SECTION IV - BACKGROUND AND METHODOLOGY 



Chronology of the Proiect 



The procedures used to create this directory were designed by a 

 cnmmiLtee of volunteer scientists appointed by Arthur D. Hasler, Director 

 o[ TIE In September 1972. The committee first met with representatives of 

 the Corps of Engineers on 22 September 1972 in oder to verify OCE's 

 requirements for the directory. 



Project Guidelines 



A number of guidelities and ground rules were agreed upon during this 

 meeting: 



1) OCE's primary need was to identify environmental life scientists, 

 broadly defined, who had competence in ecosystem analysis. The directory 

 was not to include other scientists or engineers. 



2) A primary user of the directory, as far as OCE was concerned, 

 would be Corps of Engineers personnel located in different parts of the 

 Nation. 



3) OCE was primarily interested in ecologists with experience in 

 water resource development. 



''i ) OCE would encourage a comprehensive approach to the directory's 

 design to allow its use by other organizations with related, but different 

 interests . 



After reviewing about 20 related directories and data bases, the 

 committee concluded that a useful directory would have to be based on new 

 survey information. Existing directories were either too specialized, 

 out-of-date, or did not focus sufficiently upon water resource topics. 

 The committee decided to prepare a survey questionnaire that would meet 

 OCE's needs and the needs of related user groups. 



During the next six weeks, the committee prepared five successive 

 drafts of a survey questionnaire in consultation with OCE. At the same 

 time, 40 professional socieites In the life sciences were requested to 

 participate in the project by making their membership lists available for 

 the survey. 



Survey Distribution and Response 



Following the completion of the questionnaire, (Figure 1), approximately 

 40,000 copies were mailed directly to scientists, using membership lists 

 provided by 40 professional societies. The names of the cooperating 



