Workshop_in_brief
The quality of U.S. drinking water is at risk from many causes, including the nation's aging infrastructure and environmental conditions that affect source water conditions. Quality Water from Every Tap, a workshop held in Washington, D.C., on November 21-22, 2019, provided an opportunity for experts from government, affected communities, academia, and the private sector to explore both the challenges and factors that affect the delivery of water with acceptable quality and the paths to increase the quality of water for systems that do not meet today's drinking water standards - especially focusing on communities that lack adequate resources and expertise because they are small or have declining populations. This publication provides the rapporteurs' high-level summary of the topics addressed in the workshop and suggestions provided by workshop participants for potential actions to address the nation's water quality challenges.
12 pages
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8.5 x 11
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-28878-9
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/26069
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2021. Quality Water from Every Tap: Proceedings of a Workshop—in Brief. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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240 pages
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8.5 x 11
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paperback
ISBN Paperback: 0-309-73173-9
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/28594
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. A Science Strategy for the Human Exploration of Mars. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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32 pages
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8.5 x 11
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DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29233
Christodoulou, J.A., J. Cao, and T.R. Kurfess. 2025. Actionable Directions for the U.S. Army, the U.S. Navy, and the U.S. Air Force to Enhance Mid-Scale Manufacturing: Issue Paper. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Vegetative assets and roadside safety features impact the longevity of structural assets. When vegetation fails, it can lead to pavement or bridge failure as the ground supporting the overall structure erodes.
NCHRP Web-Only Document 429: Investigation of Tools and Technology for Roadside Vegetation Asset Management, from TRB's National Cooperative Highway Research Program, is supplemental to NCHRP Research Report 1155: Tools and Technology for Roadside Vegetation Asset Management: A Guide and details available and emerging tools and technology that can assist state departments of transportation with roadside vegetation asset management.
95 pages
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8.5 x 11
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-59944-X
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29248
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Investigation of Tools and Technology for Roadside Vegetation Asset Management. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Advances in artificial intelligence, and specifically in machine learning, are enabling new capabilities across nearly every sector of the economy. Many of these applications - such as automated vehicles, the power grid, or surgical robots - are safety critical: where malfunctions can result in harm to people, the environment, or property. While machine learning is already being deployed to enhance the capabilities of some physical systems, extending the rigorous practices of safety engineering to include machine learning components brings significant challenges.
Machine Learning for Safety-Critical Applications explores ways to safely integrate machine learning into physical systems and presents research priorities for improving safety, testing, and evaluation. This report finds that designing machine learning algorithms in a way that aligns with safety engineering standards will require changes in research, training, and engineering practice - as well as a shift away from focusing on algorithmic performance in isolation.
106 pages
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8.5 x 11
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paperback
ISBN Paperback: 0-309-72666-2
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-72667-0
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/27970
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Machine Learning for Safety-Critical Applications: Opportunities, Challenges, and a Research Agenda. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Vegetation and roadside safety features need to be strong in order to prevent erosion that can lead to pavement or bridge failure as the ground supporting the overall structure erodes.
NCHRP Research Report 1155: Tools and Technology for Roadside Vegetation Asset Management: A Guide, from TRB's National Cooperative Highway Research Program, describes how state departments of transportation (DOTs) can promote and implement roadside vegetation asset management (RVAM). The guide offers suggestions, including support for promoting and updating RVAM plans and information on tools and technology that can serve state DOTs during RVAM tasks.
Supplemental to the report is NCHRP Web-Only Document 429: Investigation of Tools and Technology for Roadside Vegetation Asset Management.
102 pages
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8.5 x 11
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paperback
ISBN Paperback: 0-309-59939-3
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-59940-7
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29247
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Tools and Technology for Roadside Vegetation Asset Management: A Guide. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Workshop
Global pandemics often begin when a virus jumps from animals to humans, leading to initial cases of infection - sometimes referred to as "patient zero." As the world recovers from COVID-19, understanding how pathogens first spill over into human populations is critical to prevention efforts. The National Academies' Forum on Microbial Threats convened a workshop in January 2025 to examine how ecological, social, and technological factors shape the emergence of new infectious diseases in humans. Speakers addressed gaps in understanding of disease emergence with a focus on the human-animal interface and laboratory biosafety. This Proceedings of a Workshop summarizes the presentations and discussions that took place at the event.
98 pages
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6 x 9
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paperback
ISBN Paperback: 0-309-60176-2
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-60174-6
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29313
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Understanding the Introduction of Pathogens into Humans: Preventing Patient Zero: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Rapid_expert_consultation
Clear, timely communication is essential for responding to public health emergencies, such as extreme weather, wildfires, and infectious disease outbreaks. The growing frequency of such crises, which is straining an already fragile public health communication system, may further weaken this system. What is more, recent emergencies highlight the urgent need to strengthen the communication infrastructure. This rapid expert consultation outlines approaches to building strategic collaborations as essential infrastructure for effective public health communication. It is targeted to state and local health leaders, emergency response officials, communications staff, community organizations, and other partners. It highlights actionable strategies for improving state and local collaboration, with attention to assessing what kind of collaboration is needed, initiating that collaboration, tending to the quality of the relationship, and coordinating effectively among collaborating partners.
34 pages
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8.5 x 11
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-60032-4
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29268
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Strategies for State and Local Collaboration with Community Partnerships to Enhance Public Health Communication During Emergencies: A Rapid Expert Consultation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Minerals form the foundation of our infrastructure, manufacturing, energy systems, and everyday technologies. Demand for these minerals, especially critical minerals, is rapidly increasing, highlighting the need for reliable sourcing and for resilient supply networks to ensure energy security and national competitiveness, and support technological innovation.
The Mineral Resources Program (MRP), within the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), plays a central role in addressing the nation's mineral resource challenges by providing the unbiased science and data needed to inform decision making across government, private industry, and academia. At the request of the USGS, the National Academies reviewed MRP and considered how it might best position itself to address current and future mineral resource challenges facing the nation.
This report finds that MRP has demonstrated exceptional leadership and innovation during rapid budget fluctuations and renewed national attention on mineral resources, especially critical minerals, and has significantly advanced mineral deposit science, exploration, and analysis. The report recommends that MRP remain proactive in its priorities, set production targets for critical minerals, create a national atlas of resource potential, improve data delivery, establish external advisory input, regularly update its strategic plan, and strengthen collaboration across USGS and with external partners. These recommendations are intended to help MRP achieve its mission while supporting national objectives and remaining the national authority on minerals information, analysis, research, and assessment.
144 pages
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7 x 10
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paperback
ISBN Paperback: 0-309-73529-7
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-73530-0
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29068
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Meeting Future U.S. Mineral Resource Needs: The Role of the U.S. Geological Survey Mineral Resources Program. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Public transportation agencies throughout the United States have introduced, or are planning to introduce, zero-emission buses and supporting technologies into their fleets. Consequently, transit agencies need to train current employees and hire new employees with the relevant skills to safely and effectively operate and maintain these complex vehicles.
TCRP Research Report 252: Public Transit Workforce Development for Zero-Emission Vehicles, from TRB’s Transit Cooperative Research Program, identifies and is organized around seven areas (referred to as tasks) that transit agencies will need to address. Each task identifies the skills and knowledge needed by transit agency frontline employees to operate and maintain zero-emission vehicles in revenue service, specifically full-size, 40- to 60-foot battery-electric and fuel-cell buses.
114 pages
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8.5 x 11
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paperback
ISBN Paperback: 0-309-60102-9
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-60103-7
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29287
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Public Transit Workforce Development for Zero-Emission Vehicles. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Workshop_in_brief
Obesity remains one of the most pressing public health challenges in the U.S., contributing to increased risks of chronic disease, mobility limitations, and health care costs. While physical activity is widely recognized as a cornerstone to prevent and treat obesity, questions remain about effective ways to integrate movement into clinical care and daily life - particularly in light of new obesity management medications, evolving technology, and diverse individual needs.
The National Academies' Roundtable on Obesity Solutions convened a workshop in July 2025 which explored physical activity not only as a mechanism for weight management but also as a critical component of holistic health and well-being. The workshop also examined the effectiveness of physical activity across prevention and treatment settings; integrating physical activity into clinical, community, and policy frameworks; and the influence of emerging technologies on obesity care. This Proceedings of a Workshop-In Brief summarizes discussions and presentations from the workshop.
17 pages
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8.5 x 11
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-60173-8
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29312
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Exploring the Role of Physical Activity in Obesity Treatment, Body Weight Management, and Related Health Outcomes in Adults: Proceedings of a Workshop - in Brief. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Transit agencies use electrical traction (overhead catenary or third rail)—which is typically designed using high alternating-current or direct-current voltages—for the propulsion of trains. The running rails are used as part of the system to return negative power to substations. Insulated joints (IJs) are trackwork components installed in the rails to provide train control circuits and traction power segment separation between blocks.
TCRP Research Report 255: Investigation and Mitigation of Insulated Joint Electrical Failure: A Guide, from TRB's Transit Cooperative Research Program, provides information on how to identify arcing at IJs, methods to diagnose the contributing factors, underlying causes, strategies for investigating IJ failures, and examples of how others have mitigated arcing.
178 pages
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8.5 x 11
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paperback
ISBN Paperback: 0-309-60053-7
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-60054-5
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29274
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Investigation and Mitigation of Insulated Joint Electrical Failure: A Guide. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Each year, the Gulf Research Program (GRP) produces an annual report to summarize how funds were used. These reports review accomplishments, highlight activities, and, over time, will assess metrics to determine how the program is progressing in accomplishing its goals. The 2024 annual report is the 11th report in this series.
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine's GRP is an independent, science-based program founded in 2013 as part of legal settlements with the companies involved in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster. The GRP's mission is to develop, translate, and apply science to enhance the safety of offshore energy, the environment, and the well-being of the people of the Gulf region for generations to come. It supports innovative science, guides data design and monitoring, and builds and sustains networks to generate long-term benefits for the Gulf region and the nation.
28 pages
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8.5 x 11
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-60067-7
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29277
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Gulf Research Program Annual Report 2024. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Concerns about transit assaults and perceived safety play an important role in transit use and ridership. Research shows that if people felt more secure when traveling and waiting at railway stations, the ridership could increase by 10 percent.
TCRP Research Report 258: Mitigation Strategies for Deterring Transit Assaults, from TRB's Transit Cooperative Research Program, equips agencies with practical strategies and evidence-based recommendations to enhance safety and security in the transit environment.
92 pages
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8.5 x 11
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paperback
ISBN Paperback: 0-309-99483-7
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-99484-5
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29204
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Mitigation Strategies for Deterring Transit Assaults. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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In today’s rapidly evolving environment, state transportation agencies frequently face challenges that require specific organizational capabilities. In 2019, the National Cooperative Highway Research Program developed the Agency Capability Building (ACB) Portal, which presents a framework, supporting tools, and resources for enhancing transportation capacity.
NCHRP Web-Only Document 439: Implementing the Agency Capability Building Framework to Activate Organizational Change documents the activities, participants, data collected, and lessons learned from an effort designed to facilitate the use of the ACB by transportation agencies. The report also includes linked resources and appendices that represent key products of the research.
54 pages
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8.5 x 11
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-60201-7
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29324
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Implementing the Agency Capability Building Framework to Activate Organizational Change. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Workshop_in_brief
As communities work to improve outcomes for children and families, there is a growing call for stronger partnerships between public systems and private-sector leaders and investors. In response to this, the Forum for Children's Well-Being of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine convened a workshop, The Business of Flourishing: Innovative Investments in Children and Youth, on May 19, 2025. This convening brought together leaders from philanthropy, finance, business, health care, government, research, and community organizations to explore how new forms of collaboration can support children's well-being. The workshop is part of a broader series developed in follow-up to the Launching Lifelong Health report, designed to explore in greater depth key areas of innovation and need identified in that report - this session focused on financing prevention with particular attention to collaboration between public and private partners. This publication highlights the presentations and discussion of the workshop.
13 pages
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8.5 x 11
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-99598-1
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29235
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Public–Private Partnerships to Advance Child and Youth Flourishing: Proceedings of a Workshop—in Brief. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) operates Federal Inspection Services (FIS) facilities at airports nationwide, processing some 1.1 million flights each year. From major hubs to smaller regional gateways, these facilities serve tourists, business travelers, and families connecting across borders.
ACRP Transportation Insights 7: Modernization of Federal Inspection Services Facilities at U.S. Airports, from TRB's Airport Cooperative Research Program, captures the discussions at an event that explored how CBP facilities at U.S. airports can evolve in the years and decades ahead.
64 pages
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8.5 x 11
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paperback
ISBN Paperback: 0-309-60106-1
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-60107-X
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29288
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Modernization of Federal Inspection Services Facilities at U.S. Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Billions of gallons of water per day are channeled from northern California to drier Central and Southern California through the network of dams, canals, and other features that comprise the federal Central Valley Project (CVP), operated by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR), and the State Water Project (SWP), operated by the California Department of Water Resources. At least two thirds of California's population and more than 4 million acres of California farmland rely in whole or in part on water delivered by these projects. In addition to delivering water to meet diverse demands, the Projects must also protect six endangered fish species, including Delta smelt, longfin smelt, Sacramento River winter-run Chinook salmon, Central Valley spring-run Chinook salmon, California Central Valley steelhead, and the southern distinct population segment of North American green sturgeon.
At the request of the USBR, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine established a committee to conduct a biennial review of the monitoring, modeling, and other relevant scientific activities of the CVP and the SWP. This first report in the series examines three actions designed to help protect the fish - the Shasta Coldwater Pool Management Action, the Old and Middle River Flow Management Action, and the Summer-Fall Habitat Action for Delta Smelt. The report evaluates the scientific basis for each of the actions, along with monitoring and modeling needs, and makes specific recommendations for strengthening each of them to help them reach their stated goals.
352 pages
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8.5 x 11
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paperback
ISBN Paperback: 0-309-99279-6
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-60115-0
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29130
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Review of the Long-Term Operations of the Central Valley Project and the State Water Project. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Individuals and families across the United States face growing challenges in accessing timely, high-quality primary care, which is essential to overall health and well-being. The delivery of such care is becoming more complex, placing undue strain on primary care clinicians and exacerbating existing workforce shortages.
A National Academies committee recently examined the inputs and functions needed for interprofessional teams to successfully and sustainably deliver high-quality primary care. The committee concluded the nation must support the primary care workforce through appropriate and supportive payment; hold payers, states, and health systems accountable in ensuring that such payment reaches primary care practices; and sufficiently train an interprofessional workforce. This report offers nine specific recommendations for how federal agencies and other key players can better support the provision of high-quality, interprofessional, team-based primary care.
58 pages
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6 x 9
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paperback
ISBN Paperback: 0-309-99564-7
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-99565-5
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/29226
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Building a Workforce to Develop and Sustain Interprofessional Primary Care Teams. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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