Perspectives On U S Competitiveness In Science And Technology

Is the United States in danger of losing its competitive edge in science and technology "S & T"? In response to this concern, the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness asked RAND to convene a meeting, held on November 8, 2006, to review evidence presented by experts from academia, government, and the private sector. The papers presented at the meeting addressed a wide range of issues surrounding the United States' current and future S & T competitiveness, including science policy, the quantitative assessment of S & T capability, globalization, the rise of Asia "particularly China and India", innovation, trade, technology diffusion, the increase in foreign-born S & T students and workers in the United States, new directions in the management and compensation of federal S & T workers, and national security and the defense industry. These papers provide a partial survey of the facts, challenges, and questions posed by the potential erosion of U.S.S & T capability. The importance of S & T to U.S. prosperity and security warrants that policymakers pay careful attention to the various high-level reports issued over the past ve years that warn of pressures on the U.S. lead in S & T. The intellectual point of embarkation for the RAND meeting was the foremost recent such report, Rising Above the Gathering Storm: Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future, by the National Academy of Sciences.

Is the United States in danger of losing its competitive edge in science and technology (S & T)? This concern has been raised repeatedly since the end of the Cold War, most recently in a wave of reports in the mid-2000s suggesting that globalization and the growing strength of other nations in S & T, coupled with inadequate U.S. investments in research and education, threaten the United States' position of leadership in S & T. Galama and Hosek examine these claims and contrast them with relevant data, including trends in research and development investment; information on the size, composition, and pay of the U.S. science and engineering workforce; and domestic and international education statistics. They find that the United States continues to lead the world in science and technology and has kept pace or grown faster than other nations on several measurements of S & T performance; that it generally benefits from the influx of foreign S & T students and workers; and that the United States will continue to benefit from the development of new technologies by other nations as long as it maintains the capability to acquire and implement such technologies. However, U.S. leadership in science and technology must not be taken for granted, and Galama and Hosek conclude with recommendations to strengthen the U.S.S & T enterprise, including measures to facilitate the immigration of highly skilled labor and improve the U.S. education system.

"...should help mobilize Government support for the nation's slipping technological and international trade position...." Leonard Silk, The New York Times. A blue-ribbon panel takes a critical look at the state of U.S. leadership in technological innovation and trade.

Technology and U.S. global competitiveness is a major concern today, and yet there is no study that surveys the key issues describing federal and state policies in the United States. What new technologies are likely to increase our national productivity and international competitiveness in the future? Editors Lambright and Rahm have gathered together a group of experts to provide varying perspectives and recommendations for students, scholars, experts, and policymakers to consider. The edited collection describes federal and state programs, institutions, and changing policy issues given the new world order of technology and competitiveness. Part I analyzes federal competitiveness policy, the decontrolling of technology transfer, the role of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the emerging role of the Department of Defense in Technology Transfer. Part II covers turbulent state programs in the 1990s, state space technology programs, and basic research and development. Part III deals with recent theoretical and organizational approaches to U.S. technology policy, changing international relations and U.S.-Japanese competitiveness, and corporate culture in small high tech firms.