The United States faces a host of challenges that science and technology can help address: The recent appearance of a novel coronavirus has illustrated the destructive potential of emerging infectious diseases; the climate is changing, generating impacts such as more frequent heat waves and longer wildfire seasons; and an aging population raises questions about how to meet the growing medical and social needs of the elderly in decades to come.

What is the best way to structure and support scientific research in order to meet known challenges such as these, as well as others we can’t even anticipate?  During the past 75 years, this question was largely answered using a blueprint provided by Science: The Endless Frontier, a landmark document by engineer Vannevar Bush that empowered government support for basic research carried out by universities, fueling U.S. prosperity, health, and national security for decades.

What vision should guide science for the next 75 years? On Feb. 26 the National Academy of Sciences, in partnership with The Kavli Foundation and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, will hold a symposium that will gather leaders from science, government, academia, business, and philanthropy to consider the nation’s scientific enterprise and how it can best serve the U.S. and beyond in the 21st century.  

Among the speakers will be National Science Foundation Director France Córdova, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Kelvin Droegemeier, and National Academy of Sciences President Marcia McNutt.  Panels and speakers will explore the legacy of Vannevar Bush’s report, how the scientific research enterprise is changing, the evolving research partnership between the government and universities, and opportunities to engage the public in science, among other topics. 

The symposium will be webcast. A full agenda and registration are available at https://nationalacademies.org/next-75-years-in-science/.

Contact:
Megan Lowry, Media Relations Officer
Office of News and Public Information
202-334-2138; e-mail news@nas.edu