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13. Essential Partners in a National Strategy: States and Cities, Industry and Universities
Pages 357-371

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From page 357...
... 2002. Statement of Bruce Baughman, Office of National Preparedness, FEMA, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management, U.S.
From page 358...
... There is no systematic treatment, however, on how federal R&D for counterterrorism as managed overall is coordinated with any state-level R&D. Governor Tom Ridge, the current Director of the Office of Homeland Security, has stated that he is responsible for a national strategy to combat terrorism, meaning it is one that embraces all levels of government as well as the private sector.
From page 359...
... And a more expansive patent policy, as in the Bayh-Dole Act of 1980, is critical in providing private sector incentives. Other ways to encourage industry's participation in the drive to protect the nation from terrorism include mandating involvement through federal regulation, providing government subsidies or tax relief, and exploiting insurance markets.
From page 360...
... In some sectors, private investment in counterterrorism technologies may actually provide a competitive advantage. The committee did not have the opportunity or the expertise to fully explore the myriad options for government policy in these areas, but it briefly discusses below some relevant issues in four areas: commercial value for counterterrorism technologies, indemnification from legal risks, select antitrust exemptions, and government procurement and acquisition rules.
From page 361...
... · Techniques to detect biological infections prior to clinical symptoms would help slow outbreaks of all infectious diseases, not just those introduced into the population maliciously. · A security system concept for shipping containers whereby shippers certified as having secure loading facilities are granted faster passage through key megaports has a variety of possible collateral benefits, including a decline in the use of containers for the movement of contraband and an increase in the overall efficiency of the shipping system.
From page 362...
... Government has passed limited antitrust exemptions before e.g., in the energy crises of the 1970s. And bills are currently being considered to provide similar exemptions to support work on critical infrastructure protection and to
From page 363...
... is very important, so too is enabling agencies to make good deci5The Critical Infrastructure Information security Act of 2001 (s.
From page 364...
... Yet there are a cluster of challenges confronting universities, from a declining number of students in the sciences and engineering to the tension between openness and national security on sensitive research topics, that could prove obstructive. Below, the committee discusses some areas in which the universities have essential contributions to make to counterterrorism efforts and outlines some of the more critical challenges to their ability to make those contributions.
From page 365...
... Work in this area will require a better understanding of the performance characteristics of individual sensors in real-world environments, of how groups of sensors or different types of sensors can complement each other, and of how outputs from sensors can be productively analyzed to provide information to users. Once the criteria for sensor performance are in hand, many fields, including chemistry, biology, physics, computer science, and electrical engineering, can contribute to the development of more effective sensor networks.
From page 366...
... The electrical supply system is a vital infrastructure vulnerable to cascading failures if important components of the power grid are damaged or destroyed. An intelligent, adaptive power grid would reduce vulnerability by providing the system with the ability to fail gracefully, which would help minimize damage to components and enable more rapid recovery of power.
From page 367...
... This list is offered simply as a demonstration that the research communities involved in these and similar efforts have critical contributions to make in laying the groundwork for improvements in homeland security. In order that research programs may increase the pace of discovery and the effectiveness of new counterterrorism technologies, relevant communities will require information about what kinds of new capabilities would be of most value to the nation and support for performing the necessary fundamental research.
From page 368...
... This decline in the supply of scientists and engineers is reflected in a growing dependence on noncitizens to fill many spaces in American graduate schools; since 1980 the percentage of doctoral degrees in the natural sciences and engineering awarded to noncitizens has increased dramatically. Meanwhile, the number of such doctorates being granted in Europe and Asia is growing rapidly.
From page 369...
... Investing in Research in a Variety of Disciplines Since the m~d-1990s, physical sciences and engineering have mostly been funded at levels equal to the rate of inflation or only slightly above it.l3 The cumulative effect of years of relatively low investment is that the research base on which to build new science and technology initiatives of the kind discussed in this report is less than optimal. The current congressional embrace of the idea of providing significant increases to the NSF budget over the next few years is encouraging.l4 However, to do justice to the venous counterterronsm programs 12In addition to providing human resources needed for S&T counterterrorism research and development, such a program could also increase the expertise available for other government counterterrorism activities (for example, the program could support students specializing in languages needed by intelligence communities)
From page 370...
... 2002. Possible Impacts of Major Counter Terrorism Security Actions on Research, Development, and Higher Education, Congressional Research Service, Washington, D.C., April 8.
From page 371...
... 2002. Possible Impacts of Major Counter Terrorism Security Actions on Research, Development, and Higher Education, Congressional Research Service, April 8.


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