Evolving The High Performance Computing And Communications Initiative To Support The Nation S Information Infrastructure

Maintaining the United States' strong lead in information technology will require continued federal support of research in this area, most of which is currently funded under the High Performance Computing and Communications Initiative (HPCCI). The Initiative has already accomplished a great deal and should be continued. This book provides 13 major recommendations for refining both HPCCI and support of information technology research in general. It also provides a good overview of the development of HPCC technologies.

'Performance' has become one of the key terms for the new century. But what do we mean by 'performance'? In today's world it can refer to experimental art; productivity in the workplace; and the functionality of technological systems. Do these disparate fields bear any relation to each other? In Perform or Else Jon McKenzie asserts that there is a relationship cultural, organisational, and technological performance. In this theoretical tour de force McKenzie demonstrates that all three paradigms operate together to create powerful and contradictory pressures to 'perform...or else'. This is an urgent and important intervention in contemporary critical thinking. It will profoundly shape our understanding of twenty-first century structures of power and knowledge.

The tremendous growth in use of information technology (IT) has led to an increased interest in understanding its social and economic impacts. This book presents examples of crosscutting research that has been conducted to understand the impact of information technology on personal, community, and business activities. It explores ways in which the use of methodology from economics and social sciences contributes to important advances in understanding these impacts. The book discusses significant research issues and concerns and suggests approaches for fostering increased interdisciplinary research on the impacts of information technology and making the results of this research more accessible to the public and policymakers. This volume is expected to influence funding priorities and levels of support for interdisciplinary research of this kind.

This book synthesizes the findings of three workshops on research issues in high-performance computing and communications (HPCC). It focuses on the role that computing and communications can play in supporting federal, state, and local emergency management officials who deal with natural and man-made hazards (e.g., toxic spills, terrorist bombings). The volume also identifies specific research challenges for HPCC in meeting unmet technology needs in crisis management and other nationally important application areas, such as manufacturing, health care, digital libraries, and electronic commerce and banking.

Information technology (IT) is essential to virtually all of the nation's critical infrastructures making them vulnerable by a terrorist attack on their IT system. An attack could be on the system itself or use the IT system to launch or exacerbate another type of attack. IT can also be used as a counterterrorism tool. The report concludes that the most devastating consequences of a terrorist attack would occur if it were on or used IT as part of a broader attack. The report presents two recommendations on what can be done in the short term to protect the nation's communications and information systems and several recommendations about what can be done over the longer term. The report also notes the importance of considering how an IT system will be deployed to maximize protection against and usefulness in responding to attacks.

Drawing on the findings of sector-specific workshops, e-mail surveys, research literature, expert testimony, and committee and panel members' expertise, this National Academy of Engineering study assesses the qualitative impact of academic research on five industriesâ€"network systems and communications; medical devices and equipment; aerospace; transportation, distribution, and logistics services; and financial services. The book documents the range and significance of academic research contributions to the five industriesâ€"comparing the importance of different types of contributions, the multi- and interdisciplinary nature of these contributions, and the multiple vectors by which academic research is linked to each industry. The book calls for action to address six cross-cutting challenges to university-industry interactions: the growing disciplinary and time-horizon-related imbalances in federal R&D funding, barriers to university-industry interaction in service industries, the critical role of academic research in the advancement of information technology, the role of academic research in the regulation of industry, the impact of technology transfer activities on core university research and education missions, and the search for new pathways and mechanisms to enhance the contributions of academic research to industry. The book also includes findings and recommendations specific to each industry.