Letter of Transmittal 



jnnuary 31, 1973 



My Dear Mr. President: 



I have the honor of transmitting to you, and through you to the Congress, 

 the Fifth Annual Report of the National Science Board. The Report is 

 submitted in accordance with Section 4(g) of the National Science Foundation 

 Act as amended by Public Law 90-407. 



In this Report the National Science Board presents the first results from a 

 newly initiated effort to develop indicators of the state of the science enterprise 

 in the United States. The ultimate goal of this effort is a set of indices which 

 would reveal the strengths and weaknesses of U.S. science and technology, in 

 terms of the capacity and performance of the enterprise in contributing to 

 national objectives. If such indicators can be developed over the coming years, 

 they should assist in improving the allocation and management of resources 

 for science and technology, and in guiding the Nation's research and 

 development along paths most rewarding for our society. 



Because of present limitations in data and methodology, the indicators in 

 this Report deal principally with resources — funds, manpower, and equip- 

 ment — for research and development and the areas to which the resources are 

 directed. The Report presents relatively few measures of the outputs produced 

 from these resources — the scientific advances and technological achievements, 

 and their contributions to the progress and welfare of the Nation. The present 

 paucity of such indices limits the conclusions which can be drawn concerning 

 the quality and effectiveness of our scientific and technological effort. 



The Report represents only an initial step toward a system of science 

 indicators. The further development of such indicators is a matter of high 

 priority for future reports in this series. 



Respectfully yours, 



H. E. Carter 



Chairman, National Science Board 



The Honorable 



The President of the United States 



111 



