NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION 



NATIONAL SCIENCE BOARD 



WASHINGTON, D.C. 20550 



LETTER TO CORPORATION PRESIDENTS 



Currently the National Science Board is preparing its Eighth Annual 

 Report to the President and to the Congress. The report will concen- 

 trate on the circumstances which might affect the capacity of the 

 Nation to continue a strong position in science and technology. It 

 will attempt to identify and to study prospectively selected critical 



problems developing in the operating research sectors namely, 



university, industry, Government laboratories and independent research 

 institutes. The report is not as much concerned with dollar support 

 as with circumstances in the institutional, managerial or policy 

 environment which will influence the productivity of working scientists 

 and engineers. In order to identify critical problems for the industrial 

 research sector, the Committee on Eighth NSB Report is seeking input 

 from selected corporate officers in U. S. industry. 



The Committee would very much appreciate learning about the two most 

 critical issues/problems facing fundamental (long term, basic) research, 

 as you see it, in the near term future. "Near term future" means issues 

 currently emerging or seen-to-be-emerging in the next decade or so. 

 For example, as you look ahead, in your capacity as a company president, 

 what problems do you anticipate? What critical issues/problems will 

 condition scientific and technological research in industry and will 

 decrease its effectiveness unless properly addressed? Would you please 

 order your issues/problems "one" and "two" and then provide a brief 

 descriptive paragraph for each? Feel free to propose resolutions or 

 solutions . 



In addition to your views from the corporate level, the Committee 

 expects to obtain perceptions from the operating research level in a 

 separate letter. 



106 APPENDIX B 



