piner@pur-phy.UUCP (Richard Piner) (01/08/86)
Posted: Fri Dec 27, 1985 4:38 PM EST Msg: KGIF-2145-3006
From: RPARK
To: WHATSNEW
Subj: WHAT'S NEW, December 27, 1985 Washington, D.C.
1. SCIENTIFIC AND ENGINEERING MANPOWER TRENDS for the
remainder of this century are explored in a technical
memorandum issued by the Office of Technology Assessment at the
request of the Science Policy Task Force of the House Committee
on Science and Technology. A projected decline of 22% in the
college-age population in the next decade has led to concern
about the supply of scientists and engineers. Moreover, an
increasing fraction of the college-age population will be black
or Hispanic, groups that have historically shied away from
science and engineering. Increased participation by women
could easily compensate for demographic changes, but women are
discouraged by gender-stereotyped career expectations and
unequal treatment of women in the scientific and engineering
work force. According to the study, they are still at a
considerable disadvantage with respect to salary and promotion.
The study cautions that demographic trends are not necessarily
translated into manpower shortages. Market forces in the form
of salaries and opportunities tend to overwhelm demographics.
In the mid-sixties, the Manpower Mobilization Board was
pressuring universities to increase the production rate of PhD
scientists in anticipation of severe shortages by 1970, which
turned out in fact to be serious surpluses. Apparently mindful
of this history, the report concludes that the government's
role in alleviating shortages of scientists and engineers is
limited. (#052-003-01014-3, $6, OTA, 600 Pa Ave SE, DC 20510)
2. CIRCULAR A-21, the Office of Management and Budget rules
for determining the indirect cost recovery by universities on
federal grants, is being revised along the lines of a recent
recommendation by OSTP, (What's New, November 29). The good
news is that the onerous requirement for effort reporting by
faculty members will be dropped from the new version. Also
missing will be the requirement for documentation of mandatory
cost-sharing. The elimination of the controversial effort
reporting requirement appears to be sweetening to cover the
bitter taste of a provision that would fix the rate for
administrative cost pools at a single fixed percent of modified
total direct costs common to all universities. According to
recently departed Science Advisor to the President, George
Keyworth, this would "alleviate the primary source of acrimony
and suspicion between university administrators, their faculty
and the federal government." Since a national average will be
used to determine the level of administrative costs, the
provision should have zero impact on the budget. For this
reason, administration officials believe that A-21 can be
changed by OMB without going to Congress.
BEST WISHES FOR THE NEW YEAR!
Robert L. Park (202) 429-1946
American Physical Society THAT'S ALL 12/27/85