piner@pur-phy.UUCP (Richard Piner) (11/15/85)
Posted: Fri Nov 8, 1985 4:31 PM EST Msg: AGIF-2110-6992
From: RPARK
To: WHATSNEW
CC: RPark
Subj: What's New
WHAT'S NEW, Friday, November 8, 1985 Washington, D.C.
1. RESTRICTIONS ON ACCESS TO ACADEMIC SUPERCOMPUTER
FACILITIES was taken up by the Council of the American
Physical Society at its November 3rd meeting in San Diego.
The Council adopted a strongly worded statement which
concludes that:
We believe that any attempt by the government to
dictate who may have access to unclassified
academic research facilities must be resisted.
A national policy for access to supercomputers is being
drafted by the Senior Inter-Agency Group on Technology
Transfer (SIGTT). The policy is expected to involve
restrictions on visas issued to visitors from certain
countries prohibiting the person from using a supercomputer.
The logistics of any controls became significantly more
difficult with the announcement by IBM of a vector box for
its 3090 that will have the effect of converting it into a
supercomputer. This can be expected to increase the number
of supercomputers available by hundreds.
2. PORK BARREL FUNDING OF UNIVERSITY RESEARCH FACILITIES IS
THRIVING largely through the efforts of Senator D'Amato
(R-NY). Undaunted by his failure to have $30 million of the
$75 million University Research Initiative of the DoD
earmarked for a computer research facility at Syracuse
(What's New, November 1), he succeeded at having $12 million
for that purpose inserted into the DARPA appropriation. Last
Friday, he successfully put through an amendment to the
Commerce, Justice, State and Judiciary appropriations bill
adding $32 million for "economic development assistance
programs." Of this sum, $11 million is for a Center for
Microelectronics Engineering and Imaging Sciences at the
Rochester Institute of Technology, $4 million is for a
fiber-optics research and development facility in Lexington
County, South Carolina, $13.5 million is for a high
technology research center at Northeastern University and
$3.5 million is for computing systems and engineering
facilities on the University of Nevada, Las Vegas campus. He
seems to have earned the mantle of King of Pork, previously
worn with distinction by Tip O'Neill.
3. OPPOSITION TO STAR WARS is degenerating into personal
attacks according to Jim Ionson, Director of the Innovative
Science and Technology Office of the Strategic Defense
Initiative Organization. Ionson flatly denies the quote
attributed to him in What's New, October 18 that two second
rate scientists are equal to one first rate.
Robert L. Park (202) 429-1946
American Physical Society THAT'S ALL 11/8/85