Directorate for Science, Technology and Industry

Astronomers have made enormous progress in the past few decades. They have developed a convincing model of the origin, evolution, and distribution of the visible matter in the Universe, from asteroids and planets to the large-scale structure of clusters of galaxies. But this model fails to explain the composition or origin of some 96% of the contents of the Universe - the enigmatic “dark matter” and “dark energy” - and does not explain the distribution or origin of life. These and other big mysteries remain. They define the need for major new projects, such as giant optical and radio telescopes, some of which will need to be organised and financed on a multi-national basis. Prominent scientists and funding agency officials attended two OECD workshops, where they discussed the challenges and opportunities of the new international era of astronomy. Among their conclusions are: the need for a globally-coordinated scientific vision of the most important projects for the next 20 years; greater international cooperation in the development of key technologies (such as large arrays of sensors); and the establishment of closer links between planning processes for space- and ground-based facilities.

Near Earth Objects

Workshop on Near Earth Objects

Date: January 2003

Lead Country: United Kingdom

Chairman: Richard Crowther

Click here for the report.

Every day, thousands of centimetre-size objects from outer space burn up harmlessly as meteors in the atmosphere. Impacts of very large Near Earth Objects (NEOs) - multi-kilometre size asteroids or comets - have in the past been overwhelmingly catastrophic but are, fortunately, extremely rare. Objects of intermediate size can cause significant damage when they hit at random intervals of tens, hundreds, or thousands of years. Some researchers believe that the threat, when averaged over long time periods, is comparable to that from more familiar natural hazards such as earthquakes and floods. A great deal can be done to prevent future large impacts, or to reduce the damage, but early detection is required. The OECD workshop brought together scientists and public officials to discuss the NEO hazard not as a scientific matter, but as it relates to public safety.Workshop participants agreed that OECD governments should qualitatively assess the probability of loss of life and property damage in each country. Scientists need to provide additional data and methodologies to make this possible. In addition, OECD governments were encouraged to support scientific efforts to study the properties of NEOs and exploratory R&D for NEO deflection or destruction.

Also available: "How a Near-Earth Object Impact Might Affect Society".

Radio Astronomy and Satellite Communications

Task Force on Radio Astronomy and the Radio Spectrum

Date: March 2001 - February 2004

Chairman: Michael Goddard

Click here for the final consensus report.

Radio astronomers are planning a new generation of large, ultra-sensitive, costly radio telescopes to explore exciting questions about the history and structure of the Universe. But they face a serious practical problem: signals from powerful non-geostationary orbiting satellites that provide extremely useful telecommunications, navigation, and earth observation services, can overwhelm those from astronomical sources. Radio astronomers wish to conduct observations across the entire radio spectrum, not just within the confines of the narrow frequency bands allocated to them by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). How best to share the spectrum - a finite resource - without harming radio astronomy or the growth of commercial satellite-based services is a major issue addressed by the Global Science Forum. The Task Force brought together senior representatives of the three relevant communities - astronomers, regulators, and satellite manufacturers/operators. In January 2004, the Task Force published its findings and practical recommendations. One of them was an in-depth study of the technical and regulatory feasibility of “controlled emission zones” around future observatory sites.

High-Energy Physics

Consultative Group on High-Energy Physics

Date: June 2000 - June 2002

Lead Country: United Kingdom

Chairman: Ian Corbett

Click here for the report.

Before reading the Consultative Group's report, non-experts may wish to read an unofficial introductory paper about high-energy physics that was prepared for the Global Science Forum by Ms. Sharon Butler. It is available here.

High-energy physics seeks to answer basic questions: what is our world made of and how does it work? Efforts to date have culminated in the Standard Model, which identifies a small number of fundamental constituents of matter (quarks and leptons) and two forces (strong and electroweak) with their accompanying particles (gauge bosons). But this cannot be the “Final Answer” and scientists are eager to explore new realms using a new generation of large experimental facilities. Their most important tool is the accelerator (with its associated detectors), which can cost several billion dollars. To date, these have been built by individual countries or regions, but the next ones will have to be designed, built, and operated on a global basis. Accordingly, the Global Science Forum Consultative Group brought together officials of funding agencies and representatives of scientific organisations to explore the priorities, modalities and time scales of the new facilities. Their report, which clearly identifies a linear electron-positron collider as the next big international facility, analyses the main challenges and proposes actions for interested governments. The report was endorsed by OECD Science Ministers in 2004.

Proton Accelerators

Workshop on Strategic Policy Issues Concerning High-Intensity Proton Beam Facilities

Date: September 2000

Lead Countries: France/United Kingdom

Chairman: Peter Tindemans

Click here for the report from the workshop.

The largest proton accelerators produce intense beams of positively charged elementary particles, with beam powers of a megawatt and higher. These beams are extremely useful for basic and applied research in a variety of existing and proposed facilities: in neutron “spallation” sources (for research in the physical, chemical, and life sciences, for materials irradiation, and for isotope production); in facilities that create beams of radioactive nuclei for fundamental nuclear physics research; in particle physics facilities that use muons for colliding-beam experiments, or for producing beams of neutrinos; and in proposed reactors that could “transmute” nuclear waste into more easily manageable forms. The report from the OECD workshop provides a summary of essential information about the technical goals and challenges, as well as the current status and prospects for the accelerators and their applications. But the report also addresses a critical question for governments: given the very high cost of the biggest accelerators (in the billion-dollar range), is it feasible to combine two or more applications at a single facility? The analyses and discussions at the workshop proved to be useful in subsequent decisions regarding new or upgraded facilities in the United States, Japan, and Europe.

High-Intensity Lasers

Workshop on Compact High-Intensity Short-Pulse Lasers

Date: May 2001

Lead Country: Japan

Chairman: Yoshiaki Kato

Click here for the report from the workshop.

Since the invention of lasers in the early 1960s, scientists have worked hard to increase their intensity, thus opening up new applications in basic and applied research.The quest was stalled for some 15 years, because the highest intensities damaged the lasers themselves. A breakthrough occurred in 1985, when a series of optical manipulations known as “chirped-pulse amplification” eliminated the problem for pulsed beams. These new lasers are relatively small and affordable.The combination of very high power and very short pulse duration opens up a vast range of exciting applications in biology, materials science, fusion, accelerator technology, and medical imaging. Research has continued apace, generating great enthusiasm in the scientific world and numerous technical conferences. But a venue was needed where international scientists could meet funding agency and laboratory administrators. The OECD workshop drew up an inventory of challenges, opportunities, facilities, and advanced applications. It led to the establishment of an interim committee of laboratory directors and, ultimately, to that of the International Committee on Ultrahigh Intensity Lasers under the aegis of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics.

Condensed Matter Research

Workshop on Large Facilities for Studying the Structure and Dynamics of Matter

Date: September 2001

Lead countries: Denmark, United Kingdom

Chairman: Arthur Bienenstock

Click here for the final report of the Workshop.

Condensed matter includes solids, liquids, and living materials.This can be studied and manipulated at the level of atoms and molecules, using neutrons, electrons or photons as probes. The practical objective is to create innovative materials that can further progress in areas such as medicine, aerospace, or energy generation. Ironically, investigations on the tiniest scales often require the use of giant facilities that cost hundreds of millions of dollars to build and operate. In view of the broad range of uses they can be put to, these facilities often operate in “user mode” as service providers. That is, scientists do not need to work in these labs full-time and can “rent” limited amounts of time and resources to carry out specific projects. A GSF workshop held in September 2001 discussed matching facilities to researchers’ current and anticipated goals, and analysed the relative strengths and weaknesses of various techniques and facilities.The workshop was instrumental in helping governments and funding agencies make fully informed investment decisions regarding the construction of new facilities such as spallation neutron sources, synchrotron radiation sources, magnetic resonance spectrometers, and X-ray Free Electron Lasers.

Biodiversity

The Global Biodiversity Information Facility

Date: June 1999 - March 2001

Lead Country: United States

Chairman: James Edwards

Biodiversity is a useful umbrella term for all the species on Earth, their genetic variety, and the ecological systems they belong to. Millions of species have yet to be studied. Future research will depend on the efforts made today to develop methods for the discovery, study, and preservation of biodiversity. A key challenge is to compile and distribute data about biodiversity to everyone in the global community using digital technologies. When the OECD convened a group of international scientists and administrators to its first Working Group on Biological Informatics back in 1996, the need to access that data was already universally recognised. A great deal of information was available, but scattered in databases all over the world and in a wide variety of formats, not readily accessible. A new international organisation was needed to remedy the situation, an idea that OECD Member country ministers endorsed. In March 2001, the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) was established on the strength of GSF groundwork. Now based in Copenhagen, this independent organisation is supported by its members - countries, economies and international organisations - and works in co-operation with programmes that compile and maintain information resources accessible worldwide. (www.gbif.org).

Neuroscience

Working Group on Neuroinformatics

Date: January 2000 - June 2002

Lead country: United States

Chairman: Stephen Koslow

Click here for the report.

The human brain is by far the most complex system known to man, and understanding it is a major scientific challenge for the 21st century. This fascinating task is made urgent by the potential for practical applications. Advances in our knowledge of the human brain will lead to breakthroughs in the prevention and cure of nervous system disorders and to improvements in the quality of life of millions of people.They will also shed light on the interactions between mind and matter. The GSF Working Group on Neuroinformatics - a field combining neuroscience and the information sciences - met seven times over a period of two years, developing findings and recommendations for international co-operation in this exciting new discipline. Studying the brain requires immense quantities of data at very different levels -from genomics to functional imaging -and the objective lies, above all, in sharing and linking those data. The Group recommended setting up an International Neuroinformatics Co-ordinating Facility to develop standards, interoperability among scientists and funding agencies, and data access formatting.

Genomics

Workshop on Structural Genomics

Date: June 2000

Lead Country: Italy

Chairman: Ivano Bertini

Click here for the report.

Proteins are the workhorse molecules of life. The human DNA genome encodes the chemical compositions of tens of thousands of proteins, but this information alone is insufficient for understanding how our bodies work. For that, it is necessary to experimentally determine the three-dimensional structures of these very large molecules - a difficult, costly, and time-consuming task known as “structural genomics”. The tools of structural genomics (very different from those of gene sequencing) are: giant electron accelerators, huge nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometers, and powerful electron microscopes. Governments that plan to make the necessary long-term commitments and investments want to take maximum advantage of opportunities for international cooperation and coordination - hence the need for an OECD workshop involving both scientists and policymakers. At the GSF workshop, plans and priorities were presented, levels of government support and funding assessed, and trends and international collaborative programmes discussed. Major challenges were identified, for example, optimising strategies for picking target proteins for structural analysis, and protecting intellectual property rights. The discussions at the workshop, which are summarised in the report, contributed to the establishment of the International Structural Genomics Organisation.

International Scientific Co-operation

Workshop on Best Practices in International Scientific Co-operation

Date: February 2003

Lead countries: Japan, Canada

Chairman: Marshall Moffat

Click here for the final report from the workshop.

Establishing, funding and conducting large-scale international research collaborations are complex tasks, involving scientists, universities, research institutes, funding bodies, and various governmental and intergovernmental organisations. Experience has shown that lessons learned are rarely shared.This has resulted in a lack of guidelines for policymakers planning and implementing new multinational scientific research projects. The workshop aimed to identify principles of best practice in creating and sustaining research co-operation. Participants studied the launch and management of coordinated programmes based in more than one country; the design, construction and operation of large-scale centralised facilities; and the creation, linking and maintenance of large databases. Given the enormous diversity of international projects,workshop participants did not aim to enumerate universal principles of co-operation. But their report does identify a number of important issues that need to be considered when embarking on a new large project. The report from the workshop is one of several GSF documents that should be useful during the early stages of international collaborations.

The Working Group on Neutron Sources (1996 - 1998) prepared a report with a quantitative analysis of the future supply of neutrons. The Group prepared recommendations to governments for new regional spallation-type facilities to ensure a globally co-ordinated response to a potential shortage of research neutrons caused by the shutting down of older reactor-based sources. The Working Group also agreed on recommendations regarding upgrades to existing facilities, and the development of advanced instrumentation for neutron scattering.

Also available: A Twenty Years Forward Look at Neutron Scattering Facilities in the OECD Countries and Russia (Technical report by D. Richter and T. Springer).

The Working Group on Nuclear Physics (1996 - 1999) prepared a report containing recommendations for governments concerning large facilities in four areas: electron facilities, heavy ion colliders, heavy ion accelerators, and multi-purpose hadron facilities. The Working Group's report defines a global vision concerning these facilities, taking into consideration the diversity of the field and the need for a long-term balanced strategy for understanding the fundamental structure of matter. Also addressed by the Working Group were important applications in medicine and the treatment of nuclear wastes.

The Working Group on Radio Astronomy (1997 - 1998) addressed two fundamental issues regarding the future of the field: infrastructure needs, and the problems caused by increasing electromagnetic interference from low-orbiting telecommunications satellites. The Group presented a recommendation, approved by the Science Ministers of the OECD Member countries, to establish a Task Force, comprised of high-level representatives from the industry, science and regulatory bodies, to develop a strategy for the coexistence of radio astronomy and telecommunications. Click here for the report and annexes.

The Working Group on Removing Obstacles to International Megascience Co-operation (1996 - 1998) prepared a report with recommendations for governments concerning the principles and practices that should determine access to large-scale research facilities by the scientists coming from countries that do not contribute to the construction or operation of the facilities.

Also available: Report of the Sub-Group on Access to Large-Scale Research Facilities

The Workshop on Global-Scale Issues (March 1998) focused on the integrated scientific assessments as a tool for the scientific community to provide decision-makers with scientific information and advice on global-scale problems. Click here for the reports.

The Workshop on a Deep-Sea Neutrino Observatory (May 1997) considered future plans and prospects for a very large (one cubic kilometre) detector of high-energy neutrinos from astronomical sources. Click here for the report.

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