1. Birds of a Feather: Deans, Chairs, Organization Representatives Tom Healy Lead Program Manager External Research & Programs Microsoft Research Tom Healy Lead Program Manager External Research & Programs Microsoft Research

2. American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI) Before the July 4 recess, the House of Representatives approved a $6.5 billion bill for programs at the NSF and the NIST that, in part, advance the ACI.NSFNIST In his July 9th address, President Bush reiterated: “…proposed my American Competitiveness Initiative. This initiative will double federal funding for research in promising areas such as nanotechnology, supercomputing, and alternative energy sources. The initiative will also encourage bolder private sector investment in technology, and help ensure that every American child has the math and science skills needed for the jobs of tomorrow.” Before the July 4 recess, the House of Representatives approved a $6.5 billion bill for programs at the NSF and the NIST that, in part, advance the ACI.NSFNIST In his July 9th address, President Bush reiterated: “…proposed my American Competitiveness Initiative. This initiative will double federal funding for research in promising areas such as nanotechnology, supercomputing, and alternative energy sources. The initiative will also encourage bolder private sector investment in technology, and help ensure that every American child has the math and science skills needed for the jobs of tomorrow.”

3. CRA-developed Computing Community Consortium Proposal To NSF Discussed at the Computer Research Association (CRA) conference at Snowbird, June, 2006 http://www.cra.org/Activities/snowbird/2006/agenda.html This CS-community-generated proposal was submitted in response to an NSF CISE request: “…for the computing research community to unite in the establishment of a Computing Community Consortium (CCC). CISE will support the CCC as a community proxy responsible for facilitating the conceptualization and design of promising infrastructure-intensive projects identified by the computing research community to address compelling scientific “grand challenges” in computing. The CCC will ensure broad community engagement in the identification of compelling research agendas and in the subsequent identification and refinement of related shared use infrastructure requirements. One of the first responsibilities of the CCC will be guiding the design of the Global Environment for Networking Innovations (GENI)….” Discussed at the Computer Research Association (CRA) conference at Snowbird, June, 2006 http://www.cra.org/Activities/snowbird/2006/agenda.html This CS-community-generated proposal was submitted in response to an NSF CISE request: “…for the computing research community to unite in the establishment of a Computing Community Consortium (CCC). CISE will support the CCC as a community proxy responsible for facilitating the conceptualization and design of promising infrastructure-intensive projects identified by the computing research community to address compelling scientific “grand challenges” in computing. The CCC will ensure broad community engagement in the identification of compelling research agendas and in the subsequent identification and refinement of related shared use infrastructure requirements. One of the first responsibilities of the CCC will be guiding the design of the Global Environment for Networking Innovations (GENI)….”

4. “Rising Above The Gathering Storm” http://www.nap.edu/catalog/11463.html#orgs “In a world where advanced knowledge is widespread and low-cost labor is readily available, U.S. advantages in the marketplace and in science and technology have begun to erode. A comprehensive and coordinated federal effort is urgently needed to bolster U.S. competitiveness and pre-eminence in these areas.…… 1) Increase America's talent pool by vastly improving K-12 mathematics and science education 2) Sustain and strengthen the nation's commitment to long-term basic research 3) Develop, recruit, and retain top students, scientists, and engineers from both the U.S. and abroad 4) Ensure that the United States is the premier place in the world for innovation” http://www.nap.edu/catalog/11463.html#orgs “In a world where advanced knowledge is widespread and low-cost labor is readily available, U.S. advantages in the marketplace and in science and technology have begun to erode. A comprehensive and coordinated federal effort is urgently needed to bolster U.S. competitiveness and pre-eminence in these areas.…… 1) Increase America's talent pool by vastly improving K-12 mathematics and science education 2) Sustain and strengthen the nation's commitment to long-term basic research 3) Develop, recruit, and retain top students, scientists, and engineers from both the U.S. and abroad 4) Ensure that the United States is the premier place in the world for innovation”

5. Discussion What specific actions and policies can the academy, government, and industry collectively support to drive national competitiveness, technology innovation, and scientific discoveries?

6. thealy at Microsoft dot com

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