Subject: A new report from the Science & Technology Policy Institute at
RAND:
Global Science & Technology Information: A New Spin on Access
Authors: Caroline Wagner and Allison Yezril
RAND MR-1079-OSTP
August 1999
Summary:
In the more than 30 years the U.S. federal government has tracked and
monitored international science and technology information (ISTI), the
global marketplace and the economy have changed dramatically.
Capabilities in other nations have matured, resulting in highly
competitive economies. The RAND survey described here suggests that
there is a need for timely, unbiased, global, and easily accessible
ISTI, that users view government collection and analysis of that
information to be an important government role, and that the need for
this information is likely to grow. Government already collects ISTI,
and this information should be made more accessible. In addition,
possible improvements to this service include providing a global reach
to collection efforts, adding economic and trade information,
encouraging networking of information and resources, and increasing the
number of quick responses and person-to-person interactions. Many of
these improvements can, in fact, take advantage of the globalization of
industry, the information revolution, and dispersed scientific
excellence. The effective features of existing services, combined with
new information tools and opportunities, can be incorporated to build
the next generation of ISTI services.
To order this publication, send a request to .
The report is also available on the Worldwide Web at
<http://www.rand.org/centers/stpi/stp>
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Caroline S. Wagner Science & Technology Policy
Institute
cwagner@rand.org The RAND Corporation
http://www.rand.org/centers/stpi 1333 H Street, NW
202-296-5000 x5685 Suite 800 - 1026
202-216-5704 Washington, DC 20005
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