Introduction to Occasional Papers

A CHALLENGING – AND PROMISING – FUTURE

Throughout its distinguished history, the Office of Science has taken a very
deliberate approach to its work: identifying seminal challenges and establishing coordinated programs that transcend what individuals alone can do. Its multidisciplinary capability is one of the Office’s great strengths, leading to its highly respected record of advancing scientific frontiers to address broad societal needs.

Obviously nobody can say for sure what the great scientific and technological breakthroughs of the 21st century will be. Yet, ever committed to remaining at the forefront of major new scientific discoveries, the Office of Science already is embarked on important and promising pursuits in several directions:

· Restoring U.S. leadership in scientific computation, recently lost to Japan’s newly superior supercomputing capability

· Training a 21st century workforce by bolstering education in math and science for both teachers and students

· Pioneering the new field of nanoscience, the study of matter at the atomic scale, which may hold the key to a second industrial revolution

· Making bioremediation of DOE nuclear waste sites an efficient, safe and cost-effective reality by figuring out how to use microbes to clean up metal and radionuclide contaminants.

· Solving the problem of ‘dark energy,’ responsible for the remarkable recent finding that the expansion of the universe is accelerating, rather than slowing due to gravity as expected

· Promoting the availability of fusion power, which has remarkable promise as an inexhaustible, safe and environmentally attractive energy source

· Harnessing the biotechnology to develop clean energy and repair damage to our environment through the Genomes to Life Initiative

· Undertaking the research and development of ground- and satellite-based
observatories and particle accelerators that will advance our understanding of ourselves, our world, our galaxy, and our universe.

· Expanding access to the national laboratories by improving and modernizing America’s scientific infrastructure

· Developing further scientific foundations for detecting, preventing, protecting against and responding to terrorism

The Office of Science, with its outstanding scientists, remarkable facilities and unrivalled record of accomplishments and contributions, promises to deliver many more discoveries in these and other areas to benefit the United States of America and the world.

Occasional Papers