible paths of such disturbances or account for the increasing complexity of the financial system. To help assess these concerns, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the NRC cosponsored a conference that brought together engineers, scientists, economists, and financial market experts to promote better understanding of systemic risk in a variety of fields. The book presents an examination of tools used in ecology and engineering to study systemic collapse in those areas; a review of current trends in economic research on systemic risk, the payments system, and the market of interbank funds; and for context, descriptions of how systemic risk in the financial system affects trading activities. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Scientific Opportunities with a Rare-Isotope Facility in the United States SN - DO - 10.17226/11796 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11796/scientific-opportunities-with-a-rare-isotope-facility-in-the-united-states PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics KW - Math, Chemistry, and Physics AB - Over ten years ago, U.S. nuclear scientists proposed construction of a new rare isotope accelerator in the United States, which would enable experiments to elucidate the important questions in nuclear physics. To help assess this proposal, DOE and NSF asked the NRC to define the science agenda for a next-generation U.S. Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB). As the study began, DOE announced a substantial reduction in the scope of this facility and put off its initial operation date by several years. The study focused on an evaluation of the science that could be accomplished on a facility reduced in scope. This report provides a discussion of the key science drivers for a FRIB, an assessment of existing domestic and international rare isotope beams, an assessment of the current U.S. position about the FRIB, and a set of findings and conclusions about the scientific and policy context for such a facility. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council A2 - Scott T. Weidman TI - Proceedings of a Workshop on Statistics on Networks (CD-ROM) SN - DO - 10.17226/12083 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/12083/proceedings-of-a-workshop-on-statistics-on-networks-cd-rom PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Computers and Information Technology KW - Engineering and Technology KW - Math, Chemistry, and Physics KW - Surveys and Statistics AB - A large number of biological, physical, and social systems contain complex networks. Knowledge about how these networks operate is critical for advancing a more general understanding of network behavior. To this end, each of these disciplines has created different kinds of statistical theory for inference on network data. To help stimulate further progress in the field of statistical inference on network data, the NRC sponsored a workshop that brought together researchers who are dealing with network data in different contexts. This book - which is available on CD only - contains the text of the 18 workshop presentations. The presentations focused on five major areas of research: network models, dynamic networks, data and measurement on networks, robustness and fragility of networks, and visualization and scalability of networks. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Earth Science and Applications from Space: National Imperatives for the Next Decade and Beyond SN - DO - 10.17226/11820 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11820/earth-science-and-applications-from-space-national-imperatives-for-the PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Earth Sciences KW - Space and Aeronautics AB - Natural and human-induced changes in Earth's interior, land surface, biosphere, atmosphere, and oceans affect all aspects of life. Understanding these changes requires a range of observations acquired from land-, sea-, air-, and space-based platforms. To assist NASA, NOAA, and USGS in developing these tools, the NRC was asked to carry out a "decadal strategy" survey of Earth science and applications from space that would develop the key scientific questions on which to focus Earth and environmental observations in the period 2005-2015 and beyond, and present a prioritized list of space programs, missions, and supporting activities to address these questions. This report presents a vision for the Earth science program; an analysis of the existing Earth Observing System and recommendations to help restore its capabilities; an assessment of and recommendations for new observations and missions for the next decade; an examination of and recommendations for effective application of those observations; and an analysis of how best to sustain that observation and applications system. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Review of Chemical Agent Secondary Waste Disposal and Regulatory Requirements SN - DO - 10.17226/11881 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11881/review-of-chemical-agent-secondary-waste-disposal-and-regulatory-requirements PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - 2005-2006 Assessment of the Army Research Laboratory DO - 10.17226/12047 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/12047/2005-2006-assessment-of-the-army-research-laboratory PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Conflict and Security Issues KW - Engineering and Technology ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - The National Science Foundation's Materials Research Science and Engineering Centers Program: Looking Back, Moving Forward SN - DO - 10.17226/11966 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11966/the-national-science-foundations-materials-research-science-and-engineering-centers-program PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Engineering and Technology ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Handbook of Frequency Allocations and Spectrum Protection for Scientific Uses SN - DO - 10.17226/11719 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11719/handbook-of-frequency-allocations-and-spectrum-protection-for-scientific-uses PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Engineering and Technology AB - The electromagnetic spectrum is a vital part of our environment. Information encoded in the spectrum of radiation arriving at earth from the universe is the means by which we learn about its workings and origin. Radiation collected from the Earth's land, oceans, biosphere, and atmosphere provide us with much of the data needed to better understand this environment. Wise use of the spectrum is necessary if we are to continue these advances in scientific understanding. To help guide this effort, the NSF and NASA asked the NRC to develop a set of principles for fostering effective allocation and protection of spectral bands for scientific research. This handbook contains practical information in this connection including a description of regulatory bodies and issues, a discussion of the relevant scientific background, a list of science spectrum allocations in the United States, and an analysis of spectrum protection issues. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Controlling the Quantum World: The Science of Atoms, Molecules, and Photons SN - DO - 10.17226/11705 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11705/controlling-the-quantum-world-the-science-of-atoms-molecules-and PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Math, Chemistry, and Physics KW - Conflict and Security Issues AB - As part of the Physics 2010 decadal survey project, the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation requested that the National Research Council assess the opportunities, over roughly the next decade, in atomic, molecular, and optical (AMO) science and technology. In particular, the National Research Council was asked to cover the state of AMO science, emphasizing recent accomplishments and identifying new and compelling scientific questions. Controlling the Quantum World, discusses both the roles and challenges for AMO science in instrumentation; scientific research near absolute zero; development of extremely intense x-ray and laser sources; exploration and control of molecular processes; photonics at the nanoscale level; and development of quantum information technology. This book also offers an assessment of and recommendations about critical issues concerning maintaining U.S. leadership in AMO science and technology. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Green Schools: Attributes for Health and Learning SN - DO - 10.17226/11756 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11756/green-schools-attributes-for-health-and-learning PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Health and Medicine KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - Evidence has accumulated that shows that the quality of indoor environments can affect the health and productivity of adults and children. One consequence is that a movement has emerged to promote the design of schools that have fewer adverse environmental effects. To examine the potential of such design for improving education, several private organizations asked the NRC to review and assess the health and productivity benefits of green schools. This report provides an analysis of the complexity of making such a determination; and an assessment of the potential human health and performance benefits of improvements in the building envelope, indoor air quality, lighting, and acoustical quality. The report also presents an assessment of the overall building condition and student achievement, and offers an analysis of and recommendations for planning and maintaining green schools including research considerations. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Assessment of the Continuing Operability of Chemical Agent Disposal Facilities and Equipment SN - DO - 10.17226/11849 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11849/assessment-of-the-continuing-operability-of-chemical-agent-disposal-facilities-and-equipment PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Environment and Environmental Studies AB - The U.S. Army’s Chemical Materials Agency (CMA) currently oversees contracts for the operation of chemical agent stockpile incineration facilities at four disposal sites. Because the period of time required to dispose of these chemical agents has grown beyond that originally planned, the Army is becoming concerned about the possibility of growing operational problems as the processing equipment ages. To help address these concerns, the CMA requested the NRC to assess whether current policies and practices will be able to adequately anticipate and address facility obsolescence issues. This report presents a review of potential infrastructure and equipment weaknesses given that the facilities are being operated well beyond their original design lifetime; an assessment of the Army’s current and evolving obsolescence management programs; and offers recommendations about how the programs may be improved and strengthened to permit safe and expeditious completion of agent stockpile destruction and facility closure. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Improving the Efficiency of Engines for Large Nonfighter Aircraft SN - DO - 10.17226/11837 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11837/improving-the-efficiency-of-engines-for-large-nonfighter-aircraft PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Engineering and Technology KW - Space and Aeronautics AB - Because of the important national defense contribution of large, non-fighter aircraft, rapidly increasing fuel costs and increasing dependence on imported oil have triggered significant interest in increased aircraft engine efficiency by the U.S. Air Force. To help address this need, the Air Force asked the National Research Council (NRC) to examine and assess technical options for improving engine efficiency of all large non-fighter aircraft under Air Force command. This report presents a review of current Air Force fuel consumption patterns; an analysis of previous programs designed to replace aircraft engines; an examination of proposed engine modifications; an assessment of the potential impact of alternative fuels and engine science and technology programs, and an analysis of costs and funding requirements. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council AU - National Academy of Engineering A2 - Seymour E. Goodman A2 - Herbert S. Lin TI - Toward a Safer and More Secure Cyberspace SN - DO - 10.17226/11925 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11925/toward-a-safer-and-more-secure-cyberspace PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Computers and Information Technology KW - Conflict and Security Issues AB - Given the growing importance of cyberspace to nearly all aspects of national life, a secure cyberspace is vitally important to the nation, but cyberspace is far from secure today. The United States faces the real risk that adversaries will exploit vulnerabilities in the nation’s critical information systems, thereby causing considerable suffering and damage. Online e-commerce business, government agency files, and identity records are all potential security targets. Toward a Safer and More Secure Cyberspace examines these Internet security vulnerabilities and offers a strategy for future research aimed at countering cyber attacks. It also explores the nature of online threats and some of the reasons why past research for improving cybersecurity has had less impact than anticipated, and considers the human resource base needed to advance the cybersecurity research agenda. This book will be an invaluable resource for Internet security professionals, information technologists, policy makers, data stewards, e-commerce providers, consumer protection advocates, and others interested in digital security and safety. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - A Path to the Next Generation of U.S. Banknotes: Keeping Them Real SN - DO - 10.17226/11874 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11874/a-path-to-the-next-generation-of-us-banknotes-keeping PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Engineering and Technology AB - The rapid pace at which digital printing is advancing is posing a very serious challenge to the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Bureau of Printing (BEP). The BEP needs to stay ahead of the evolving counterfeiting threats to U.S. currency. To help meet that challenge, A Path to the Next Generation of U.S. Banknotes provides an assessment of technologies and methods to produce designs that enhance the security of U.S. Federal Reserve notes (FRNs). This book presents the results of a systematic investigation of the trends in digital imaging and printing and how they enable emerging counterfeiting threats. It also provides the identification and analysis of new features of FRNs that could provide effective countermeasures to these threats and an overview of a requirements-driven development process that could be adapted to develop an advanced-generation currency. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council A2 - James Waldo A2 - Herbert S. Lin A2 - Lynette I. Millett TI - Engaging Privacy and Information Technology in a Digital Age SN - DO - 10.17226/11896 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11896/engaging-privacy-and-information-technology-in-a-digital-age PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Computers and Information Technology KW - Behavioral and Social Sciences AB - Privacy is a growing concern in the United States and around the world. The spread of the Internet and the seemingly boundaryless options for collecting, saving, sharing, and comparing information trigger consumer worries. Online practices of business and government agencies may present new ways to compromise privacy, and e-commerce and technologies that make a wide range of personal information available to anyone with a Web browser only begin to hint at the possibilities for inappropriate or unwarranted intrusion into our personal lives. Engaging Privacy and Information Technology in a Digital Age presents a comprehensive and multidisciplinary examination of privacy in the information age. It explores such important concepts as how the threats to privacy evolving, how can privacy be protected and how society can balance the interests of individuals, businesses and government in ways that promote privacy reasonably and effectively? This book seeks to raise awareness of the web of connectedness among the actions one takes and the privacy policies that are enacted, and provides a variety of tools and concepts with which debates over privacy can be more fruitfully engaged. Engaging Privacy and Information Technology in a Digital Age focuses on three major components affecting notions, perceptions, and expectations of privacy: technological change, societal shifts, and circumstantial discontinuities. This book will be of special interest to anyone interested in understanding why privacy issues are often so intractable. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Prospective Evaluation of Applied Energy Research and Development at DOE (Phase Two) SN - DO - 10.17226/11806 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11806/prospective-evaluation-of-applied-energy-research-and-development-at-doe-phase-two PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Energy and Energy Conservation AB - Since its inception in 1977 from an amalgam of federal authorities, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has administered numerous programs aimed at developing applied energy technologies. In recent years, federal oversight of public expenditures has emphasized the integration of performance and budgeting. Notably, the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) was passed in 1993 in response to questions about the value and effectiveness of federal programs. GPRA and other mandates have led agencies to develop indicators of program performance and program outcomes. The development of indicators has been watched with keen interest by Congress, which has requested of the National Research Council (NRC) a series of reports using quantitative indicators to evaluate the effectiveness of applied energy research and development (R&D). The first such report took a retrospective view of the first 3 years of DOE R&D programs on fossil energy and energy efficiency. The report found that DOE-sponsored research had netted large commercial successes, such as advanced refrigerator compressors, electronic lighting ballasts, and emission control technology for flue gas desulfurization. However, some programs were judged to be costly failures in which large R&D expenditures did not result in a commercial energy technology. A follow-up NRC committee was assigned the task of adapting the methodology to the assessment of the future payoff of continuing programs. Evaluating the outcome of R&D expenditures requires an analysis of program costs and benefits. Doing so is not a trivial matter. First, the analysis of costs and benefits must reflect the full range of public benefits that are envisioned, accounting for environmental and energy security impacts as well as economic effects. Second, the analysis must consider how likely the research is to succeed and how valuable the research will be if successful. Finally, the analysis must consider what might happen if the government did not support the project: Would some non-DOE entity undertake it or an equivalent activity that would produce some or all of the benefits of government involvement? This second report continues to investigate the development and use of R&D outcome indicators and applies the benefits evaluation methodology to six DOE R&D activities. It provides further definition for the development of indicators for environmental and security benefits and refines the evaluation process based on its experience with the six DOE R&D case studies. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Strategy for an Army Center for Network Science, Technology, and Experimentation SN - DO - 10.17226/11904 PY - 2007 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11904/strategy-for-an-army-center-for-network-science-technology-and-experimentation PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Computers and Information Technology KW - Conflict and Security Issues ER -