undisturbed river of any size in the continen- 

 tal 48 states — the Salmon River in Idaho. This 

 phase marks an approach to investigating a 

 single large river system different from any 

 previously attempted and should provide sig- 

 nificant generalizations about stream ecosys- 

 tems. 



• Cell biology. The new burst of research 

 activity in modern cell biology is particularly 

 looking toward an understanding of the inter- 

 action and regulation of molecular processes 

 in eukaryotic cells. The research is primarily 

 in the area of genetics, developmental and 

 human cell biology. Studies in genetics in- 

 clude chromosome organization and genetic 

 controls in higher organisms, animal virus 

 research, and plant cell biology as well as 

 strong programs in bacterial and phage genet- 

 ics. Developmental biology includes cell ad- 

 hesion, genetic basis for differentiation in 

 higher organisms, fertilization, and plant cell 

 culture. In the human cell area the structure 

 and organization of genetic material and the 

 intracellular regulation of protein synthesis 

 are emphasized. 



• New insights on unemployment. The tradi- 

 tional image of the unemployed stresses a 

 labor pool seeking work, with a consequent 

 decline in wages. It is now evident that cur- 

 rent unemployment includes a large 

 component of persons on "temporary layoff" 

 who do not respond in accord with the as- 

 sumptions about the unemployed which un- 

 derlie traditional economic models. An em- 

 ployee on temporary layoff does not seek 

 substitute employment but simply waits to be 

 recalled to his job. Such layoffs constitute 

 such a dominant component of the current 

 fluctuations in unemployment rates that they 

 seem to be responsible for certain puzzling 

 features of economic indicators (for example, 

 relatively high unemployment with no decline 

 in wages). Identifying this fundamental 

 change has stimulated research that promises 

 to increase our understanding of how the 

 economy works and that should assist in for- 

 mulating improved Federal policies. 



• Political consequences of advanced industrial- 

 ization. A varied set of studies now underway 

 explores how political institutions in ad- 

 vanced industrial democracies have changed 

 and how the resulting political processes have 

 adapted to such change. Among the studies in 

 this general class is an investigation of in- 

 dustrial conflict that examines crossnational 

 differences and trends in labor organization 

 and in which statistical models are being de- 

 veloped to explain fluctuations in strike activi- 



208 NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION 



ty. Another study in this category explores 

 how class voting changes with changing cir- 

 cumstances, emphasizing the role of shifting 

 party strategies. Studies in this general vein 

 promise to provide information about the 

 workings of contemporary political 

 institutions, point to inadequacies in theories 

 based on earlier modes of organization, and 

 provide new perspectives on processes of 

 social change. 

 Research priorities in the biological, behavioral, 

 and social sciences include the following: 



Physiology, cellular, and molecular biology. 

 Research priority areas in physiology, cellular, and 

 molecular biology for the next 3 to 10 years in- 

 clude: Plant cell biology and physiology; mecha- 

 nisms of photosynthesis and nitrogen fixation; plant 

 and animal virology; somatic cell genetics; gene 

 expression; structure and interaction of chromo- 

 somes, and parts of cells; mechanisms of enzyme 

 activity and protein structure; structure and mo- 

 tion of membranes, ribosomes, and cells; research 

 on large animals; and advanced instrumentation 

 for study of biological molecules and components 

 of cells. 



Behavioral and neural sciences. Research priori- 

 ties for the next several years include substantial 

 increases for behavioral and neural sciences. Spe- 

 cific priority areas are anthropological research 

 collections, access to technology for archaeologi- 

 cal dating, equipment and facilities, and human 

 and animal developmental behavior. 



The Foundation and professional societies are 

 working on plans to arrest the continuing 

 deterioration of irreplaceable anthropological re- 

 search collections and to increase access to tech- 

 nologies for dating archaeological discoveries. 



Opportunities for rapid scientific progress in the 

 behavioral and neural sciences are dependent on 

 increased utilization of computer hardware and 

 software. The recent ability to delineate the com- 

 plex interconnections of the brain makes comput- 

 er-assisted anatomical reconstruction essential. By 

 1980, microprocesser technology is likely to reach 

 the point of routine use for collection and analysis 

 of data and adjustment of parameters while an 

 experiment is in process. By 1981, techniques 

 adapted from physics — e.g.. nuclear magnetic res- 

 onance — will be used more extensively by neuro- 

 scientists interested in receptor dynamics. 



Research analyzing human and animal behavior 

 during development provides a special opportunity 

 for emphasis. Cognitive development and social 

 and emotional development in children will receive 

 special attention. Field studies of social behavior 

 will be stressed, with a particular emphasis on 

 comparing field assessments of human and nonhu- 

 man social organizations. The genetic and hormon- 



