Excerpt

The first workshop of the recently established Chemical Sciences Roundtable (CSR), “Assessing the Value of Research in the Chemical Sciences,” was held in Washington, D.C., in September 1997. The topic of discussion was an issue of long-standing importance that has taken on even greater significance since the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) was enacted in 1993. This volume presents the results of that workshop.

Contents

• Chemical Science Roundtable
• Board on Chemical Sciences and Technology
• Commission on Physical Sciences, Mathematics, and Applications
• Preface
• Acknowledgment of Reviewers
• Summary
  • Historical Overview
  • Assessing the Value of Research in the Chemical Industry
  • The Linkage of Public Research and Patent Applications
  • Assessing the Value of Research in the Academic Sector
  • Assessing the Value of Research in the Government Sector
• 1. Measuring the Return on Investment in R&D: Voices from the Past, Visions of the Future
  • Introduction
  • Research in the Dupont Company
  • Summary and Conclusions
  • Discussion
• 2. The Sources of Commercial Technological Innovation
  • Discussion
• Panel Discussion: Introductory Session
• 3. Assessing the Value of Research at IBM
  • Introduction
  • IBM Research
  • The Research Division Business Process
  • Concluding Remarks
  • Discussion
• 4. Evaluating Materials Chemistry Research
  • Introduction
  • Corporate Evaluation of Chemical Research
  • Conclusion
  • Acknowledgments
  • Discussion
• 5. The Technology Value Pyramid
  • Introduction
  • Developing the Technology Value Pyramid
  • Concluding Remarks
• Panel Discussion: Industrial Session
• 6. Patents and Publicly Funded Research
  • Introduction
  • Linkage of Patents to Scientific Papers
  • Sources of Science for U.S. Patents
  • Discussion
• 7. Research as a Critical Component of the Undergraduate Educational Experience
  • Introduction
  • Undergraduate Research Does Make a Difference
  • Summary
  • Discussion
• 8. Scholarly Research: Oxymoron, Redundancy, or Necessity?
  • Introduction
  • Scholarly Research: Oxymoron, Redundancy, or Necessity?
  • Discussion
• 9. Assessing University-Industrial Interactions
  • Introduction
  • Traditional University Measures
• Panel Discussion: Academic Session
• 10. Assessing the Value of Research at the Department of Energy: A Perspective from the Office of Basic Energy Sciences
  • Introduction
  • The Basic Energy Sciences Program
  • Mission, Goals, and Tenets of the BES Program
  • BES Performance Measurement Matrix
  • Summary and Conclusions
  • Discussion
• 11. Assessing the Value of Research at the National Science Foundation
  • Introduction
  • The NSF Context for Assessing the Value of Research
  • Assessing Progress Toward Outcome Goals
  • Discussion
• 12. National Institutes of Health Response to the Government Performance and Results Act
  • Introduction
  • Establishment of Program Outcomes and Means
  • Assessment of NIH's Programs
• Panel Discussion: Government Session
• Appendixes
  • A Workshop Participants
  • B Origin of and Information on the Chemical Sciences Roundtable

Support for this project was provided by National Science Foundation under Grant No. CHE-9630106, the National Institutes of Health under Contract No. N01-OD-4-2139, and the U.S. Department of Energy under Grant No. DE-FG02-95ER14556.

Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, or the U.S. Department of Energy.

NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the workshop organizing committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.