Proceedings of a Workshop to Review PATH Strategy, Operating Plan, and Performance Metrics (BICE)

Released 05/05/06

In 1998, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) started a public-private program—the Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing (PATH)—dedicated to accelerating the development and use of technologies to improve all aspects of housing in the United States. In 2000, the NRC began a review of the program culminating in a report published in 2003. In 2005, HUD asked the NRC to hold a workshop to assess PATH’s most recent draft strategy, operating plan, and performance measures. This report provides an extensive summary of workshop presentations on the HUD goals, the 2003 NRC report, the value of technological innovation, and performance measures for PATH evaluation. These presentations were the basis for subsequent workshop discussions also summarized in this report. The discussions focused on the three major PATH goals and on how those goals and performance measures can be improved to increase the effectiveness of the PATH program.

Instrumentation for a Better Tomorrow: Proceedings of a Symposium in Honor of Arnold Beckman (BPA)

Released 07/17/06

On November 15, 2004, the National Academies sponsored a symposium at the Beckman Center in honor of Arnold O. Beckman. The symposium concentrated on the wide-ranging practical applications of scientific instrumentation as was the focus of much of Arnold Beckman’s career. The report begins with two presentations: a remembrance by Arnold Beckman’s daughter, Pat, and an overview of his life and accomplishments by Arnold Thackray, President of the Chemical Heritage Foundation. The next section contains presentations on the application of instrumentation in seven, diverse areas: organic chemistry, molecular and systems biology, synchrotron x-ray sources, nanoscale chemistry, forensics, and clinical medicine. Finally, there is a summary of a panel discussion on the evolving relationship between instrumentation and research.