AIP Science Policy News February 15, 2022 The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is implementing a “Countering Foreign Influence Program” FAQ that involves assessing risks posed by researchers’ affiliations with foreign institutions, even for unclassified projects in fundamental research. It has implemented a review process for fundamental research projects that assesses risks posed by funding applicants’ affiliations with organizations in countries of concern. While other science agencies have likewise expanded their use of disclosure policies to identify problematic conflicts of interest and time commitment, DARPA’s policy goes further by tying the review process to specific categories of foreign entities of […]
Category Archives: S&T Policy – USA
US unveils changes to attract foreign science, tech students
Phys.org January 21, 2022 The Biden administration announced policy changes to attract international students specializing in science, technology, engineering, and math—part of the broader effort to make the U.S. economy more competitive. The State Department will let eligible visiting students in STEM fields complete up to 36 months of academic training. There will also be an initiative to connect these students with U.S. businesses. Homeland Security will add 22 new fields of study—including cloud computing, data visualization and data science. Government data shows that international students are increasingly the lifeblood of academic research. However, U.S. Tech Workers, an advocacy group […]
US approach to research security threatens scientific enterprise, says new report
Phys.org December 20, 2021 According to a new report by the American Physical Society (APS) titled “Impact of US Research Security Policies: US Security and the Benefits of Open Science and International Collaborations,” the US federal government’s current approach to research security concerns is causing a significant number of researchers to feel unwelcome in the United States, leading them to consider taking their talents to other countries. For the US to remain a global leader in science and technology, the nation must provide an environment that encourages open science and the free exchange of information and be a destination of choice […]
A New Institutional Approach to Research Security in the United States
Georgetown University January 2021 Most U.S. research and development (R&D) takes place in the private sector. To truly protect U.S. R&D, the government needs to empower frontline researchers as true partners. That means investing more in supporting security-informed decision making in business, philanthropy, and academia, and relying less on mandates and punitive tactics. To achieve these results, in a report “A New Institutional Approach to Research Security in the United States” researchers at Georgetown University propose a new, public-private research security clearinghouse, with leadership from academia, business, philanthropy, and government have a presence in the most active R&D hubs across […]
U.S. R&D Increased by $32 Billion in 2017, to $548 billion; Estimate for 2018 Indicates a Further Rise to $580 billion
NSF News January 8, 2020 New data from the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) within the National Science Foundation indicate that research and experimental development performed in the United States totaled $547.9 billion in 2017. The estimated total for 2018, based on performer-reported expectations, is $580.0 billion. These numbers compare with U.S. R&D totals of $493.7 billion in 2015 and $406.6 billion in 2010. The U.S. R&D system consists of the activities of a diverse group of R&D performers and sources of funding. Included here are private businesses, the federal government, nonfederal governments, higher education institutions, and […]
Open international research collaboration essential, must have safeguards, independent report finds
NSF News December 11, 2019 As part of its ongoing effort to enhance the agency’s understanding of the threats to basic research posed by foreign governments that have taken actions that violate the principles of scientific ethics and research integrity, the NSF today released a report by JASON titled “Fundamental Research Security.” Four main themes emerged from the JASON study: The value of, and need for, foreign scientific talent in the U.S.; The significant negative impacts of placing new restrictions on access to fundamental research; The need to extend our notion of research integrity to include disclosures of commitments and potential […]
Air Force issues strategy for artificial intelligence
Fedscoop September 19, 2019 The strategy is meant to be an annex to the Department of Defense’s AI strategy in support of its Joint AI Center. It will serve as a mechanism to align the Air Force with the larger AI efforts across the department and leverage the JAIC‘s progress as an AI center of excellence. The goal is to provide fundamental principles, enabling functions, and objectives necessary to effectively manage, maneuver, and lead in the digital age…read more.
Delivering on Quantum Innovation
IEEE Spectrum September 13, 2019 The University of Maryland has announced the launch of the Quantum Technology Center which aims to translate quantum physics research into innovative technologies. The center will pursue collaborations with industry and government labs to help take promising quantum advances from the lab to the marketplace. It will also train students in the development and application of quantum technologies to produce a workforce educated in quantum-related engineering. UMD already hosts more than 200 researchers in quantum science, one of the greatest concentrations in the world. Much of the effort has been led by the Joint Quantum […]
FedBizOpps to be shut down by year’s end so a new awards site may rise
Fedcsoop August 15, 2019 The US government plans to change the website it uses for federal awards in the first quarter of fiscal year 2020, as the General Services Administration merges its legacy sites into one system. FedBizOpps.gov, will be decommissioned in favor of beta.SAM.gov, which will deliver more precise results for number, keyword and location searches using new filters. Public-facing application programming interfaces from departments and agencies will be available for download. All data feeds can be found under the data services section of the new site. Users will need to create a new account on beta.SAM.gov via login.gov. […]
America may outsmart China in 5G with AI and blockchains
MIT Technology Review May 7, 2019 According to the FCC it will be imperative to devise better ways to allocate the spectrum. DARPA is organizing a competition to devise new ways of negotiating over spectrum using AI. Just as the wireless data available to smartphones has spurred technological progress, 5G should underpin innovation across the tech industry. AI and blockchains could be crucial to helping the US stay competitive with China in wireless technology…read more.