Dr. Joseph Bordogna
Deputy Director
Chief Operating Officer
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
AAAS Colloquium on Science and Technology Policy
May 3, 2001
See also slide presentation.
If you're interested in reproducing any of the slides,
please contact
The Office of Legislative and Public Affairs: (703)
292-8070.
Good afternoon to all of you. I'm delighted to be here
to talk with you about the National Science Foundation.
If you don't ask me the hard questions today, it's
good to know that George Leventhal is here to help
you out!
AAAS performs a terrific service for all of us in the
science, engineering, and education community by holding
this Colloquium every year. We have an opportunity
to focus on policy. We get to consider ideas that
too often get lost in the tumult of everyday concerns.
[NSF Title Slide]
(Use "back" to return to the text.)
I'm going to make the most of this opportunity. I'll
talk briefly about some broad issues in research and
education. Then I'll answer your questions about NSF.
I have about five minutes, so hang on to your seats!
[NSF budget request
by Goals]
(Use "back" to return to the text.)
This year we've broken down the National Science Foundation
budget figures to reflect our new goals: People, Ideas,
and Tools.
[NSF Strategic Goals]
(Use "back" to return to the text.)
You'll notice that People are at the top of the list.
That's intentional. NSF is as much about building
a world-class workforce as it is about discovery.
Although we continually break new ground with the
research we support, we need people to carry
forward the continual process of discovery and innovation.
At NSF, we are putting a renewed emphasis on preparing
the science, engineering and technology workforce.
Knowledge is becoming the most sought after commodity
in the world. And knowledge workers - scientists,
mathematicians, engineers, educators - are in short
supply and high demand.
It's not news to any of us that the competition is
stiffer and the stakes are higher than ever before
in history. While degrees in engineering, the physical
sciences, and math and computer sciences are either
static or declining in the U.S., other nations are
boosting degrees in all these fields. They're boosting
investments in their science and engineering workers,
and they're providing incentives to keep their best
students at home.
What should we be doing about this? Here are a few
suggestions.
[Slide: Role of Academe]
(Use "back" to return to the text.)
First, we need to focus on integrating research
and education. Linking support for research with
training the next generation of scientists and engineers
has been the intent of NSF from the start. I'm an
MIT alum, and I've heard Chuck Vest describe this
as "a beautiful and efficient concept." We get two
important jobs accomplished for the price of one.
It's also a powerful way to ensure that knowledge makes
it's way out of the academic research laboratory and
into the larger world.
But integrating research and education has a larger
meaning these days. We could increase the numbers
of graduates in science and engineering, and still
not have a workforce that meets the needs of the 21st
century.
Let me explain.
Complexity and rapid change will shape the 21st
century world. In the last ten years, the winds of
change have literally swept across our institutions.
They have reshaped the once familiar landscape of
the economy and have forced us to clear new paths
in business, in research, in science and engineering,
and in education.
If rapid change is now ubiquitous, then we need to
enable a workforce that is flexible and agile in adapting
to change.
And if innovation is at the heart of progress, then
we need to understand the skills that foster the capacity
for risk taking, for imagination, and a tolerance
for unfamiliar and uncertain territory. That in turn
will mean that our institutions must evolve to engender
these skills.
[Heinz Pagels quote]
(Use "back" to return to the text.)
I like this quote from Heinz Pagels' book Perfect
Symmetry because it captures the spirit of what
continuous learning and innovation is about.
"The capacity to tolerate complexity and welcome contradiction,
not the need for simplicity and certainty, is the
attribute of an explorer."
We're all explorers here, and we all know that these
skills reside throughout society, not just in academe.
They are equally important in K-12 education.
[Slide: Seeing What's
Visible: 21st Century Academe]
(Use "back" to return to the text.)
Let me conclude my remarks by very briefly noting another
trend, closely linked to workforce issues.
Scientists and engineers are increasingly exploring
the rich territory at the borders among disciplines.
This multidisciplinary research calls for increased
collaboration, and for more integration of knowledge.
New clusters will emerge at the moving edge of discovery,
and these will inevitably transform the "core" disciplines.
We need to accommodate these transformations in the
design of our education and research activities.
These are the bigger picture issues that keep us energized,
and I'm pleased AAAS gives us a forum to consider
them. Well, I'll end there. It's your turn now, and
I welcome your questions and comments.
|