Telecommunications Research and Engineering at the Institute for Telecommunication Sciences of the Department of Commerce

by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences, Computer Science and Telecommunications Board, Committee on Telecommunications Research and Engineering at the Department of Commerce's Boulder Laboratories

2015 · National Academies Press

The Department of Commerce operates two telecommunications research laboratories located at the Department of Commerce's Boulder, Colorado, campus: the National Telecommunications and Information Administration's (NTIA's) Institute for Telecommunications Sciences (ITS) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST's) Communications Technology Laboratory (CTL). ITS serves as a principal federal resource for solving the telecommunications concerns of federal agencies, state and local governments, private corporations and associations, standards bodies, and international organizations. ITS could provide an essential service to the nation by being a principal provider of instrumentation and spectrum measurement services; however, the inter-related shortages of funding, staff, and a coherent strategy limits its ability to fully function as a research laboratory. This report examines the institute's performance, resources, and capabilities and the extent to which these meet customer needs. The Boulder telecommunications laboratories currently play an important role in the economic vitality of the country and can play an even greater role given the importance of access to spectrum and spectrum sharing to the wireless networking and mobile cellular industries. Research advances are needed to ensure the continued evolution and enhancement of the connected world the public has come to expect.

Renewing U.S. Telecommunications Research

by National Research Council, Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences, Computer Science and Telecommunications Board, Committee on Telecommunications Research and Development

2006 · National Academies Press

The modern telecommunications infrastructureâ€"made possible by research performed over the last several decadesâ€"is an essential element of the U.S. economy. The U.S. position as a leader in telecommunications technology, however, is at risk because of the recent decline in domestic support of long-term, fundamental telecommunications research. To help understand this challenge, the National Science Foundation asked the NRC to assess the state of telecommunications research in the United States and recommend ways to halt the research decline. This report provides an examination of telecommunications research support levels, focus, and time horizon in industry, an assessment of university telecommunications research, and the implications of these findings on the health of the sector. Finally, it presents recommendations for enhancing U.S. telecommunications' research efforts.

Information Technology and the U.S. Workforce

by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences, Computer Science and Telecommunications Board, Committee on Information Technology, Automation, and the U.S. Workforce

2017 · National Academies Press

Recent years have yielded significant advances in computing and communication technologies, with profound impacts on society. Technology is transforming the way we work, play, and interact with others. From these technological capabilities, new industries, organizational forms, and business models are emerging. Technological advances can create enormous economic and other benefits, but can also lead to significant changes for workers. IT and automation can change the way work is conducted, by augmenting or replacing workers in specific tasks. This can shift the demand for some types of human labor, eliminating some jobs and creating new ones. Information Technology and the U.S. Workforce explores the interactions between technological, economic, and societal trends and identifies possible near-term developments for work. This report emphasizes the need to understand and track these trends and develop strategies to inform, prepare for, and respond to changes in the labor market. It offers evaluations of what is known, notes open questions to be addressed, and identifies promising research pathways moving forward.

The Internet's Coming of Age

by National Research Council, Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences, Commission on Physical Sciences, Mathematics, and Applications, Computer Science and Telecommunications Board, Committee on the Internet in the Evolving Information Infrastructure

2001 · National Academies Press

What most of us know as "the Internet" is actually a set of largely autonomous, loosely coordinated communication networks. As the influence of the Internet continues to grow, understanding its real nature is imperative to acting on a wide range of policy issues. This timely new book explains basic design choices that underlie the Internet's success, identifies key trends in the evolution of the Internet, evaluates current and prospective technical, operational, and management challenges, and explores the resulting implications for decision makers. The committee-composed of distinguished leaders from both the corporate and academic community-makes recommendations aimed at policy makers, industry, and researchers, going on to discuss a variety of issues: How the Internet's constituent parts are interlinked, and how economic and technical factors make maintaining the Internet's seamless appearance complicated. How the Internet faces scaling challenges as it grows to meet the demands of users in the future. Tensions inherent between open innovation on the Internet and the ability of innovators to capture the commercial value of their breakthroughs. Regulatory issues posed by the Internet's entry into other sectors, such as telephony.