A Realistic Scenario for U.S. R&D
Abstract
A Realistic Scenario for U.S. R&D SAGE Publications, Inc.1995DOI: 10.1177/027046769501500105 Edward E. JRDavid Formulating such a scenario is a daunting task. R&D is a complex and diffuse activity. Aggregating such activities into a meaningful whole has many pitfalls. The best way to approach the task is to look at the driving forces which will shape R&D future, and then leaven that outlook with a realistic assessment of societal needs. The driving forces behind U.S. R&D today are quite different from those traditional ones from the past 25 years or so. Perhaps the most significant change has been the end of the cold war. Even the so-called cold peace doesn't have the impact on R&D that the Soviet Union had. National security has been replaced at the top of the agenda, even though it is still on the list in a prominent place. The danger here is that the future of defense R&D is yet to be settled. At the top of the agenda is U.S. industrial competitiveness followed closely by fundamental research to support U.S. leadership in the years and decades ahead. Closely allied to these goals is the production of science and engineering graduates who can provide