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Budget
Administration
Seeks $722 Million for TA in FY 2001
President
Clinton has submitted to Congress a fiscal year 2001 budget request
for the Commerce Department’s
Technology Administration
of $722 million, including four initiatives totaling $136.3 million.
The NIST portion of the proposed
budget is $713 million, a 12 percent increase above the FY 2000
appropriation of $635.8 million.
Included
in the FY 2001 request are four separate appropriations: $8.7
million for the Office of the Under Secretary and the Office
of Technology Policy at TA; $337.5 million for Scientific
and Technical Research and Services (including $332.3 million
for the NIST
Measurement and Standards Laboratories and $5.2 million for
the Baldrige National Quality
Program); $339.6 million for Industrial Technology Services
(including $175.5 million for the Advanced
Technology Program, $114.1 million for the Manufacturing
Extension Partnership and $50 million to establish the Institute
for Information Infrastructure Protection); and $35.9 million
for Construction of Research Facilities to maintain and improve
existing facilities at NIST’s Gaithersburg, Md., and Boulder,
Colo., laboratories.
The
IIIP ($50 million) would fund research and technology development
grants to protect critical information and telecommunications
infrastructures from attack or other failures. Along with the
IIIP, two other proposals make up the initiative to protect the
nation’s critical information infrastructure: $5 million for NIST
R&D for new measurements, standards, test methods and guidelines;
and $5 million for the creation of a team of computer security
experts to help federal agencies identify and fix vulnerabilities
and prepare for threats. Three other initiatives in the proposed
FY 2001 TA budget would provide $14 million to expedite the transition
to electronic commerce (including $9 million for the MEP to help
establish an e-commerce outreach program to small businesses),
$46.4 million to expand the technology horizon (including $10
million for developing measurements and standards for nanotechnology,
and $31.8 million to boost funding for the ATP) and $15.9 million
to strengthen the science and technology infrastructure (including
$8 million for partnerships with minority-serving institutions
to broaden the pool of science and technology talent).
More
data on the proposed FY 2001 budget, including the comprehensive
“FY 2001 Technology Administration Budget Highlights” document,
can be obtained via the World Wide Web at www.nist.gov/budget2001.
Also available at the web site: a sign-up
form for those wishing to receive periodic e-mailed updates
throughout the budget process.
Media
Contact:
Michael
E. Newman, (301) 975-3025
Encryption
Worldwide
Competition for Data Encoding Standard Nears End
The
global competition to develop a strong information scrambling
formula will enter its final phase in April when NIST holds a
public
conference in New York on April 13-14, 2000.
The
planned Advanced Encryption Standard—the next encoding method
for the federal government—will be tasked to protect electronic
information for the next 20 to 30 years. Five sophisticated mathematical
algorithms were selected last year by NIST as finalists for the
AES.
Ever
since the finalists were named, the world’s leading cryptographers
have engaged in a free-for-all search for ways to “attack” the
different encoding methods, looking for weaknesses that would
compromise the encrypted information. NIST’s conference will present
and discuss the results of these efforts, as well as other tests
that have been performed on the five formulas. The agency plans
to incorporate one or more of the algorithms into the new standard.
The
Advanced Encryption Standard will replace the aging Data Encryption
Standard, which NIST adopted in 1977 as a Federal Information
Processing Standard for federal agencies encrypting information.
DES is used widely in the private sector as well, especially in
the financial services industry.
For
more information about the AES finalist and the April conference,
go to www.nist.gov/aes on
the World Wide Web.
Media
Contact:
Philip
Bulman, (301) 975-5661
Information
Technology
What’s Up,
Docs? Find Out at Upcoming Conference
Exactly
what is a document? And what is an electronic document? A conference
at NIST’s Gaithersburg, Md., headquarters on March 16-17, 2000,
will examine what standards are needed to encourage the smooth
exchange of the documents of the future. Persons interested in
attending are urged to register as soon as possible.
Among
the topics for discussion will be the generation and transmission
of trans-media documents, such as e-mail messages converted to
voice mail.
Other
kinds of “documents” to be examined include:
- three-dimensional
content expressed as software, such as DNA structures and other
molecular designs, holographs and computer-aided design files;
-
video and multimedia objects; and
-
audio documents such as voice mail messages.
Electronic
registration for and details about the conference are available
on the World Wide Web at www.nist.gov/e-docs/conf/.
Media
Contact:
Philip
Bulman, (301) 975-5661
Software
Development
New Registry
Seeks End to Naming Conflicts
Imagine
two software developers in different parts of the country who
both need to come up with a filename extension for a program.
Since such tags are generally abbreviations or acronyms (.glo
for glossary or .pwl for password list, for example), the programmers
could select the same name and never know it—that is, until the
duplication causes both softwares to run ineffectively or crash
after reaching the market.
Avoiding
such conflicts when choosing identifiers—the entities that distinguish
filename extensions, HTML tags, Java top-level packages, Dynamic
Link Libraries, variables, port numbers and the like in programming
languages—is the main purpose for the NIST Identifier Collaboration
Service, a free, online registry. Users can browse the database
for identifiers in 22 domain types, determine that theirs is original
and then add it to the repository.
Unlike
simple lists of identifiers, the NICS registry has the additional
benefit of allowing other developers to peer review new names
and warn the owner about potential problems. And if a conflict
does occur, both the person trying to register the name and the
authors of its already registered twin are automatically contacted
so that negotiations toward an agreement can commence.
The
NICS was created by NIST’s Manufacturing
Engineering Laboratory after encountering identifier naming
difficulties during the development of STEP (now known as ISO
10303), the global Standard for the Exchange
of Product model data. The registry proved so valuable
that its natural expansion to other programming languages was
inevitable. NIST, as a neutral party, is the perfect sponsor for
the service since the agency has no vested interest in the success
or failure of any specific users.
To
access the NICS, go to http://pitch.nist.gov/nics
on the World Wide Web. For technical information, contact Don
Libes, (301) 975-3535.
Media
Contact:
Michael
E. Newman, (301) 975-3025
Biotechnology
NIST Issues
New Standard for Mitochondrial DNA Sequencing
Since
its development, medical researchers and law enforcement agencies
have embraced DNA testing as a key tool in diagnosing diseases,
pinpointing criminal suspects, and identifying the remains of
soldiers and accident victims undistinguishable by other means.
While current DNA typing requires a sample of the DNA found in
the nucleus of nearly every living cell, a newer procedure makes
use of a different kind—mitochondrial DNA.
Mitochondrial
DNA, inherited only from your mother, is a small circular strand
of genetic material located within a cell’s mitochondria, a sausage-shaped
organelle that converts nutrients into energy. Since a single
cell can have thousands of these structures, mitochondrial DNA
persists long after the DNA that makes up chromosomes has degraded.
This makes it an attractive target for genetic sleuths examining
old evidence. Certain diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s,
neuromuscular dis-orders and some forms of blindness, are associated
with mutations in mitochondrial DNA, making it a potential source
of valuable data for medical researchers.
In
order to ensure accuracy of mitochondrial DNA testing and sequencing,
NIST has just issued Standard Reference Material 2392, Mitochondrial
DNA Sequencing. Designed to help labs verify their mitochondrial
DNA results, SRM 2392 also can be used as a control when sequencing
any DNA.
The
SRM contains DNA extracted from two cell lines plus cloned DNA
from a region that is difficult to sequence. It is accompanied
by a certificate detailing the base pair sequences of the DNA,
so labs can check their own results against the values determined
by NIST. The certificate also provides the sequences of 58 unique
primer sets which permit the amplification and sequencing of any
specific area or all of the mitochondrial DNA.
The
new Mitochondrial DNA Sequencing SRM is available from the NIST
Standard Reference Materials Program for $766. For ordering
information, call (301) 975-6776; fax (301) 948-3730; or send
e-mail to srminfo@nist.gov.
Media
Contact:
Linda
Joy, (301) 975-4403
Editor:
Michael Newman
HTML conversion: Crissy
Robinson
Last updated: April 6, 2000
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