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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Page viii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Page xiii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 2008. Science and Technology for America's Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/12481.
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Committee on Science and Technology in the National Interest: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS Washington, D.C. www.nap.edu

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS  500 Fifth Street, N.W.  Washington, DC 20001 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 committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance. This study was supported by the National Academy of Sciences and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the project. International Standard Book Number-13:  978-0-309-12680-9 International Standard Book Number-10:  0-309-12680-0 Additional copies of this report are available from the National Academies Press, 500 Fifth Street, N.W., Lockbox 285, Washington, DC 20055; (800) 624-6242 or (202) 334-3313 (in the Washington metropolitan area); Internet, http://www.nap.edu. Copyright 2008 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America

The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self- p ­ erpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and tech- nology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a ­mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and ­technical matters. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone is president of the National Academy of Sciences. The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organiza- tion of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National ­Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Charles M. Vest is president of the National Academy of Engineering. The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National A ­ cademy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Institute of Medicine. The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and tech- nology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the ­National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone and Dr. Charles M. Vest are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council. www.national-academies.org

COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN THE NATIONAL INTEREST: ENSURING THE BEST PRESIDENTIAL APPOINTMENTS John Edward Porter (Chair), Partner, Hogan & Hartson, Washington, DC Richard celeste, President, Colorado College, Colorado Springs, CO Mary clutter, Assistant Director, National Science Foundation (retired), Washington, DC Neal lane, Malcolm Gillis University Professor, Rice University, Houston, TX Richard A. Meserve, President, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, DC anne C. petersen, Professor of Psychology, and Deputy Director, Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA Maxine L. Savitz, Principal, The Washington Advisory Group, LLC, Los Angeles, CA Deborah wince-smith, President, Council on Competitiveness, Washington, DC Principal Project Staff RICHARD E. BISSELL, Study Director NEERAJ GORKHALY, Senior Project Assistant ALBERT SWISTON, Christine Mirzayan Science & Technology Policy Graduate Fellow 

COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE, ENGINEERING, AND PUBLIC POLICY GEORGE M. WHITESIDES (Chair), Woodford L. and Ann A. Flowers University Professor, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA CLAUDE R. CANIZARES, Vice President for Research, Associate Provost, Bruno Rossi Professor of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA RALPH J. CICERONE (Ex officio), President, National Academy of Sciences, Washington, DC EDWARD F. CRAWLEY, Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics and of Engineering Systems, Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA RUTH A. DAVID, President and Chief Executive Officer of ANSER Institute for Homeland Security (Analytic Services, Inc.), Arlington, VA HAILE T. DEBAS, Chancellor Emeritus, University of California, San Francisco HARVEY FINEBERG (Ex officio), President, Institute of Medicine, Washington, DC JACQUES S. GANSLER, Roger C. Lipitz Chair in Public Policy and Private Enterprise, School of Public Policy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD ELSA M. GARMIRE, Sydney E. Junkins Professor of Engineering, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH M.R.C. GREENWOOD (Ex officio), Chair, Policy and Global Affairs, and Professor of Nutrition and Internal Medicine, University of California, Davis W. CARL LINEBERGER, Professor of Chemistry, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO C. DAN MOTE, JR. (Ex officio), Co-chair, GUIRR, and President, University of Maryland at College Park, College Park, MD vi

ROBERT M. NEREM, Professor and Director, Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA LAWRENCE T. PAPAY, CEO and Principal, PQR, LLC, Maineville, OH ANNE C. PETERSEN, Deputy Director, Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA SUSAN C. SCRIMSHAW, Interim President, The Sage Colleges, Troy, NY WILLIAM J. SPENCER, Chairman Emeritus, SEMATECH, Austin, TX LYDIA THOMAS (Ex officio), Co-chair, GUIRR, and Chairman and CEO, Mitretek Systems, Falls Church, VA CHARLES M. VEST (Ex officio), President, National Academy of Engineering, Washington, DC NANCY S. WEXLER, Higgins Professor of Neuropsychology, Columbia University, New York, NY MARY LOU ZOBACK, Vice President for Earthquake Risk Applications, Risk Management Solutions, Inc., Newark, CA Staff RICHARD BISSELL, Executive Director MARION RAMSEY, Administrative Associate vii

PREFACE T he United States increasingly relies on the strength and vitality of the national science and technology (S&T) enterprise to solve some of today’s most intractable problems. As we become more dependent on advances in science and engineering to meet chal- lenges in national defense, climate change, jobs, disease, energy, economic growth, creating a healthy and affordable food supply, and protecting the environment, few aspects of modern public policy are untouched by S&T. Perhaps at no other time in our history has it been so essential to attract scientists, engineers, and health professionals into the highest levels of public service and to serve as members of the more than 1,000 advisory committees convened to provide independent sources of guidance to inform our public poli- cies. As voting citizens, we need to ensure that our elected officials receive sound and objective scientific advice. Along with the tremendous opportunities provided by public service, there are administrative and procedural obstacles to recruiting the best and brightest into top S&T posts. With regard to appointing scientists, engineers, and health professionals to federal advisory committees, it is essential that the best experts be able to serve to meet national needs for independent advice. The government’s capacity to consider and incorporate S&T informa- tion as part of the basis for public policy decisions should not be compromised. This is the fourth in a series of reports issued by the National Academies on the presidential appointment process, each delivered during a presidential election year with the goal ix

PREFACE of ­providing recommendations to the successful candidate about appointing his senior S&T leadership and pursuing sustained improvements in the appointments process. The first report was issued in 1992.1 In the 2000 and 2004 updates, the Academies made recommendations for making the process more efficient and increasing the breadth and depth of the pool of candidates willing to accept such appointments,2 including those to federal advisory committees concerned with science and technology.3 An ad hoc committee of the National Academies Commit- tee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy (COSEPUP) was charged with preparing this fourth report examining the most senior S&T appointments to federal government positions and updating the accompanying list of the 50-60 most urgent S&T presidential appointments. The charge to the ad hoc committee was: An ad hoc committee will prepare a white paper with guidance to prospective new Administrations and potential nominees for filling senior S&T appointments. It will explain the importance of knowledge of science, technology, and health for meeting the challenges faced by the nation, and how knowledgeable leadership is essential for a President to carry out the mandate from the next election. The issues to be covered include, in addition to those in prior tran- sition reports, identification of successful approaches to incorpo- rating knowledgeable experts in science, engineering, and medicine into the appointment process of the White House and the cabinet, as well as ensuring evidence-based advice on issues that need their expertise. The report will also identify and explain the issues— 1Panel on Presidentially Appointed Scientists and Engineers, Committee on S ­ cience, Engineering, and Public Policy. 1992. Science and Technology Leadership in American Government. Washington, DC: National Academy Press. 2Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy. 2000. Science and Technology in the National Interest: The Presidential Appointment Process. Washington, DC: National Academy Press. 3Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy. 2005. Science and Technology in the National Interest: Ensuring the Best Presidential and Federal Advisory Committee ­ cience and Technology Appointments. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. S 

Preface opportunities and problems—that potential candidates need to consider in thinking about taking up a presidential appointment. In responding to its charge, the committee undertook several activities. First, it updated a literature review on the topic of presidential and federal advisory committee appointments (see Appendix B). It analyzed the effects of the prior National Acad- emies reports, including its list of top S&T appointments, in light of the nation’s current needs. The committee then gathered informa- tion via research and testimony. This report presents the committee’s recommendations. It is important to recognize that our mandate, and thus the focus of our work, was S&T appointments. We are not suggesting that these presidential appointments, nonpresidential S&T appointments, and appointments to federal advisory committees in S&T are more important than those to other areas of federal responsibility. The need to ensure that sound science and technology form the basis of many of the nation’s critical decisions now and in the future has never been greater. The committee believes that the recommendations made in this report will help any administration to meet that need. John Edward Porter, Chair Committee on Science and Technology in the National Interest: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments xi

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS T his report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the National Research Council’s Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published report as sound as pos- sible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for ­objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this report: Frederick Bernthal, Universities Research Associa- tion; Delores Etter, Southern Methodist University; Randolph Hall, University of Southern California; Elvin Heiberg, Heiberg Associates, Inc.; Paul Light, New York University; Ernest Moniz, M ­ assachusetts Institute of Technology; Alan Morrison, Fair E ­ lections Legal Network; Gerald Nadler, University of Southern California; Frank Press, The Washington Group; Mark Schaefer, NatureServe; Lydia Thomas, Mitretek (retired); Alvin Trivelpiece, Oak Ridge National Lab (retired); Harold Varmus, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center; and Christine Todd Whitman, I ­ ndependent Consultant. Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations, nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. The review of this xiii

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS report was overseen by Gilbert Omenn, University of Michigan. Appointed by the National Academies, he was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring com­ mittee and the institution. xiv

CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1 INTRODUCTION 7 PRESIDENTIAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY APPOINTMENTS 13 Accelerate the Appointment Process for Science and Technology Leadership, 17 S&T Leadership in the White House, 17 S&T Presidential Appointments, 21 Broaden the Pool of Potential Candidates, 30 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY APPOINTMENTS TO FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEES 33 CONCLUSION 43 APPENDIXES A Committee Members’ Biographical Information 45 B Bibliography 51 xv

CONTENTS BOXES, FIGURES, AND TABLE Box 1 Key Science and Technology Positions, 14 Box 2 Recommendations of the Brookings Institution Presidential Appointee Initiative Advisory Board, 27 Figure 1 Overview of the presidential appointments process, 21 Figure 2 The average number of months it takes to fill top 500 jobs in the administration, 24 Table 1 Examples of Scientific and Technical Federal Advisory Committees, by Origin and Purpose, 35 xvi

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The new Obama administration and the 110th Congress elected in November 2008 will face immediate challenges. Events will not permit a leisurely leadership transition. The prompt appointment of a Presidential science adviser and the nomination of top officials in the new administration with the knowledge and experience to address complex problems will be essential. The concerns of the nation regarding jobs and economic growth, health care, national security, energy, and the environment demand informed action. Each of these concerns-from national security, economic development, health care, and the environment, to education, energy, and natural resources-is touched in essential ways by the nation's science and technology enterprise.

This is the fourth in a series of books from the National Academies on the presidential appointment process, each delivered during a presidential election year with the goal of providing recommendations to the President-elect about appointing his senior science and technology leadership and pursuing sustained improvements in the appointments process.

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