AVS 49th International Symposium
    Advancing Toward Sustainability Topical Conference Tuesday Sessions
       Session AT-TuM

Paper AT-TuM7
The Challenge of Relating Basic Research to the Solution of Environmental Problems

Tuesday, November 5, 2002, 10:20 am, Room C-210

Session: Aerosols and Climate Change, Growing Energy Demands, and Benign Semiconductor Manufacturing
Presenter: D.R. Baer, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Correspondent: Click to Email
Many members of the research community have enthusiastically redirected their research efforts to address important national problems. This paper examines the difficulties researchers face in actually having an impact on solving these problems. Several examples demonstrate the willingness of researchers to undertake environmentally related research projects and to participate in efforts that help define a critical scientific agenda. However, evidence indicates that the transfer of new scientific information to environmental technology and application is a more difficult challenge. There are several barriers to the rapid transfer of new scientific information to technological practice. Barriers include the nature research funding, an accepted (mis)understanding of the relationship between pure and applied research, the challenges of basic scientists and engineers working on multidisciplinary teams and working with non-technical people and organizations who have a vested interest in the problem and solution. To have a significant impact on environmental problems, technologists need to become involved in many activities, well beyond those associated with laboratory research.