In neither system, however, are present mechanisms 

 well suited to solve contemporary S&T problems. Each 

 nation has evolved over the years a relatively set- 

 tled division of responsibility among an array of spe- 

 cial administrative agencies and separate performing 

 institutions. But the problems and the solutions in 

 science policy today cut across established bound- 

 aries. Effective problem-solving requires a high lev- 

 el of coordination and cooperation. The multiple par- 

 ticipants in the innovation process need closer rela- 

 tions that still recognize their distinct roles. The 

 creation and administration of such linkages, in turn, 

 demand of both systems a new level of management and 

 of imagination. 



Though both nations are beset by the mounting com- 

 plexity of S&T problems, the nature and source of com- 

 plexity differ in the two systems as do their evolving 

 institutional responses to overcome the new barriers. 

 In the United States both the public and the private 

 sectors — and their interaction — are growing more com- 

 plex. This complexity acquires added significance as 

 science policy focuses increasingly on solutions of 

 domestic civil sector problems, requiring a more di- 

 verse and less centralized approach than military and 

 space problems. The role of the federal government 

 and of industry in public technology and methods for 

 stimulating innovation to improve the quality and ef- 

 ficiency of public services are unclear. In particu- 

 lar, government regulation has grown as a national 

 concern. The proliferating demands and standards im- 

 posed by government and the costs of regulation are 

 beginning to inhibit seriously both university re- 

 search and industrial innovation. Reform efforts are 

 underway to rationalize the whole regulatory process 

 and to make regulation itself cost-effective by in- 

 troducing and requiring economic analysis and atten- 

 tion to costs in regulation. Underpinning regulatory 

 revision is the need for new approaches to achieving 

 a better balance between risk and benefit. Nonethe- 

 less, basic knowledge about the factors involved is 

 still weak, and there is no agreement about how to 

 measure the costs and benefits associated with this 

 new set of S&T problems. 



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