Citation
Quarterly Report to the Technology Assessment Board, October 1 - December 31, 1990

Material Information

Title:
Quarterly Report to the Technology Assessment Board, October 1 - December 31, 1990
Series Title:
Quarterly Report Office of Technology Assessment
Creator:
Office of Technology Assessment
Publisher:
Office of Technology Assessment
Publication Date:
Language:
English
Physical Description:
69 pages.

Subjects

Subjects / Keywords:
Technology assessment ( LIV )
Genre:
federal government publication ( marcgt )
Spatial Coverage:
Washington, D.C.

Notes

General Note:
This is a quarterly report detailing the budget and progress of the Office of Technology Assessment.

Record Information

Source Institution:
University of North Texas
Holding Location:
University of North Texas
Rights Management:
This item is a work of the U.S. federal government and not subject to copyright pursuant to 17 U.S.C. §105.

Aggregation Information

IUF:
University of Florida
OTA:
Office of Technology Assessment

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CONTENTS I. COMMUNICATION WITH CONGRESS A. Summary of FY '90 Completions, Ongoing Work in FY '91, and New Starts Through December 30, 1991 ....................... 2 B. Products Delivered During the Quarter 1. Reports ................................................... 3 2. Other: Special Reports, Technical Memoranda, Background Papers, Staff Papers or Letter Memoranda, Workshop Proceedings, and Committee Prints ................ 5 3. Testimony ................................................. 7 C. Other Communication with Congress .............................. 8 D. List of Current OTA Assessments as of 12/31/91 ................ 12 E. First Quarter 1991: Legislative Activity Involving OTA F. New Assessments Approved During the Quarter ................... lG II. PUBLICATION BRIEFS OF FORMAL ASSESSMENTS DELIVERED III. SELECTED NEWS CLIPS ON OTA PUBLICATIONS AND ACTIVITIES

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-2-I. COMMUNICATION WITH CONGRESS A. Summary of FY '90 Completions, Ongoing Work in FY '91, and New Starts Through December 31, 1990 Products Released Formal Assessments Other Special Reports Report Supplements Technical Memoranda Background Papers, Case Studies, or Workshop Proceedings Summaries Testimony Staff Papers or Letter Memoranda Administrative Documents New Projects Approved by TAB Assessments Other (Scope Changes; Special Responses Over Director's limits) FY '90 Total 15 16 0 0 11 3 49 15 4 12 0 Ql 2 1 2 1 5 1 4 FY '91 Q2 Q3 Projects in Process as of December 31, 1990 1. Under TAB Review 0 2. In Press Assessments 5 Other (Special Reports, Background Papers, etc.) 4 3. In Progress Assessments 29 Other 39 Q4

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-3-I. COMMUNICATION WITH CONGRESS B. Products Released During the Quarter 1. Reports GENETIC MONITORING AND SCREENING IN THE WORKPLACE -Genetic testing, as used in the workplace, encompasses two activities: screening and monitoring. Genetic screening involves a priori examining employees or prospective employees for certain inherited genetic traits. Genetic monitoring involves periodic testing of employees to evaluate possible changes in their genetic material that might have resulted from workplace exposures. In 1982, OTA surveyed industry and unions to determine the extent of employer genetic testing. Despite finding that "none of the genetic tests evaluated by OTA [met] established scientific criteria for routine use in an occupational setting," OTA found that companies were testing employees, and the results indicated that such testing would increase. In the intervening years, rapid advances in recombinant DNA and human molecular genetics have enormously increased the ability to identify individuals at risk for or susceptible to a variety of conditions, including thalassemias, alpha-I antritrypsin deficiency, manic-depressive disorders, heart disease, hypertension, and some neoplasms. Both the number of applications and the technical capability to detect disorders have increased. With these advances, various concerns have surfaced about new consequences -positive and negative -that the new genetic technologies may have for both employers and employees. This assessment: 1) examines the state-of-the-art (e.g., efficacy, accuracy, cost) of technologies used by employers for genetic screening and monitoring; 2) surveys, at a minimum, the 500 largest U.S. industries, 50 largest utilities, and 11 major unions to determine the current (and future) nature and extent of employer testing; 3) analyzes the impacts genetic testing may have had since the 1982 OTA survey; 4) discusses ethical issues pertinent to worker testing, including worker involvement in testing decisions; and 5) examines legal issues, including employment discrimination, and the role of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

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-4-Requesters: Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation Hon. Ernest Hollings, Chairman Hon. John Danforth, Ranking Minority Member Hon. Albert Gore, Jr., member House Committee on Energy and Commerce Hon. John Dingell, Chairman House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology Hon. Robert Roe, Chairman Endorser Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources Hon. Edward M. Kennedy, Chairman Project Director: Margaret Anderson, 228-6695 published 10/90 BENEATH THE BOTTOM LINE: AGRICULTURAL APPROACHES TO REDUCE AGRICHEMICAL CONTAMINATION OF GROUNDWATER -Groundwater supplies drinking water to fifty percent of the conterminous U.S. population and to roughly ninety percent of the rural population. As monitoring efforts and testing methods have improved over recent years, increasing numbers of agrichemicals (fertilizers and pesticides), some of which are known carcinogens, have been found in drinking water supplies. In some cases, public health concerns have dictated that wells he capped and environmental concerns have led to controversy over the use of wildlife refuges as irrigation tailwater disposal sites. Because known groundwater clean-up methods are largely beyond the financial reach of families or communities, and assignment of liability for "nonpoint source" pollution such as agriculture is extremely difficult, methods to minimize continued introduction of agriculturally-related contaminants to groundwater supplies are the focus of current protection efforts. In order to assess agricultural technology that may reduce groundwater contamination, this OTA report 1) reviews data and literature on extent, types and sources of agrichemical contamination: 2) reviews data and literature on hydrogeological, crop type, and cropping system relationships with contamination; 3) identifies agricultural technologies with potential to reduce introduction of agrichemical contaminants into groundwater; 4) assesses likely impacts of these technologies, especially on the environment, farm economics, rural communities, and the structure of agriculture; and 5) assesses current and potential roles of Federal, State, and private organizations in the development and implementation of technologies.

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-5-Requesters House Committee on Agriculture Hon. E (Kika) de la Garza, Chairman Hon. Edward R. Madigan, Ranking Minority Member Hon. George Brown, member Hon. Pat Roberts, member House Committee on Public Works and Transportation Hon. James J. Howard, then Chairman (now deceased) Hon. John Paul Hammerschmidt, Ranking Minority Member Endorser Hon. Charles Grassley, U.S. Senate Project Director: Alison Hess, 228-6516 published 11/90 (summary published 5/90) I. B. 2. Other: Special Reports, Technical Memoranda, Background Papers, Workshop Proceedings, Committee Prints and Administrative Report CHILDREN'S DENTAL SERVICES UNDER THE MEDICAID PROGRAM -This background paper compares the dental manuals of seven State Medicaid programs with a set of "basic" dental services (which comprise shared components of various well-accepted dental guidelines) to see if States allow these particular services. In addition, OTA surveyed practicing dentists in each of these seven States to see if dentists provide these "basic" services to children under the Medicaid program in their State and, if not, what problems they encountered in trying to provide them. Project Director: Pamela Simerly, 228-6590 published 10/90 ORBITING DEBRIS -A SPACE ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEM -background paper This paper summarizes the current state of knowledge about the causes and distribution of orbiting debris, and examines R&D needs for reducing the problem. Better understanding of the extent and character of "space junk" will be crucial for planning future near-Earth missions, especially those projects involving humans in space. The paper notes that addressing the problem will require the involvement of all nations active in space. The United States has taken the lead to increase international understanding of the issue but much work lies ahead. Project Director: Ray Williamson, 228-6448 published 10/90

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-6-NEURAL GRAFTING: REPAIRING THE BRAIN AND THE SPINAL CORD -This Special Report, the second of OTA' s neuroscience series -Neiv Developments in Neuroscience -discusses the field of neural grafting into the brain and spinal cord to treat neurological disorders. It describes the technology of neural grafting, the neurological conditions that it may be used to treat, and the patient populations that are affected. Also, the legal and ethical issues raised by the development of neural grafting techniques are discussed. This report includes a range of options for congressional action related to the Federal funding of transplantation research using human fetal tissue, the adequacy of existing Federal laws and regulations regarding the use of human fetal tissue, and the role of the Federal Government in guiding the development and promoting the safety and efficacy of neural grafting procedures. Project Director: David Liskowsky, 228-6676 published 10/90 VERIFICATION TECHNOLOGIES: MEASURES FOR MONITORING COMPLIANCE WITH THE START TREATY The Senate Foreign Relations and House Foreign Affairs Committees asked OTA to undertake a study centering on the technologies and techniques of monitoring compliance with the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, still under negotiation. This is a summary of the first of the reports to be produced by that study. The report describes the role of monitoring in the arms control verification process. It surveys the types of on-site inspection and their costs, risks and benefits. It also examines the INF Treaty experience for lessons relevant to START. Our general discussions of the monitoring process and on-site inspections are relevant to other types of arms control as well as to START. The report outlines the monitoring tasks specific to START and suggests the cooperative and unilateral measures available for a START monitoring regime. It does not attempt to predict which of the possible cooperative measures will finally be negotiated in the START Treaty. The full, classified report is available to those with appropriate security clearance and "need to know." Project Director: Tom Karas, 228-6430 published 12/90 ASSESSMENT ACTIVITIES -Administrative Document published 10/90

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-7I. B. 3. Testimony Committee Date 10/1/90 Subcommittee on Energy and Power, House Committee on Energy and Commerce 10/2/90 Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 10/3/90 Subcommittee on Toxic Substances, Environmental Oversight, and Research and Development, Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works 10/4/90 Subcommittee on Civil Service, House Committee on Post Office and Civil Service 10/24/90 House Committee on the Budget Subject/Person Testifying Improving the Fuel Economy of U.S. Automobile Fleet Steven E. Plotkin Relieving U.S. Oil Dependence John H. Gibbons Identifying and Controlling Neurotoxic Substances Mark E. Schaefer Forest Service Strategic Direction Under RPA: Implications for Managers Ross W. Gorte Energy Perspectives John H. Gibbons

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-8-I. C. Other Communication with Congress In addition to briefings and presentations, informal discussions take place continually, as requested by Members and staff. OTA staff members give updates on ongoing work and provide information that Members and Committees may need relative to legislation pending or under consideration or for hearings and related testimony. ENERGY, MATERIALS, AND INTERNATIONAL SECURITY DIVISION Energy and Materials Program Alternative Fuels Alternative Transportation Fuels Automotive Fuel Economy Domestic Oil Use Electric and Magnetic Fields: Federal Research on Health Effects Energy and LDCs and Export Policy Energy Efficiency Energy in Developing Countries Energy Research and Development Energy Security Federal Energy Management Government Energy Use Oil Replacement Capability Oil Supply and Demand Persian Gulf Oil Disruption Product Design and Environment Energy Efficiency Public Utility Holding Company Act Reformulated Gasoline Renewable Energy Technologies Industry. Technology and Employment Program Competition with Japan Economic Conversion Study Europe 1992 Food Stamp Employment and Training Program Manufacturing Competitiveness Pollution Prevention Programs at EPA Superfund Reauthorization Technical Standards Trade Issues Training (Policy Options) U.S. Technology Policy

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-9-International Security and Commerce Program Critical Defense Technologies Defense Production Act Industrial Base Databases Industrial Base Manufacturing International Defense Business Moon/Mars Exploration Police Body Armor Standards and Testing Sea Launched Cruise Missiles START Verification Terrorism and Technology HEALTH AND LIFE SCIENCES DIVISION Biological Applications Program Alzhiemer's Information and Referral Biotechnology Cystic Fibrosis/Genetic Testing DNA and Privacy Epidemiology of Agent Orange Estrogen Deficiency Hormone Replacement Therapy Federal Asbestos Programs (research and removal) Forensic Uses of DNA Tests Genetic Testing in the Workplace Human Genome Projects Immunotoxic Substances Long Term Care Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Osteoporosis Food and Renewable Resources Program AID & Sustainable Agriculture Research Priorities AID and Shipping Regulations for PL-48O Food Audit of Federal Crop Insurance Exotic Species LDC Agriculture Technology Pesticides in Foods Price Forecasting for Grain Update of Dairy Termination Program US Cigarette Advertising in Asian Countries

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Health Program Definition of AIDS -10-Differential Impact of AIDS on Women & Minorities Drug Abuse Treatment International Comparisons of Health Technology and Health Status Mammography Screening Quality Medicaid Outpatient Drug Payment Methods of Health Technology Assessment Oregon's Proposed Medicaid Project Pharmaceutical R&D Physician Payment Review Commission Preventive Services and Cost-Effectiveness Prospective Payment Assessment Commission School Leased Clinics Technology Role in U.S. Health Care System SCIENCE, INFORMATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES DIVISION Communications and Information Technologies Program Automated Firearms Check Census 2000: Standards Computer Software and Intellectual Property FBI Automation Fingerprint Identification Paperwork Reduction Act Gun Control--Electronic Options National Research and Education Network Study NTIS Rural Telecommunications: Standards STI Oceans and Environment Program Clean Air Act and Global Warming Energy Supply Industrial Non-Hazardous Waste Low-Level Nuclear Waste Nuclear Waste Nuclear Weapons Production Plants Oil Spills Old Growth Forests Overview of Climate Change Study R&D money for renewables Toxic Waste

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-11Science, Education and Transportation Program Accountability of Federal Funds by Researchers Basic Research Funding Educational Testing Infrastructure Literacy Magnetic Levitation Technology Public Works Infrastructure Reauthorization of the Higher Education Act Teacher Education Technician Training Tiltrotor Technology Vocational Education Women in Science

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ASSESSMENTS IN PROGRESS, December 31, 1990: BUDGET** AND SCHEDULE <-----------------------------1991----------------------------------> $ Thousands Current Projected Date For Delivery To TAB TAB OTA X ENERGY, MATERIALS, AND INTERNATIONAL SECURITY fi.21... Var. Energy and Materials 1121 Technological Risks and Opportunities for Future U.S. Energy 1126 1127 1128 Supply and Demand .................................................. X New Energy Technologies and Developing Countries ........................................... X U.S. Energy Efficiency: Past Trends and Future Opportunities ................................................................. (Feb. Materials Technology: Integrating Environmental Goals with Product Design .................................................... (Feb. Industry, Technology, and Employment 1992) 1992) 353 755 799.5 636.4 1216 Europe 1992(expansion of cost code 1213) ......................................... X 260 1217 Technology Opportunities for Economic Conversion (in coordination with ISC #1318) .............................................. (May 1992) 750 International Security and Commerce 1315 1316 1317 1318 Technologies for START Agreement .......................................... X 778 International Collaboration in Defense Technologies .............................. X 759 Use of Technology in Countering Terrorism ......................................................... X 534 Managing the Nation's Defense Industrial Strength in a Changing Security Environment (in coordination with ITE #1217) ......... (Mar. 1992) 750 HEALTH AND LIFE SCIENCES Food and Renewable Resources 2116 Emerging Agricultural Technology: Issues for the 1990's .................................... X 412 2117 Renewable Resource Planning Technologies for Public Land Use ....... X 486 2118 Agricultural Alternatives to Coca Production .................................................................................. (Apr. 1992) 297 2119 *Exotic Species in the United States .......................................................................................... (Sept .1992) 694 Health 2203 Monitoring of Mandated Veteran Studies ........................................................................................ (mandated) 88 2222 Drug Labeling in Developing Countries ................................... X 490 2229 Federal Response to AID' s: Congressional Issues ............................................................................... (ongoing) 2231 Government Policies and Pharmaceutical R&D .................................................. X 280 547 2232 Evaluation of the Oregon Medicaid Proposal ................................... (delivery date depends on availability of Oregon's proposal) 135 2233 Home Intravenous and lmmunosuppresive Drug Therapies Under the Medicare Program ...... X 218 Biological Applications 2315 New Developments in Neuroscience ....................................................................................... X 2318 Biotechnology in a Global Economy ............................................... X 2319 Policy Issues in the Prevention and Treatment of Osteoporosis .................................................... X 2320 *Cystic Fibrosis: Implications of Population Screening ....................................................................... (Mar. 690 571 422 1992) 489 SCIENCE, INFORMATION, AND NATURAL RESOURCES Communication and Information Technologies 3122 Information Technology and Research ............................................................ X 3124 Computer Software and Intellectual Property: Meeting the Challenge of Technological Change and Global Competition ............................................................................ X 564 630 Oceans and Environment Program 3218 Cleaning Up the Nation's Defense Nuclear Waste ........................................ X 3219 Medical Waste and other "Non-Hazardous" Solid Waste Issues ......... X 915 135 Science, Education, and Transportation 3313 Basic Research for the 1990' s ........................................... X 3314 Schools, Kids, and Measurement: Technologies of Assessment ...................................................... X 3315 New Ways: Tilt Motor Aircraft and Magnetically Levitated Trains .......................... X 3316 *Technologies for Literacy .................................................................................................... (June 3317 *Federal-Aid Highway Program in the 1990' s ....................................................... X 419 594 716 1992) 138 **TAB App. -TAB approved budget estimates; OTA Proj. -OTA projecteJ h .. L-*Approved by TAB via mail ba -" 1:l/31/90; X Var. -Percent variance of projected cost. 409 713 799.5 636.4 293 750 778 495 316 750 412 461 297 694 19 487 239 510 122 174 792 575 404 489 571 621 892 +16.0 -5.5 +13. 7 -34.8 -40.8 -5.1 -N/A .6 -14.6 -6.7 -9.5 -20.0 +14.8 + .6 -4.1 + 1.2 -1.4 -2.5 150 + 11.1 410 -2.1 587 -1.2 716 138

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-12 -I. D. LIST OF CURRENT OTA ASSESSMENTS AS OF DECEMBER 31, 1990. For further information please call OTA' s Office o-f Congressional Affairs -4-9241 Estimated Cost delivery to Project Director/ code Project lltle TAB for revtew contact ENERGY, MATERIALS, AND INTERNATIONAL SECURITY DIVISION EnellJ and Matertala Protrlffl: Petar Blair, Pr11gn1m Manager, 8-8278 1121 Technological rislanSlon of cost code 1213) ............................................. Mar. 1217 Technology opportunities for economic conversion On coordination with ISC #1318) ..................................................... May lntematlonal Security and Commen:a Pragram: Alan Shaw, Prllgram Manager, 8-6443 1315 Technologies for START agreement ..................................................... Feb. Verification technologies: measures for monitoring compliance with the START treaty (special report) (classified report published 7 /90) (unclassified report published 12/90) 1316 International collaboration In defense technologies . . . . . . . . . Mar. Anning our allies: cooperation and competition in defense technology (special report) (published 5/90) 1317 Use of technology in countering terrorism ............................................. June Technology against terrorism: the Federal effort (special report) (classified report delivered) 1318 Managing the Nation's defense industrial strangth in a changing security environment (in coordination with ITE #1217) ..................................................... Mar. Adjusting the defense technology and Industrial base to a new security environment defining the challenge (back. paper) (Jan. 1991) Future directions for U.S. mllltary force structure (bad<. paper) (Jan. 1991) Planning the transition to the future defense technology and industrial base (May 1991) HEALTH AND LIFE SCIENCES DIVISION Food and Renewable Rnoun:a Pragram: W.Her Pamam, Program Manager, 8-6525 2115 U.S. universities and development assistance: technical support for agriculture, 1991 1991 1991 1992 1991 1991 1991 1992 1991 1992 1991 1991 1991 1992 natural resources, and environment (special report) (in press) ........................... Delivered 2116 Emerging agricultural technology: issues for the 1990s .................................... May 1991 Agricultural research and technology transfer policies for the 1990s: special report for 1990 Farm BIii (published 3/90) Impacts of Bovine somatatropin and other emerging technology on U.S. dairy industry (special report) (In press) 2117 Renewable resource planning technologies for public land use ............................. Jan. 1991 Forest Setvica planning: setting stratsgic direction under RPA ( special report) (published 7 /90) 2118 Agricultural alternatives to coca production .............................................. Apr. 1992 2119 Exotic species in the United States ...................................................... Sept 1992 Hnllll Pragram: Clyu Beflney, Prllgram Manager, 8-6590 2203 Monitoring of mandated veteran studies (mandated ongoing activities) ...................... Mandated 2222 Druo labeH119 In davetoping countries-phase I (published 12/88) ......................... Druo labeling in developing countries-phase II ...................................... Feb. 1991 2225 Adolescent health: time for change (in press) ........................................... Delivered Indian adolescent mental health (special report) (published 1/90) Health Insurance for adolescents (staff paper) (published 8/89) 2229 Federal response to AIDS: congressional issues . . . . . . . . . Ongoing Partial listing only: (contact Project Director for other titles) AIDS and health Insurance: an OTA survey (staff paper) (published 2/88) How affective is AIDS education? (staff paper) (published 6/88) How has Federal research on AIDS/HIV disease contributed to other fields? (staff paper) (published 4/90) The effectiveness of drug abuse treatment implications for controlling AIDS/HIV infection (staff paper) (published 9/90) (OTP) 2231 Government policies and pharmaceutical R&D .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. May 1991 2232 Evaluation of the Oregon Medicaid Proposal . . . . . . . . . . see f.n. 2233 Home intravenous and immunosuppressive drug therapies under the Medicare Program ...... Apr. 1991 Blologlcal Appllcatlona Program: Mldlael Gough, Program Manager, 8-6870 2315 New developments in neuroscience: Neurotoxicily: identifying and controlling poisons of the nervous system (special report) (published 4/90) Neural grafting: repairing the brain and spinal cord (special report) (published 9/90) ...... NOTE: OelYllalllN witll dalll In parenllldo nol require format TAB delivery; tile dale indlcaled is mlimaled detlwry of final draft to tile OTA Olreclor. (OTP)-Otsk T011 Pul>hlling. f;!IV'fll'N rfat~ 1~e~,j, r,n l\1,!!bbiHtv cf '1r~~c.,'4J ~oo~I Alan Crane Steve Plotkin Steve Plotkin Joy Dunkerley Peter Blair John Newman Robin Roy Paul Komor Greg Eyring Julie Gorte Kitty Gillman Tom Karas Willlam Ketler Tony Fainberg Jack Nunn Alison Hess Mike Phillips Ross Gorte Patricia Ourana Phyllis Windle Clyde Behney Bob McDonough Denise Dougherty Maria Hewitt JIii Eden Jane Sisk Judy Wagner Clyde Behney Baine Power David Liskowsky David Liskowsky Phone No. 8-6427 8-6275 8-6275 8-6267 8-6260 8-6273 6-6285 8-6286 8-6270 8-6354 8-6353 8-6430 8-6434 8-6429 8-6446 8-6516 8-6521 8-6520 8-6515 8-6533 8-6590 8-6590 8-6590 8-6590 8-6590 8-6590 8-6590 8-6590 8-6590 8-6676 8-6676

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13 BkllOQICa rtlytllms and shift wortc FefJ. 1991 Thi bio1oQiCa IJasil of mtnti I.,_ ................................................... Oct. 1991 2318 Blotlll:ftnalaOY in a glooal economy .- l(lr. 1991 2319 Poley isMI In tilt pl'Mllllon and trtabnlflt of ostaoporosis ........ 5-, 1991 ScrNaillQ for osteoporosis (bal:IL paper) (July 1991) PullllC adUCadon aoout osteoporosis (back. paper) (summer 1991) 2320 Cys11C flbrosil: impllcatlOIII of pGIIUldon SCl'llflillQ ......... Mar. 1992 SCJEHCE, INFORMATION, AND NATURAL RESOURCES DIVISION c. .. ,.... ............ r .... 11t~-=J c.t111.Pntna-..r,H7111 3122 1ntonnaaon tlldlnOIOQY and rasadt HIQtl perfGmllllCI computing and netwoltdllQ tor sdlncl (bade. paper) (puollsnad 9189) SttldllQ saudonl: hiQh pertannancl computing for sdlncl (bade. paper) (Mar. 1991) NltWOrtdllQ 1111 NaUon: tilt naaona rasacn and eduCallon nttwortc J11111 1991 3123 Rurm Amtrtca at tnt crossroadl: nttwGrtdno tor tht tuan Qn inss) ............... Otlvlnd 3124 Cof111MS softWUI and intllllduat Pf01llllY: mtllllQ thl dlall8l1QIS at llet.llaioglcal dlll1QI and QIOaal COffl1)1111on ........................................... Oct. 1991 011111 &,11 ..... Pre.-: BIii ..... ,,.... ....... MUii 3218 CJlanQIIIQ l:J'/ dlQr8II: sf8pS to radUcl gl'IIIIIIOUSI gases (In prass) ..... Oel!wrld An analySis al thl Monaaat Protocol on suostancn that dapleta ozone layer (stdf paper) (pwlllsllld 12188) 3218 Complex dtlnUV. thl environmentd leoacy at nuclear weapons production ......... Oellwr8d cteanup WOftCllr hlallll rtslcs (bade. paper) (Apr. 1991) Thi rlQUlataly tramtwor1c for DOE weapons COffllHX clanup (bade. paper) (Jan. 1991) ManaailllJ hlgtl-lMI and transuranic radloacttw wasts (bade. paper) (Jan. 1991) 3219 Mldlcat was11 and otlllr non-flmrdoUS-solid wasll issuls: Rnclng tht R. rar manaalnQ medlcal wasl8S Qn prass) Delv8r8d .,.~. solid wastes (bade. paper) (Jan. 1991) Sa-. Edaclllla. a~ Prltra: Nacf Clrla. Pre..-Mllllt, MIZII 3310 Otllvenno tnt goodS: pWlilC wortcs. tacnnolOQY, managlffllllt (In prass) .. Deliwrld RltlUilclllQ tn1 tounddons: Slall and local pueffc wor'ks flnandllQ and managament (Slllda rec,crt> (puollsllld 3190) AdvanCld vefida/hiQIIWaY systems and urtlan trafflc prollltms (stdf paper) (putlllsllld 9189) 3313 Basic 1111111:ft for tnt 1990s FeO. 1991 Researdl fundlllQ and prq,osa pr8ISUl'I in 11111980s: Fedl131 agency trands (stdf paper) (puolisllld 4190) 3314 SdloalS. kids. and measwement llldlnoklQtls of assessment .... .... 5-, 1991 3315 New ways: lilt rotor airmft and ffllGll8CICallY l8'litaild trains .. May 1991 3318 TedlnolOQilS tor lltlt'acy ... Juat 1992 3317 Fedafaf-Aid Hlgl1way PnJQram fortnl 1990'S .. Junt 1991 DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL RESPONSES DlvtliNA 1269 Modat pe,1annanCa standards for tnl l:ood and Nutrition StfW:81 employment and tra1n111Q proonm (mandatad OIIQOino actMty) (May 1991) ...... Mandalld 1490 Updml of 1984 oil disruption assass1111nt (back. paper) (Jan. 1991) 1491 Rlformulatad gasOllnr. an altlmadvt fuel (back. paper) (Mar. 1991) .. 1492 Rttlnmtnt of older vellides: tua affldeney and emission radudlon beneffls (bade. paper) (Jan. 1991) .. 1897 Comparfson at manned and rollotlc approacnes to explorillQ Moon and Mars (bade. paper) (l(lr. 1991) .......... O.....I 2212 Prospective Payment Assassmtnt Commission (mandatad ongoing adlvity) Mandatad 2218 Ptlysldan Payment Review Commisslon (mandated ongoing activity) Mandatad 2389 Federal pollcy Issues In the development and regulation of speciat cart units for persons with dlmtnaa (back. paper) (Mar. 1991) .......... 2394 ldantifytng and controlling lmmunotaxlc suostancas (back. paper) (Jan. 1991) (DTP) 2398 SuMly 111litl of genetic IISUng projtc:t (back. paper) (Apr. 1991) .... 2485 New llldllstJ1m crops and uses of tradtlona cn,ps (back. paper) (In pl'ISS) 2S80 Design of case manaoement component at a f9dll3lly rnandamd lonQ-ttnn IIIIIIIIQlffllllt Cll'I prognm-_ ..................................................... .. StledlnQ case managemc (back. paper) (May 1991) 1111111aat ol case management1Wldlons pnMdad by case management aoencv and by StMCt pravidln (back. paper) (Aug. 1991) 2882 Study of llormone l1placement therapy (bade. paper) (Dec. 91) DMllaC 3489 Nar-lotad-... .nol .... OQY (baclc. paper) (June 1991) ........ 3491 AllocatlnQ tnt radio traquency spectrwn (bade. paper) (Mar. 1991) .... 3492 lntarconnedlon and 01J811 network ard1itldln (bade. paper) (Jan. 1991) 3493 R11Qlf1)rint fdlnlfflcalfon automation (back. Pl!*) (summer 1991) 3494 AutDmatad flrlaml purchaser chedcs (back. Pl!*) (summer 1991) 3888 Bknmedldon tor marine oil spils (baclc. paper) (Mar. 1991) .. Daws Uslcowsky 8-6878 Laura Hall H696 Kevin O'Connor H692 Katie Maslow H888 RolJyn Nlsntmt H690 Jim Curtin 8-6760 UndaGan:la 8-6774 Joan Winston 8-6760 Rosina Bierbaum 8-6845 Petlr Johnson 8-6862 Boo Nlbloelc H8SO KaUlyCox H8S6 Edllb PaQI 8-6939 Da,yt Chullln 8-6933 Mlcha8I Feuer 8-6934 Kevin Oopart 8-6937 Linda Ro1Jef1S 8-6936 Edith Page 8-6939 Margarat HIiton 8-6359 P9tlr Blair 8-6278 Stave Plotkin 8-6275 Stave Plotkin 8-6275 Ray WIiiamson 8-6448 Baine Power 8-6590 Gloria Ruby 8-6590 Katie Maslow 8-6689 HOiiy Gwin 8-6104 Margaret Anderson 8-6695 Marie Wllsn 8-6526 Katie Maslow H888 Katllt Hanna 8-6682 Suri! Paut 8-6760 Jim Curtin 8-6787 Jim Curtin 8-6787 Fred 'M>od 8-6790 Fred 'M>od 8-6790 BIU Wes18rmeyer 8-6848

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-14-I. E. First Quarter 1991: Legislative Activity Involving OTA Laws Mandating Work By OTA P.L. 101-392 Carl D. Perkins Act Amendments Requires OTA (with the permission of the Board) to: 1) evaluate a longitudinal occupational information demonstration program to be established by the National Occupational Information Coordinating Committee; and 2) assess a sample of tests designed for students who have completed secondary school to determine their level of technical knowledge. P.L. 101-511 Defense Department Appropriations Requires the Secretary of Defense to work with OTA in examining Israeli anti-terrorism technologies. P.L. 101-520 Legislative Branch Appropriations Appropriates $19,557,000 for OTA in FY 1991. P.L. 101-549 Clean Air Act Amendments Requires OTA to participate in a study by EPA of whether or not further reductions in emissions from light-duty vehicles and light-duty trucks should be required (for models years commending after January l, 2003). P.L. 101-574 Small Business Administration Reauthorization and Amendments Requires OTA to conduct a study of the effects of deregulation on che economic vitality of rural areas; to be completed within 12 months of enactment. P.L. 101-624 Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act Requires OTA to include, in a study of the effects of information age technology on rural America, an analysis of the feasibility of ensuring that rural citizens in their homes and schools have the ability to acquire, by computer, information in the national library.

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-15Public Laws Citing OTA's Work P.L. 101-510 Appropriations for Military Activities in the Department of Defense Requires the Secretary of Defense to develop a National Defense Manufacturing Technology Plan and to consider work by OTA in the process. P.L. 101-615 Hazardous Materials Transportation Act Amendments Cites an OTA estimate that approximately 1,500,000 emergency response personnel need better basic or advanced training for responding to the unintentional release of hazardous materials at fixed facilities and in transportation.

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-16-I. F. New Assessments Approved During the Quarter Approved by TAB via mail ballot October 10, 1990 Exotic Species in the United States Cystic Fibrosis: Implications of Population Screening Technologies for Literacy Federal-Aid Highway Program for the 1990'

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Publication Briefs

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OTA Report Brief May 1990 Agricultural Approaches To Reduce Agrichemical Contamination of Groundwater Reports of groundwater contamination by agrichem icals have increased over the last two decades: to date, 46 different pesticides have been found in groundwater in 26 States and nitrate contamination is much more common. Fifty percent of the U.S. population uses groundwater for drinking water, 40 percent of inigation water agroecosystems. Agriculture can be characterized by its inherent diversity and thereby presents a variety of obstacles to the easy prevention of groundwater contamination from agricultural practices. Technological opportunities exist to reduce agrichem ical contamination from both point and nonpoint sources.Point-sourcecontrols focus largely on techdraws from groundwatersupplies,and the move ment of water between subsurface and surface bodies raises implications for broader environmental contamination. Considerable uncertainty exists about the extent and implications of agrichemical contami nation of groundwater. Substantial concern has arisen because groundwater is largely beyond the reach of remedial ac tions and contamination is essentially irreversi ble. It is important, then, to prevent contaminants from entering groundwa ter. Mitigating agrichem ical contamination will depend on design and adoption of innovative technologies,managenent practices, and farming methods. No simple formula to reduce groundwater con tamination is likely to be appropriate for all agricultural production systems. Definitions An agrichemical is any chemical compound ap plied in agriculture with intent to enhance plant productivity or to prevent loss of productivity caused by disease or by pests, or a byproduct of agricultural production (e.g., byproducts from live stock manures or crop residues, pesticide rinsate). Only nitrate and certain categories of pesticides are believed to be significant groundwater contami nants. An agroecosystem refers to the blend of physio chemical and ecological parameters as modified by agronomic practices. --Groundwater is water stored below the land's surface in saturated soils and rock formations. Groundwater is not necessarily drinking water, nor is it necessarily suitable for other uses due to naturally high salinity or low withdrawal volumes. Therefore, in some cases, agrichemical contamina tion of groundwater may have little immediate impact on cunent groundwater uses, but may preclude future use as the demand for groundwater changes or as the contaminants migrate into drinking water sources. Groundwater contamination refers to the measura ble presence of an agrichemical or its breakdown products in groundwater, regardless of the level of concentration or the current or projected uses of the water. Thus, it does not necessarily imply the existence or absence of a threat to human health or the environment. niques to improve agri chemical handling such as: 1) improving on-farm agrichemical storage, mix ing, loading, and residue disposal methods; and 2) improving livestockwaste management. Re d uction of nonpoint sources of contamination, such as normal field appli cation of agrichemicals, is far less simple. Improving nonpoint source control may be achieved through enhanced agrichemical efficacy and application ef ficiency to reduce the amount, mobility, toxic ity, and persistence of applied chemicals. Selec tive use and timing of applications also holds promise for reducing groundwater contamina tion potential. Addition ally, nonchemical methods exist to control pests and supply plant nutri-ents (e.g., pest-resistant crops, biological pest control, crop rotations). Agroecosystems and fanning systems are complex and vary greatly across U.S. agricultural regions; and producers are disparate in terms of personal goals, skills, and motivations. Similarly, impacts from agricultural practices vary significantly among However, such opportunities commonly require more sophisticated operations and intensive management efforts. Adoption of technologies and farming systems that reduce potential agrichemical contamination of The Office of Technology Assessment (OI'.A) is an analytical arm of the US. Congress. 01'.A's basic function is to help legislators anticipate and plan for the positive and negative impacts of technological changes.

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groundwater largely depends on effective informa tion delivery and technical assistance programs designed with an understanding of the factors influencing producers' decisions. Although eco nomic factors are key in defining what is financially possible, a variety of personal, social, and environ mental factors also shape decisionmaking. Commercial fertilizers and pesticides have been widely accepted given their time, labor, and productivity benefits; alternatives to their use likely will have to impart similar benefits. Organizations at all levels of govemment Congress, Federal, State, and local-and the private sector are or could become involved in groundwater protection through various regulations, policies, and programs that affect a farmer's choice of agricultural technology. Actions to gain needed knowledge, to develop technologies with potential to reduce contamination, and to inaease adoption or such technologies already are underway. Howev~, interrelationships among these institutions seem likely to hinder development of an integrated, comprehensive approach to reducing agrichemical contamination of groundwater or to reducing the adverse impacts of agriculture on the environment. Policymakers might first focus on the institutions involved, and then on the actions of those institu tions. This will involve reconsidering institutional roles and goals, and aiming policies and programs in directions speciically designed to reduce poten tial contamination. Because losses of agrichemicals to the environment represent lost investments as well as potential costs to society, reduction of "waste" in agricultural production may provide an organizing principle for directing program efforts. Transition to a productive, waste-minimizing agriculture likely will require national attention to agrichemical management and potentially substan tial changes in traditions and practices in hydrogeol ogically vulnerable areas. Modifying agricultural production systems and practices to reduce waste without generating unintended adverse impacts will require considerable knowledge on the part of policymakers, researchers, and practitioners. Because of the extent of site, farming system, and farm variability, developing the knowledge base on which decisions will be made likely will require substantial and long-term investments in data collection, infor mation management, research, and education and extension programs. Prevailing production schemes are highly influ enced by Federal agricultural policies and pro grams, creating certain incentives and disincentives A Shategic: Approach for Protection. of Groundwater From Agrichemical Contamination 1. Clarify institutional roles and establish clear goals for integration of agricultural production and environmental quality. 2. Build the knowledge base to support improved dedsionmaking on agriculture, agrichemical use, and the environment. 3. Redirect Federal agricultural programs to remove disincentives and create incentives to adopt groundwater protection practic:es. 4. Foster a national effort to reduce agrichemical atismal1agement and waste by agrichemical appli cators. to use of speciic technologies or production prac tices. Some of these programs may directly cause intensive agrichemical use, or they may conilictwith other programs indirectly leading to inefficient Modifications in these programs to remove conflicts within and among commodity production, risk reduction, and resource conservation programs may help remove barriers to improved agrichemical management or reduce agrichemical use. A stronger national commitment to reduce agrichem ical mismanagement-improper mixing, inappro priate timing of application, excessive application rates, and mixing or disposal in areas at high risk of contaminating water sources-is needed to help reduce agrichemical contamination of groundwater. This need is in part addressed through applicator training and certification programs, which are required for application of restricted-use pesticides. No similar programs exist for fertilizer applications, nor are fertilizers regulated in any way by EPA. Inconsistencies in State programs result in highly variable levels of management skills. At this time, only summaries of the OTA report on Agricultuml Approaches To Reduce Agrichemiazl Cantaminatitm qf Grrnmdwater are available. The full report is scheduled to be published in August 1990. To order copies of summaries for congressional use, call 4-9241. To order copies of the summary for non-
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OTA Report Brief September 1990 Neural Grafting: Repairing the Brain and Spinal Cord Tens of millions of Americans suffer from some form of neurological disorder. These include neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease); head and spinal cord injury; stroke; and other disorders such as multiple sclerosis and epilepsy (table 1). Conservative estimates from the Na tional Institutes of Health put the cost of neurological disorders at more than $100 billion per year in medical expenses and lost income. Research now indicates that some of these disorders may be treatable by neural grafting, that is, the transplantation of tissue into the brain and spinal cord. What Is Neural Grafting? Neural grafting is a generic term that embraces various treatment goals and uses a number of different materials. Neural grafts can supply chemicals lost as a result of disease and injury to the nervous system, supply new substances that promote the survival or regrowth of nerve cells, or replace nerve cells that have been lost to injury or disease. ITTA finds that, at this time, the use of neural grafting to treat neurological disorders is highly experi mental and much additional research is needed before its efficacy in treating any disorder can be determined. Even in the case of Parkinson's disease, in which the use of neural grafting has advanced the farthest, there is still much additional information that should be collected before neural grafting can be adapted for general use in treating this disorder. ITTA also finds that of the different materials that are currently being studied for their usefulness in neural grafting, fetal central nervous system tissue is the most effective. It is possible that, for some uses, other sources of neural grafting tissue will eventually supplant fetal tissue. Other possible neural graft materials include cultured and Table 1-Prevalence of Neurologlcal Disorders In the United States Neurological disorder Alzheimer's disease ................... Stroke .......................... Epilepsy .................... Parilinson's disease ............... Multiple sclerosis ..................... Spinal cord injury ................ Brain injury ...................... Hunting1Dn's disease ................... Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis ............ Prevalence 1 to 5 million 2.8 million 1.5milllon 500,000 to 650,000 250,000 180,000 70,000 to 90,000" 25,000 15,000 8Estimate ot persons permanently disabled from head injury. NOTE; Praval"""" is defined as the total number of cases of a disease estimated to be In existence in the United Stat at any giv9n time. SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment, 1990. genetically engineered cells, and tissues of other organs and areas of the nervous system from the patient's own body. The ability of a particular material to incorporate into the host and achieve a therapeutic effect without inducing adverse side effects will determine the usefulness of that material for neural grafting procedures. The use of neural grafts has advanced to clinical human research for the treatment of only one neurological disorder-Parkinson's disease. Neural grafts for Parkinson's disease are designed to replace the brain chemical dopamine. In Parkinson's disease dopamine is depleted due to the death of a specific type of brain cell. Two sources of tissue have been used to try and accomplish this goal-fetal tissue and tissue from the patient's own adrenal gland. As of 1990, between 300 and 400 persons with Parkinson's disease had received neural grafts worldwide. About 100 of them have received grafts of fetal neural tissue, the remainder have received grafts of tissue from their own adrenal gland. In the United States, approximately 130 patients have been treated with adre nal tissue, and fewer then 10 have had fetal tissue implants. Questions about whether sufficient information has been derived from basic animal research to warrant the move to human experimentation have been raised about both of these procedures. In the case of adrenal grafts, many persons in the medical and scientific communities have retreated from the enthusiasm that accompanied initial use and feel that additional data from basic research is needed. In the case of fetal tissue grafts, many believe that limited and carefully controlled study of grafting in humans, coupled with additional animal research, is appropriate and timely. The use of neural grafting to treat other neurological conditions is still at the stage of animal experimentation. Much basic research is being conducted to examine what Table 2--Federal Funding of Neural Grafting Research (In mllllons of dollars) A2e~ 1987 1988 1989 1990 National Institutes of Health: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke .. 4.1 6.5 7.3 7.5 National Eye Institute ........... 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.6 National Institute on Aging ....... 1.1 1.1 1.6 2.1 National Institute of Child Health and Human Development ...... 0.2 0.4 0.4 Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Mental Health Administration ................. 0.3 0.3 0.5 0.4 Department of Veterans Affairs ........ 0.4 0.5 0.5 0.5 National Science Foundation ........ 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 aEstimatad. SOURCE: Office of Technology Assessment, 1990. The Office of Technology Assessment (ITTA) is an analytical arm of the U.S. Congress. ITTA's basic function is to help legislators anticipate and plan for the positive and negative impacts of technological changes.

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role neural grafts might play in disorders such as Alz heimer's disease, Huntington's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, brain and spinal cord injury, stroke, epi lepsy, and multiple sclerosis (table 2). While neural grafting holds the promise of new treatments for some of these neurological disorders, a final determination of its usefulness awaits further information about the mechanisms underlying neurological disorders, graft functions, and how those functions relate to various neurological disorders. Legal and Ethical Concerns The development of neural grafting raises a number of legal and ethical questions that relate to sources of graft materials and the protection of neural graft recipients. The use of electively aborted fetal tissue in research and therapy has engendered an ethical controversy in the United States. Questions regarding the appropriateness of using such tissue and the guidelines for its donation, procurement, and distribution remain umesolved. This controversy has led to a moratorium, imposed in 1988 by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) prohibiting Federal funding of research involving the implantation of human fetal tissue from induced abortions into human patients. This moratorium has precluded any Federal support of such research. In a second area of concern, OTA finds that the current Federal regulatory framework regarding fetal research and organ donation does not explicitly address the use of tissues from fetal cadavers. The current DHHS regulations for the protection of human subjects in research,. which has specific provisions for research on living fetuses, defer to State law regarding the use of tissue from fetal cadavers. Even if Federal funding of grafting research were to be reinstated there will be no specific regulations pertaining to the use of cadaveric fetal tissue for transplantation research supported by the DHHS. Also, the National Organ Transplant Act, which prohibits the sale of organs for donation, does not list the brain or other nervous system components as organs that are included in its jurisdiction. Unless the National Organ Transplant Act is amended, payment for the donation of fetal nervous system tissue will not be banned by Federal law, although it might be banned by State laws. Lastly, the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act, which was approved by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws to regulate the donation and distribution of cadaveric or gans, is another body of law which could be used to regulate fetal tissue grafts; however, it contains provisions related to the donation of organs that some feel do not take into account concerns raised by fetal tissue donation. Finally, the questions that SUITounded the move from basic animal experimentation to use in humans of neural grafting for the treatment of Parkinson's disease have rekindled debates about the level of oveISight that accompanies the development and introduction of new surgical and medical procedures. Unlike the intricate system of regulation by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to ensure the safety and ef:fic:acy of articles intended for use in the diagnosis, treatment, or prevention of disease, there is no direct Federal regulation of new surgical procedures. OTA finds that the role of the FDA in regulating neural graft materials is unclear. For each possible neural graft material, a decision as to whether the FDA will regulate it and how that material will be categorized must be made. The development of neural grafting procedures using materials that do not fall under the purview of the FDA will be guided by the existing mechanisms that clirect the development of new surgical and medical procedures. These include indirect regulation through third-party payers such as Federal and private insurers, hospital standards set by the Joint Commission on Acaeditation of Healthcare Organizations, profes sional standards of practice, State Llcensing laws, and medical malpractice cases. Issues and Options for Congress Policy issues for possible congressional action raised by the development of neural grafting include: Should the Federal Government fund human fetal tissue transplantation research? Congressional op tions include commissioning a study to assess the impact on society of Federal funding for human fetal tissue transplantation research, or enacting legislation to permit Federal funding of such research. Do existing Federal laws and regulations goTJerning organ transplantation adequately address concerns raised by human fetal tissue transplantation? Con gressional options include establishing a com mission to recommend Federal policy on human fetal transplants; encouraging the National Con ference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws to amend the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act; directing the Secretary of Health and Human Services to amend current regulations regarding the protection of human subjects; and amending the National Organ Transplant Act so that it includes nervous system tissue. Should the Federal GoTJernment take further action to guide the development and promote the safety and efficacy of neural grafting procedures? Congressional options include directing the National Institutes of Health to establish guidelines for neural graft ing research protocols with humans, directing the Secretary of Health and Human Services to coor dinate federally funded human neural grafting trials, and mandating that the Agency for Health Care and Policy Research monitor the development of neural grafting procedures. Copies of the report for congressional use are available by calling 4-9241. Copies of the report for non-congressional use can be urdered from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Qroernment Printing Offia, r\ashingtan, DC 20402-9325 (202) 783-3238. The GPO stoclc number for the OTA report, "Neural Grafting: Repairing the Brain and Spinal Cord," is 052-003-01212-0. The price is $10.00. For further information contact OTA' s Publications Office .Address: OTA, U.S. Congress, r\ashington, DC 20510-8025 (202) 224-8996.

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I) OTA Report Brief October 1990 Genetic Monitoring and Screening in the Workplace Genetic monitoring and screening have the poten tial to significantly change the workplace by detect ing individuals who are at increased risk for both occupational and nonoccupational diseases and by detecting genetic effects of specific exposures. These technologies can identify genetic abnormalities that may be associated with inherited diseases, suscepti bilities, and traits in otherwise healthy, asympto matic individuals. The ability to diagnose latent conditions (both occupationally and nonoccupa tionally related) through genetic monitoring and screening raises policy questions about their proper use. Genetic screening differs significantly from ge netic monitoring. With screening, a one-ti.me test to detect one or more traits in a worker or job applicant is usually sufficient, while monitoring generally involves multiple tests of a worker over ti.me. Most importantly, genetic screening focuses on the pre existing genetic makeup that workers or job applicants bring to the job. This is distinct from genetic monitoring, which focuses on workplace hazardous exposures that induce changes in the genetic material in an exposed population as a whole. Survey Results To assess the current practice of genetic monitor ing and screening by U.S. employers, a survey was conducted for OTA from March 24 to July 15, 1989, by Schulman, Ronca, & Bucuvalas. This survey is a followup to a 1982 survey conducted for an OTA report published in 1983. The 1989 survey examined past, current, and future usage of genetic monitor ing and screening, and surveyed the chief health and personnel officers of 1,500 U.S. companies, the 50 largest utilities, and the presidents of 33 major unions. Of Fortune 500 companies surveyed, the Office of Technology Assessment found 12 compa nies reporting current use of genetic monitoring or screening tests. Eight additional Fortune 500 compa nies had conducted genetic monitoring or screening in the past 19 years-for a total of 20 companies that conduct or had conducted genetic monitoring or screening in the past 19 years (1970-89). The 1982 OTA survey found that 6 companies were then conducting genetic monitoring or screening and Box A-Terminology Genetic monitoring involves periodically ex amining employees to evaluate modifications of their genetic material---e.g., chromosomal damage or evidence of increased occurrence of molecular mutations-that might have evolved in the course of employment. The putative cause is workplace exposure to hazardous substances, and the premise is that such changes could indicate increased risk of future illness. Because ambient exposures, personal habits and lifestyle decisions (e.g., tobacco use, etc.), and age can also induce changes in genetic material, genetic monitoring ascertains whether the genetic material of a group of individuals has altered over time. In general, cun-ent techniques are not exposure specific, but serve merely as an indicator of recent exposure. Genetic saeening involves assays to examine the genetic makeup of employees or job applicants for certain inherited characteristics. (Employees could be screened on different occasions for different traits or with improved technology, but generally only once per characteristic.) Genetic saeening can be used in two distinct ways. FlI'St, employees or job applicants could be screened for the presence of genetically determined traits that render them susceptible to a pathological effect if exposed to specific agents. An example of such genetic screening would be testing for a trait that might identify an employee or job applicant with a genetic predisposition to an occupationally related disease. Second, employees or job applicants could be saeened to detect general heritable conditions, not just conditions associated with occupational illness. In either case, whether screening for an occupationally related trait or one unrelated to job exposure, genetic screening tests involve examinations for inherited traits where a single measure is usually sufficient because these inherited characteristics, as a rule, do not change. that 12 had conducted genetic monitoring or screening for a total of 18 companies that had conducted genetic monitoring or screening in the period 1970 to 1982. These figures suggest little change between 1982 and 1989 in the number of companies that had used genetic monitoring or screening in the workplace. The Office of Technology Assessment (OI'A) is an analytical arm of the U.S. Congress. OI'A's basic function is to help legislators anticipate and plan for the positive and negative impacts of technological changes.

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Ethical and Legal Concerns Several social and ethical concerns are raised by the use of genetic monitoring and screening in the workplace. Should genetic monitoring and saeen ing be performed in the workplace, and if so, who decides whether an employee or job applicant undergoes testing? Should information gained from tests be used in employment decisions such as hiring, firing, or placement? Who should have access to information obtained from genetic moni toring and screening and how should results be stored? How should results be communicated to workers and employers? An important aspect of such communication is the context in which it occurs. Workplace genetic moni toring and screening is an atypical setting for receiving information of such personal importance. The effects and results of genetic monitoring and screening transcend the workplace, and raise issues for the individual who is tested-not just as a worker-but as a person and a family member. Employers undertaking genetic monitoring and screening programs need to anticipate the complex ity of interpretation and communication of test results. Over the past several years, changes directly affecting the law related to genetic monitoring and screening have been modest, perhaps because the technologies have yet to see wide application. Only a limited body of law deals directly with genetic monitoring and screening in the workplace. An inaeasing body of case law is developing, however, over employer screening for drug use and AJDS. At least four States limit~ use of genetic information in employment decisions. F'mally, there has been limited Federal regulatory law specifically addressing genetic monitoring or screening in the workplace. In addition to several longstanding pieces of Federal legislation, e.g., the Occupational Safety and Health Act, Title vn of the Civil Rights Act, and the Rehabilitation Act, a new law, the Americans with Disabilities .Act extends a clear and comprehensive prohibition of disaiminationagainst individuals with disabilities in employment prac tices. Issues and Options for Congress While technologies associated with genetic moni toring and screening in the workplace have continued to advance, OTA found no significant change in the use of these technologies since 1982. Thus, several of the policy issues and options for congres sional action offered in the 1983 OTA report are still valid and remain unchanged. OTA identified two central policy issues relevant to genetic monitoring and screening in the workplace: the appropriate role of the Federal Government in the regulation, oversight, or promotion of genetic monitoring and screening tests; and the adequacy of federally sponsored research on the relationships between genes and the environment. Capio of ths report far amgressioruu use llTe available 1,y ailling 4-924:1. Capio of ths report far non-amgressional use am be ordered frr,m ths .Supmntauient of Documents, U.S. Gaoemmmt Printing Offia, r\&shingtrm, DC 20402-9325 (202) 783-3238. GPO stodc numJJer far ths OTA report, "Genetic Monitoring and Scmming in ths Ybrkplaa," is 052-003--01217-1. price is $12.00. Sumnuzries of reports are emailabl.e at no charge frr,m ths Offia of Technology Assessment. Far further information amtact OTA' s Publiaztions Office. Address: OTA, U.S. Congress, r\&shingtrm, DC 2051()-8025 (202) 224-8996.

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OTA Report Brief December 1990 Verification Technologies: Measures for Monitoring Compliance With the START Treaty Since 1982, the United States and the Soviet Union have been negotiating in the Strategic Arms Reduction Talks (START) to reduce and limit deployments of offensive nuclear weapons on Intercontinental BallisticMissiles (ICBMs), Submarine-Launched Bal listic Missiles (SLBMs), and long-range bombers. In 1991 the Administration is likely to submit a START Treaty to the Senate for its advice and consent The worth of the Treaty will depend on whether it offers a net gain in national security. In making that judgment, Congress must consider several key factors: the value of mutually reducing or limiting forces, the resilience of the United States' remaining forces, the incentives and disincentives for the other party to cheat on the agreement, the overall efficacy of U.S. intelligence about Soviet strategic forces, and the benefits and costs of the monitoring and verifica tion regime. Of these five factors, and with the agreement ,of the requesting Committees, OTA has addressed only the last one. Monitoring compliance with the Treaty will require estimating numbers and characteristics of the constrained weapon systems. Arriving at those estimates will involve the identification, compila tion, assessment, and analysis of many pieces and types of evidence. Intelligence sources-primarily National Technical Means (NTM), including satelli ties and other systems-will collect most of this evidence, but cooperative measures, particularly data exchanges, on-site monitoring, and inspections (OSO, will also make important contributions. Additional cooperative verification measures can enhance the utility of both NTM and OSI in monitoring arms control compliance. These measures include: agreements not to interfere with NTM in certain ways (e.g., not to encrypt or otherwise conceal missile test telemetry); declarations about force structures, military facilities, and operational practices; and notifications of such activities as missile tests and mobile missile movements, which can complicate deception efforts and help inspectors choose the best times and places to inspect. The most reliable way to monitor compliance with-and deter violation of-limits on START treaty-limited items (TLis) will be to observe TLis (both by NTM and OSI) at several stages of their "life-cycles." The potentially monitorable stages include: design and development, test and evaluation, production, deployment, storage, maintenance and repair, exercise, reliability testing, and elimination. On-site inspection at some of these stages could force the potential cheater to try to construct secretly and to conceal separate facilities and organizations to produce and support any illicit weapon deployments. Such an infrastructure could be costly, and it might also be at risk of detection by N1M. In its report, OTA identifies hypothetical "cheating scenarios" by which a determined Soviet Union might attempt to secretly violate some of the START limitations on ICBMs, SLBMs, and bomber weapons. For example, they might consider producing and hiding excess rail-mobile SS-24 ICBMs and launchers. These illicit railroad cars might later be joined up with allowed SS-24 trains in a rapid breakout from treaty constraints. The validity of this and other scenarios for Soviet cheating on START needs to be evaluated not only in terms of the technical feasibility of the potential violation, but also in terms of the probable cost and difficulty of the required deception, the nature of the military advantage to be expected from successful cheating, and estimates of the Soviet propensity for cheating. Arms control monitoring capabilities will always fall short of perfection. For the United States, developing a verification regime for START has involved a multidimensional tradeoff among a variety of costs, risks, benefits, and constraints. These include: gains in monitoring confidence expected from additional expenditures on N'I'M and on inspection arrangements and the resources available to spend on such measures; the risks of revealing some secret monitoring capabilities by confronting the Soviets with evidence of noncompliance; the risks of exposing military, intelligence, scientific, engineering, and industrial sites to Soviet inspection and the resources available to The Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) is an analytical arm of the U.S. Congress. OTA's basic function is to help legislators anticipate and plan for the positive and negative impacts of technological changes.

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spend on protecting potential inspection sites from intelligence gathering by Soviet inspec tors; consistency of inspection ammgements with the Fourth and F'tfth Amendments of the Constitution (which limit property searches and self-incrimination); what on-site and other cooperative measures the Soviet Union is willing to accept; the degree to which the United States wishes to preserve some kinds of flexibility for U.S. forces, and therefore take on more difficult monitoring tasks.1 Thus, there is no objective or quantifiable answer to the question, ''how much veriiic:ation is enough?" Instead, evaluation of the prospec:tive START verification regime must be a complex economic, political, military, and diplomatic judgment. TM full OTA on "Verification Thnolops: Measuns for Monitoring Compliant% With the START Trmty'' is c1Jlssifietl, and only a SUfflfflll1'!/ has hem rdased fur full publiartion. Copies are amilabk uy ailling (202) 224-8996. Cmg,essio,ud users with neSSIZl'Y security cleanmt:es 1ffllY obtain a,pia af the full uy ailling 8-6420. Other c!.etmd users 1ff1ZY obtain the through the Defense Technical In[omuttion Carter, AD# C-958052 lPore,rample. permitting deployment of heavy bamben that no longer carry nuclear weapons. bombers that do not carry Air-Launched Cruise Missiles (ALQ{s), and bombers that do carry AlOls n:qums distinguishing among these types and mon:itming whether significant numben of one type have been amverted to another type. VERIFICATION TECHNOLOGIES Measures for Monitoring Compliance With the START Treaty ~S~Y w CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES OFf'ICE OF TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT Arms control monitoring may be thought of as the continuous assembling of many pieces of a puzzle to form a coherent picture. A potential cheater in an arms control agreement might strive to hide some pieces and fake others to lead the monitors to generate a false picture. But creating a coherent, internally consistent, and lasting false picture for vigilant observers is not easy. The monitors can adopt various tactics to make it stlll more difficult Because many of the specific methods of monitoring are highly secret, the potential cheater can never be certain which specific pieces of the puzzle are being collected. In addition, the verification provisions of a treaty can be designed to increase the cost or difficulty of cheating. Monitoring measures that increase the number, variety, and complexity of the false pieces of information that the cheater must create can improve the monitoring process~

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Selected News Clips on OTA Publications and Activities The following is a representative sample (about 2.5 percent) of the clippings received during the last quarter. These clippings refer to 14 different OTA publications. Members of Congress participated in the public release of 4 of the 5 publications issued this quarter. OTA ASSESSMENT REPORTS Genetic Monitoring and Screening in the Workplace Neural Grafting: Repairing the Brain and Spinal Cord Worker Training: Competing in the New International Economy Electronic Bulls and Bears: Competing in the New International Economy The Use of Integrity Tests for Pre-employment Screening Replacing Gasoline: Alternative Fuels for Light-Duty Vehicles Forest Service Planning: Setting Strategic Direction Under RPA Unconventional Cancer Treatments Health Care in Rural America Confused Minds, Burdened Families: Finding Help for People With Alzheimer's and Other Dementias Genetic Witness: Forensic Uses of DNA Tests OTA TECHNICAL MEMORANDA, BACKGROUND PAPERS, AND OTHER DOCUMENTS Orbiting Debris: A Space Environmental Problem Children's Dental Services Under the Medicaid Program Costs and Effectiveness of Colorectal Cancer Screening for the Elderly

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11 I 'QI'.bt mtam t 1b~tal~ MIAMI, FLA Fl-148 0. 462,458 OCT 25 1990 BUB/f~ Few U.S. companies use genetic tests to screen workers, report says IJ WASHINGTON (AP) -Few American companies are using genetic tests to monitor or screen workers for disease or disabling conditions, according to a congres, sional report released Wednesday. Techniques used to read genes have improved greatly-in recent years, but surveys of large U.S. I companies showed genetic testing was not much more popular in 1989 than it was in 1982, the report said. This means Congress still has time to consider the impact of these technologies and move to safeguard workers' rights, said Sen. Al Gore, D-Tenn., who requested the Office of_ Technology Assessment report. "To a large extent, there are few clear guidelines on how these tests can be used or how workers can be protected from having their rights violated," Gore said. "There is a clear need for a ... careful examina tion of how these tests might be used to discriminate against workers found to have certain genetic r characteristics.''. The OTA's 1989 survey of the nation's 500 largest companies pro duced responses from 330. Twelve reported current use of genetic monitoring or screening and eight others said they had conducted these tests at 90D1e time since 1970. A similar OTA survey in 1982 elicited responses from 366 compa nies, with six saying these tests were in current use and 19 indicat ing past use. The report also said companies responding to Uie 1989 survey indicated less. in~erest in future genetic testing than did the-companies in th~ _1982 survey. Margaret Anderson, project director, said it was not clear why more companies are not testing, but she said cost, ranging from $200 to $980 a person, is probably a factor. As with most technological advances, genetic testing has its promise and problems. On the plus side, genetic screen ing can help reduce diseases, alert ing an employer to a worker's potential susceptibility to disease from an occupational exposure, the report said. However. the technology could be used by employers to screen out workers and job applicants who are at high risk of developing genetical ly-based diseases and could impose high costs on the company's health insurance program, the report said. Genetic tests are available to detect sickle cell anemia, cystic fibrosis, Huntington's disease, hemophilia, Duchenne muscular dystrophy and other diseases. Future tests could screen for such things as hypertension, dyslexia, Alzheimer's disease and cancer, the report said. A major project under way at the i National Institutes of Health to map and sequence the human genome is expected to have a significant impact on genetic screening. The report notes that the work place is not the usual place for peo ple to be given such personal data, and emphasizes tne importance of companies to provide counseling and appropriate referrals if they are going to test. ~-"The effects ol a.enetic moni toring and screening raise issues for .the individual tested not just as a worker, but as a person and family member," the report said.

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Gene tests still rare in U.S. firms ~Jql'/ By Elizabeth Douglass Tribune Financial Writer Genetic testing is coming of age in the nation's laboratories, but so far only a handful of U.S_. employ~rs are using the controversial techmqu~ to pre-screen job applicants or monitor the health of their employees. Twelve of the nation's 500 largest firms said they use genetic scree~ing or monitoring, while another eight companies acknowledged using the test at least once in the past 19 years, according to a survey released today by the congressional Office of Technology Assessment. Chief health officers and pe~nel officers from 330 so-called Fortune 500 companies responded to the survey, which was conducted. last year, the OTA said. Representatives at 470 utilities, labor unions and other companies also responded to the survey_. The survey shows that gene~1c testing in the workplace has in creased only slightly since 1982, despite fears that the technology would become widely used by employers before state and federal governments could address the sticky issues of privacy rights and job discrimination. In 1982, six of the top 500 firms had active genetic testing programs, while 12 others had testing programs between 1970 and 1982, according to the earlier OT A report. "Because this survey shows no significant change in use, there is stiU Please see TESTING: A-20, Col. 6 (.,, A 584 TRIBIJHE SAN DIEGO, CA DAILY 125,000 WEDNESDAY OCT zq 1990 TESTING Contmued From A-19 C JQ time to consider the impact of these technologies and what Congress might do to safeguard rights that could be affected by this testing," said Sen. Albert Gore, O-Tenn., who requested the two studies as chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Science, Technology and Space. "There is a clear need for a concerted, organized and careful examination of how these tests might be used to discriminate against workers found to have certain genetic characteristics," he said. Genetic tests, usually drawn from a blood sample, reveal a person's individual genetic traits, chromosome changes or changes in DNA, all of which give clues to what diseases, if any, a person may develop or be prone to develop. Though scientists now ~an link certain. genetic traits to specific diseases, genetics are only part of the equation. Many other factors, including whether a person smokes or is exposed to harmful chemicals or radiation, also help determine if a worker will develop certain diseases. Nonetheless, employers have expressed interest in using the tests to pre-screen employees, arguing that knowing an employee's pre-existing conditions will help the company avoid placing workers in a potential ly harmful work environment. Critics contend that such pre-em ployment screening would allow employers to discriminate against peo ple with certain genetic traits in order to reduce health care costs. Some employers also have genetic monitoring programs, which test workers periodically for changes in their genetic makeup. These programs are most often used by comp a ni es whose employees work around radiation or harmful chemicals or compounds. In some cases, the genetic monitoring programs were set up at the request of employees, who want to be able to spot any potential problems before the symptoms appear. One of biggest issues raised by genetic testing in the workplace is who has a rig:-t to the information once it is compiled and analyzed. ATLAfH A JOURNt=il ATLII-HTA, GA D.:iIU 18, 3S3 TUESDtrr' OCT 30 1990 UE VITAL STATISTICS Genetic screeningWho wants it? Americans believe genetic tests should be available to anyone who wants them, but they may not neces sarily make use of them, accord Ing an Office of Technology Assessment report released last week. More than 1,000 Americans were asked: Ii\ Would you take a genetic test that might indi cate whether you would develop a fatal disease later in life: Yes ........... 66% -No ................. 29%. Not sure ............. 4% lj\ If a genetic test could indi cate whether your children would inherit a fatal genetic disease would you take it before having children? Yes ........... 83%U No ................. 15%. Not sure ............. 3% I Source: Louis Harris Associates/OTA Staff

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'lo SCIENCE lfAGAZIHE WASHIHGTOH, OC WEKLV 130,000 HOU 9 1990 -.,043 Bu__~~ Employers Shun Genetic Screening There has been "'lmle or no growth" m the use of genetic monitoring or saeening tech nologies m the workplace m the past 7 years, despite "impres sive" improvements 1n such rests, according to a report from the Otfae of Technology .-\ssessment 1OT:\).* 11I Geneoc screening 1s a one nme test to ,denntv mhented i trJJts and diseases. ~1onitoring detects moditicaoons to genetic maten.tl from workplace toxins and other factors. Both have been controversial from the beginning. Pnvacv advocates "orrv that mformanon could be used co discnmmate against employees, while health experts ,ee ,r as porennallv valuable in 1denti!vmg workplace hazards as well as md1v1du.tl vulnerabili nes. Still, there has been a dearth of Kcepted gu1delmes for ge nenc testing. :\nd m the face of a welter of onerous ethical di lemmas, new laws protecting workers from d1scrimmat1on, and "legal questions of the most sensitive sort," reports the OTA, The report, .. Gcncnc ,\\onitonng Jnd Screening in the Workpl.1cc. "is .iv:ul.ible tor S 12 from [he L" S Government rnncing Office, W.1~hington, DC ~0402-'1325 industry has shown little enthusiasm for genetic screening and monitoring programs. According to a ,urvey con ducted last vear, onlv 12 of 300 "'F~rtune 500" co~panies do genetic screening. One of the 12, a petroleum company, .tlso does cytogenenc monitoring. OT A says its current survey re veals chat even fewer companies anticipate future use of genetic technologies than rhev did in 1982. The report was released by Senator :\I Gore ( D-Tenn. ), who said "because this survey shows no significant change m use, there is mil time" for Con gress to sort out how genetic tests should be used. BEAUKOHT EHTERPRISE 8EAUl10NT, TX OAILV 67,004 fRIDAV HOU 2 1990 4l BU(!REUPS GE 'Guards needed on new genetic tests S {_, lf d--q 1 Y [ EDITORIAL. Jc1ear why more companies are en. Albert Gore Jr., D-Tenn., not testing, but the cost, which became the first to suggest in ranges from $200 to $980 a perCongress recently that legisson, probably is a factor. lation is neet1ed to safeguard Gore wants Congress to move workers' rights before employ-on testing regulations now, beers begin widespread screening fore the practice becorpes more for genetic diseases. widespread. With the tremendous increases in medical technology come some very human questions. Genetic tests are available to detect sickle cell anemia, cystic fibrosis, Huntington's disease, hemophilia, Duchenne muscular dystrophy and other diseases. Future tests could screen for such things as hypertension, dyslexia, Alzheimer's disease and cancer. A lot of questions will have to be answered about whether employers should require such tests, on the confidentiality of the tests and on who has a right to know about them. Should insurance companies, for example, be allowed access to the information or require such tests before issuing a health policy? Employee testing is legal, and American companies operate under a free system that allows them to hire the best person to meet the company's needs. Obviously, these tests will save lives. People will want to take the tests if they believe there is the slightest chance they Genetic screening can help may have a genetic problem. save lives by alerting an emBut people also fear employers ployer to a worker's susceptibiliwill turn down job applicants ty to a particular occupational with high risks for such diseases exposure. And job candidates because of the costs to company would benefit from knowing the insurance programs. results of the tests, even if they are not hired. Gore released a report by the 1 Office of Technolo_gy Assess' So, any proposed legislation ment, which showed thaf-few should be drawn carefully so it corT~panies now require genetic ~oes n~t disco_urage pot~ntially testing of employees or applilife-saving testing, or mfnnge on cants. An OTA survey in 1989 the employer's rights while prodrew responses from 330 of the tecti?g the ~ights of employees nation's largest companies; only and Job applicants. 12 reported current use ofgenet-We shouldn't rush in without ic monitoring or screening and plenty of discussion, and witheight others said they had con-out at least some indication that ducted these tests at some time companies may be abusing the since 1970. OTA said it was not tests.

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Making the workplace safe is the solution to genetic-screening issue 0~91'{ By Arthur Caplan the Office of Technology Assessment, makes On Oct. 10, the U.S. Supreme Court heard ii clear that the Supreme Court decision in arguments in the Johnson Controls case. the Johnson Controls case will have implicaJohns'on Controls is a Milwaukee-based com-lions for all Americans men and women. pany that manufactures automobile batter-The report analyzes genetic teats soon to ies. Because some of the chemicals used In become available that will reveal who making the batteries may cause birth deamong us is most likely to get diabetes, can-lects in a developing fetus, the company in~r, byperte~ion, severe depression or mul-sUtuted a policy barrin& any woman capable t1ple scleroslS. In order to control their sky-of bearing a child from the factory floor. rocketmg b~ltb ~osts, companies will be Some women at Johnson Controls are fight-eager to av01d hl~mg thoee w~o these tests mg the policy on grounds that the company predict ~re most hkely to get s1~k. is practicing gender selection. Genellc-screemng tests also will be widely available soon. These tests can detect genetBusinesses should be required to create work environments that do not harm fetuses. Risks should he minimized by changing the workplace -not by excluding particular workers. At first glance, tbe case looks like a classic confrontation between the rights of women to work and the rights of fetuses to be born healthy. In his argument before the Supreme Court, one of the lawyers for Johnson Controls framed the issues involved in just that way. He argued that Congress, in passing laws against sex discrimination in employment, did not mean to "require an employer to damage unborn children." The lawyer is right about congressional intent, but bis defense of the Johnson Controls policy misses what is at stake here. The issue is not whether fetal rights or women's rights are more deserving of legal protection.It's whether employers should be allowed to deal with hazards in the workplace by excluding workers on the basis of their biology. A report, "Genetic Monitoring and Screening in the Workplace," issued last week by ic damage in a tiny blood sample, allowing accurate predictions as to which men and women are in danger of COlltracting costly illness as a result of exposure to substances in the workplace. There are no laws protecting workers men or women from compulsory genetic monitoring in the workplace. Nor are there any laws prohibiting employers from requiring genetic screening. The exclusion of women from the workplace is actually a crude form of genetic screening. If the Supreme Court lets Johnson Controls exclude fertile women from the workplace today, if the company is allowed to say that all those who do not have a Y chromosome must go, companies wlll have a green light to begin using genetic screening to exclude you from your job, health or life insurance tomorrow. The obvious solution to resolving the apparent clash of interests between women and fetuses is to make the workplace safe. Businesses should be required to create work environments that do not harm fetuses. Risks should be minimized by changing the workplace. Allowing today's employers to solve workplace dangers by detecting and booting out those who face special risks means that, in the future, jobs will go not to those who can do the best work but to those who possess the best genes. Caplan directs tbe Center for Biomedical Etbics at University of Minnesota. llalabt-Rkldcr New11110,ro

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CHRONICLE OF rllGHE~ EDUCAiION UASH!NGT:Jl'I, Cit,; 48-TIHE5iVEAR il8 OCT 17 1990 BuRREu.rs }.,, :: l Oversight of Tissue Transplants J\11ay Be Inadequate, Report Says By DAVID L. WHEELER r / WASHINGTON The federal government may not be adequately overseeing experimental transplants of tis sue into the human brain, ac cording to a report released last week by the Office of Technol ogy Assessment. Scientists around the world have tried to treat between 300 and 400 people with Parkinson s disease by taking tissue from the patients own adrenal glands or from aborted fetuses and transplanting it into the pa tients' brains. Researchers are also experimenting with animals to see if similar procedures might eventually be used in hu mans to treat spinal-cord injuries, Alzheimer's disease, stroke, and other conditions. The Office of Technology As sessment, a research arm of Congress, found that federal law does not ban the sale offetal tissue by women who have aborted fetuses or by the clinics that collect tissue from them. The Secretary of Health and Human Services could prevent the sale of such tissue, the re port says, by designating fetal brains and spinal cords as "or gans" to be included under a law that already regulates the donation of fetal parts. No National Standards The reportalso says that uni versity review boards charged with deciding when researchers are justified in trying a new pro cedure with human subjects may not have enough informa tion to do so in the case of ex perimental grafts into the brain or spinal cord. The federal gov ernment might be able to assist those boards by developing guidelines, the report suggests. Institutional review boards, as they are called. do not have to review experiments that are not financed by the federal gov ernment. Under a moratorium imposed by the Reagan and Bush Administrations since 1988, the government has not financed research involving the transplantation of fetal tissue into humans. The panels usually review such research anyway. but the report notes that they have no national standards to follow when determining if researchers at an institution are justified in trying transplants into the brain. Ethical Issues Studied To remedy that situation, the report suggests, Congress could direct either the National Insti tutes of Health or the newly formed Agency for Health Care Policy and Research to develop guidelines for the use of neural transplants. The development of such federal guidelines might also aid the efficient collection and analysis of data from ex periments with neural grafts in different parts of the country, the report says. An N.I.H. panel has studied some of the ethical issues raised by fetal-tissue transplants, but N.I.H. has not set scientific stan dards that weigh the risks to pa tients undergoing such trans plants. The new report says that fetal tissue now appears to offer the most promising transplanta tion results. but notes that other material, including genetically engineered cells. may be used. The report, "Neural Graft ing: Repairing the Brain and Spinal Cord," may be pur chased for $ IO from the U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington 20402-9325. The re port's stock number is 052-00301212-0. I i

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CHICAGO SUN-TIMES CHICAGO, ILL. IL-1?3 D. 554,670 OCT 1 l~SG Boost worker skills or lo~ jobs: report T he Unit'et Sta'is will lose the global battle for high wage, high-skill jobs unless more is done to improve the abili ties of American workers at all levels, the government has con cluded. That means workers will lose their jobs, companies will move more work overseas, and the standard of living for ail Americans will fall. In a report released Friday, the government's Office of Technol~Assessm~nt concludes that many American workers are illequipped to deal with the changes industry must make to remain competitive. Mirroring findings of a survey released in June by the National Center on Education and the Economy, the government report found that many employers are not spending enough mon ey to upgrade the skills of their workers. In stead, they opt to up grade plants and hardware. Unless that changes, "there will be too many people who I can qualify only for the I least demanding of j-Obs, too many who will ....,.i, Cindy Richards At'M)n( not be able to advance, and too few with the skills needed to drive innovation and economic growth," the study said. The agency called for federal government support of employer sponsored training. It also said the government should provide better information about training, support new apprenticeship programs and consider taxes that would en courage companies to better train their workers. ...

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CJ TRAINING/GI SCIENCE -~ CJ NUCLEAR/El -; -,, :. --.. --CJ RENEWABLE ', -. ,:, -r-; C!, CJ OIL/R&O ,-.,.,,. ENVIRON ME TRENDS CJ ~1r-:-, .., '. ~~(: [: CJ GEOSAT DA' _,: --~ C!, CJ GAO REPOR ~{fPte~ CJ TECHNICAL CJ PUBLICATIC Volume LXIII, Number 14 October 22, 1990 WORKER TRAINING/INTERNATIONAL COMPETITIVENESS Training and retraining are critical factors in achieving a high-wage, high-skill economy in an era of global competition in goods and services. The US can take advantage of technology to achieve such goals, and can learn much from competitors such as Germany and Japan. The conclusions come from the Congressional O_ffice of Technology assessment (OTA) in a study which finds that the workplace of the future will require new, very different skills from a workforce that may be ill-equipped to achieve international levels of productivity and quality. "Over the long term, improving the educational system and developing more ways to help young people make the transition from school to work will be crucial to the Nation's continued economic success," the report states. "Yet, people already at work will comprise a majority of the workforce over most of the next two decades. In the near term, their training will have the greatest influence on national competitiveness." One key option which is not being employed to anything near the potential is technology-based, work-related instruction. Computers, television, simulators and other technologies are just beginning to be employed in helping workers learn to use new equipment and production methods, and to prepare for changing work environments. OT A urges industry and government to learn from the experiences of Germany and Japan where, despite different approaches, public and private training systems function more effectively than in the US. "There is no question that these two countries, and several others, train their workers to higher average standards." ( worker Training: Compet:inq in the New Int:ernat:ional Economy. able at $12 as S/N 052-003-01214-6 from GPO, wash., DC 20402. 783-3238. Fax: 275-0019.) 290 pages. Telephone: Avail-202/ .,. (The training package used by Xerox Corp., winner of last year's Balridge National Quality Award, will be distributed through the National Technical Information Service. For information, contact NTIS, Attn: D. Bracken or R. Williams, Springfield, VA 22161. Telephone: 703/487-4838.) .,.(A joint venture with NTIS, the "National Training Programs News" includes information on activities, materials and products. The publication, issued four to six times annually, is available by subscription from Natl. Training Systems Assn., 2104-A Gallows Rd., Vienna, VA 22180. Telephone: 703/847-9373. Fax: 847-9230.) (Continued) ,-_,.;-:..:.

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~CHOO! SHOP TFCH DIREr.TIONS ANN AR80R, Mt 10-TIMtS/YtAR 4S,oon NDUE~BER 1~90 ...... needed. The federal government may have produced a revised vocational education program and advanced adult literacy, workplace literacy investments. but none of these is enough. So says Congress itself. A sobering report prepared by the Office of Technol B_SL_ Assess~nt, an arm~of Congress. lays See WASHINGTON, page 45. L 0 WASHINGTON, from page 48. bare the facts about a weak job-training system, lack of business investment and interest, and the advantages that workers in other countries have over those in the United States, The United States must do much more to improve the skills of American workers at all levels, says the report, "Worker Training: Competing in the New International Economy." If this does not happen, this country will lose out in "what is now a global competition for high-wage, highskills jobs-the kinds of Jobs most likely to contribute to a healthy improvement in the national standard of living." The federal government must spread the word about the best practices and technologies in worker training. The Department of Education's training technology transfer office needs funding. A national institute for learning technology and research should be a piece of expanded support for education research on workplace and adult learning issues. The National Science Foundation should contribute by supporting research on human resource development. work organization. and the uses of training technology. Census. labor, and education agencies need to provide more information on workplace training. These initiatives. in addition to increased investment in apprenticeships. adult literacy, and public training programs. can combine with tax incentives or training levies to create a massive, comprehensive effort to improve worker training. Of most interest to vocational ed ucators is the report's discussion of the debate about technology's upskilling or downskilling of jobs. Both happen. says the report. To understand future skill and occupational needs, "It is useful to think of the economy as consisting of just two groups: traditional and knowledge-intensive sectors," it says. Today. the two sectors employ roughly the same number of people. but the knowledge-intensive sector (high-technology manufacturing, health services, and business services) is growing faster. Some jobs in the traditional sector ,,,, ~?;i (retail trade, personal services. traditional manufacturing) are knowledge based. but generally this sector creates low-skilled and low-paying jobs in larger proportion, and it changes much more slowly. The traditional sector generates low-tier Jobs in large numbers. with some upper tier jobs. But the knowledge-intensive sector generates jobs in both tiers. "At one time, people of ability and ambition could, with on-the-job experience, climb beyond the lower tier with relative ease." says the report. "Today. specialized education or training may be required simply to enter a track promising upward mobility. \,1any employers even screen applicants for jobs usually regarded as unskilled for credenuals that suggest trainability. Relatively speaking, there will be fewer opportunities for people without credentials to prove themselves in the workplace and then to advance." Without substantial changes in the performance of the U.S. educat10n and training system. the report contends. 'the mismatch between jobs and job opportunities and the skills and abilities of the work force will grow. There will be too many people who can qualify only for the least demanding of jobs. too many people who will not be able to move upward." The report is available for S 12 from the L:.S Government Printing Office. Wash ington. DC 20402-9325; stock number 052-003-012 l 4-6.

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I ELECTRONIC BUSINESS NEWTON, MA 23r-TDtES/VEAR 83,650 IOI 12 1990 -~68 BV!1,_/U.U..E'S DI Cd-lM410!;1t3iiif I@ J:/4 7 Agency seeks to tame electronic bulls, bears MAYBE CONGRESS CAN cut a deal on the federal budget deficit, but is it ready to reorganize Wall Street? The Congressional Office of Technol o Assessment (OTA) thinks 1t may be time to o so, before the gap be tween traders and technology gets further out of hand. In its 220-page report, Electronic Bulls and Bears, the OTA warns that trading systems on U.S. stock ex changes are under stress from grow ing trading volume, with sharp peaks of activity related to transactions in other markets, frequent trading of huge blocks of stock by institutional investors, and instantaneous sales of shares from many companiesthrough computerized program trading. "Exchange and over-the-counter markets have been slow to face up to the implications of domestic and international growth and the chal lenges of advanced information tech nology," chides the OTA. The markets "have adopted elec tronic trading-support systems that facilitate their traditional forms of trading and preserve the central role of market professionals," says the re port. "They have balked at systems that might eventually replace those mechanisms or reduce the need for dealers and brokers ... Futures markets, in particular, have been 20 ELECTRONIC BUSINESS .. venu1ne 1a1r11c:;:,:, u1ay u'"' ......... able in large-scale markets only with trading procedures that place great reliance on automated systems and ever-diminishing reliance on the trader." concludes the OTA. Part of the problem is the lack of cooperation between the Securities and Exchange Commission, which oversees over-the-counter and stock exchanges, and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which regulates futures trading. The most effective solution, according to the OTA, is for Congress to replace both bodies with a new, single regulatory agency. Congress has already acted on one trading front: The Market Reform Act, passed last month, empowers the Securities and Exchange Commission to curb computerized program trading. JOHN PARKER i

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dUi-~ EAL. f','~lGRE, VD. D. 223,334 M0-21 Written tests to determine einployees' ~GAO study alleges peril to innocent By Susan Hansen Washington Bureau of The Sir & ;) '?? y v WASHINGTON Honesty tests" used bv U.S. businesses to ferret out dishonest employees may not be a reliable predictor of on-the-Job be havior and may be serv1ng to unfairly deny employment to hundreds of otherwise-qualified Job applicants. a congressional study has found. An estimated 6,000 U.S. firms now use the written screening tests to try to determine which Job applicants would be most likely to engage In theft or other counterproductive workplace behavior, such as repeated tardiness or absent~m. But a report by the Offlc:~f.I~ch nology Assessment found scant evi dence that such tests can be trusted. Employers would be better;, off "flipping a coin In their screening: said Repres;ntatlve Matthew Marti nez. D-Callf.. chairman of the House subcommittee on employment op portunltles. which released the study at a hearing yesterday. The report's authors, who re viewed cases from a study group i11 which employees were hired regard less of test scores. found that more than 90 percent of those who failed honesty tests were wrongly classified as dishonest. Thev also noted that most current data on employment testing were collected by test vendor3 themselves. and said that without clear and conclusive Independent data to demonstrate their accuracy. the possibility of test error raises important public policy questions. "Integrity tests misclasslfy a fairly large number of people [as] at risk for dishonesty who have never been shown to engage m dishonest behav ior. John Andelln. one of the study's authors, told the subcommittee. "This means that some people not likely to steal will be denied employment. and that employers may therefore lose individuals that might be productive." Although no hard data are avail able, It is generally believed that the use of written tests to screen for dishonesty and other negative work be haviors has skyrocketed since Congress two years ago barred virtually all uses of the QOl,mraph for pre-em ployment and errtpioyment testing. A recent Wall Street Journal article estimated that 5 million to 6 million written tests are given each year with a large number m non-manage rial and less-skilled fields such as convenience store employees and re-honesty may not work, study says tail clerks. In their testimony, the study's authors noted that job applicants In some cases were not explicitly told that the tests they were being given would be used to assess their hones ty and Integrity. They also said that the pre-employment testing raised troubling questions about appllcants' rights to privacy as well as their ability to obtain test results and ensure that negative results would I not be used against them by future \ employers. '. "There's a handful of questions \ here that Congress will have to grap ple w1th." said study co-author Mi-chael Feuer. A statement from the Association of Personnel Test Publishers de nounced the report as -sc1ent1flcally flawed and riddled with unsubstantiated assertions. Subcommittee member Pat Williams. D-Mont .. who had requested the OT A report. said he planned more In-depth study of the issue be fore deciding whether Congress should restrict pre-employment screening. ._ ):. j

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The Houston Post HOUSTON, TEXAS 0.308,802 TX OCT 22 1990 Bui?~~ Congress reviews honesty testing RWEUTER ~iii:~:::_ How honest are you? Do you think it is stealing to take a pencil home from work? True or false: You would never talk back to a boss or a teacher. ls it fair to ask job applicants questions like these? The last question is one be ing asked by some members of Congress after a report by the congressional Qffjce of Tech nology Assessment said so called integrity tests were mis labeling many job applicants as dishonest or unproductive. The tests are being used by 5,000 to 6,000 U.S. companies to screen job candidates for honesty and good work habits. They usually consist of a long series of true or false or multiple choice questions. In many firms, the tests have replaced lie detector tests, which were banned by Congress two years ago for job applicants except for sensitive 1 government positions. But OT A, which advises Congresson scientific issues, said no firm evidence proves the tests were accurate. "The data we have seen shows that integrity tests mis classify a fairly large number of people as at risk for dishonesty who have never been shown to engage in dishonest behav ior,' Assistant OT A Director John Andelin told a House Education and Labor subcommittee hearing recently. "This means that some peo ple not likely to steal will be denied employment and that employers may therefore lose individuals that might be productive," Andelin said. Tests often ask personal questions and could be an in vasion of privacy. Andelin add ed. William Harris, vice preJl, dent for research at the Sl"an ton Corp., in Charlotte, N.C., a leading testing company with more than 2,000 clients, said the OT A report was incom plete and did not address the validity of the tests. "These are not perfect tests, but when used in conjunction with other screening process es, they are a valuable addi tion," Harris said. adding that no U.S. courts have ever found the tests unfair. The report said the tests were used mainly on appli cants for less-skilled jobs. i I ...

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UJLWAUKEE JC lR~-\T ,IJ11I.WMIVE1:, V, '.:.c WI 2~6 To tell the truth: 'Integrity' tests create f "Their w,e is growing rapidly -even as experts debate their .'effectiveness and validity _N_ewsda _.Y __ __,l.._,d~~}'-'-,-+l-rl,_~-+-r-, ---, Retailers swear by them. Labor groups are suspicious of them. Researchers are divided over them. They are so-called integrity or honesty tests, which employers use to screen millions of job applicants 'pch year in an effort to control employe theft and other counterproductive work ")>lacc behavior, such as drug use or exces-sive absenteeism. ,. The use of these tests has grown dramatically since federal legislation banned most polygraph testing in the workplace two years ago, with an estimated 5 million written honesty tests given each year. But a recent report by the congressional Office of Tcmnology Assessment questions whether the tests really predict dishonest behavior in the workplace. "The research base hasn't proven the tests do work or they don't," said John Andelin, an assistant director at the tech nology office who supervised the integrity test report. If anything, the tests have a modest predictive ability, Andelin said. Yet many test-takers, he said, end up being "misclassified." They receive low scores for honesty. but never end up stealing anything or behaving in other deceptive ways predicted by the-tests. For those who arc misclassified as dishonest, the label is rclati\dy harsh. Andelin said. The findings have caused a furor in the test-publishing indust,y. "There arc many independent tests that say [integrity] tests are valid and useful," said William Terris, chairman of London House Inc., a testing company based in Park Ridge, Ill. Terris admits that integrity tests may have a vague kind of validity -"They work, even if we don't know why they work." Still, that is not a good criti cism of these tests, he said. For employers, the proof of the tests' effectiveness is simpler: the bottom line. It shows up as reduced "shrinkage," or inven tory losses, from employe theft. According to the US Chamber of Commerce, such losses cost employers more than $40 billion a year. After honesty tests were adopted at two major retailers, employe theft decreased by 30% to 35% within a year, said Alan Wein stein, chief financial officer of Wet Seal Inc. a national chain of young women's clothing stores based in Irvine, Calif. Weinstein, who recently introduced in tegrity tests at Wet Seal, said that the tests also helped create "more harmony" in the workplace by screening out thieves who controversy vtct1m1ze other employes as weU as ite company. ::: Both employers and test publishcrs,,are worried that the government report ~y result in a federal ban of integrity t~s, following the pattern of polygraphs. 1-. Integrity tests "could be viewed as e son or daughter of polygraph," said _n Weintraub, an aide to Rep. Pat Willilflts (0-Mont.), a chief author of the poly~h legislation. Williams, one of several bers of Congress who requested the go ment study, called for more research o e tests after a recent hearing. But he mained critical of tests that could misctasiify workers, remarking caustically, "If lJ?U hang them all, you'll get the guilty_" <: ', ..

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j;an ftantllto examhttt-
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November 30, 1990 IWitlalJ~ma ~ta~ --ROOM 309 STATE CAPITOL 2300 NORTH LINCOLN BOULEY ARD OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA 73105 405/524-0126 ext 761 :,,,: Federal Action Monitor Vol. X, No. 48 I REPLACING GASOLINE The congressional Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) has released a \ report Repiacjng Gasoline; Alternative Fuels for Ught Duty Yehjcies. Renewed interest in alternative fuels for light duty highway vehicles (automobiles and light trucks) is based upon the potential to address three important societal problems: 1) air quality [unhealthy levels of ozone in major urban areas]; 2) energy security [growing U. S. dependence upon imported petroleum]; and 3) global warming [rising emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases]. The report examines six alternative fuels: methanol, ethanol, natural gas (in either compressed [CNG] or liquid [LNG] form), electricity (to drive electric vehicles--EVs), hydrogen, and reformulated gasoline. \ AIR QUALITY For most of the fuels, ensuring that the potential benefits are actually obtained requires emission standards that account for the differences in composition and ozone-forming potential between alternative fuel-related and gasoline-related emissions. The potential role of any of the alternative fuels in reducing urban ozone is lim.i1.e.d. by projected reductions in the share of urban ozone precursor emissions attributable to light-duty vehicles. ENERGY SECURITY The most likely near-term alternative fuels (reformulated gasoline, methanol, and CNG) do lli21 offer the kinds of energy security advantages expected from options such as carbon-derived liquid fuels. The longer term options (hydrogen and electric vehicles, and ethanol or methanol from wood and plant wastes) offer excellent energy security benefits il their prices can become competjtive with alternatives. GLOBAL WARMING The potential of alternative fuels to reduce green house gas emIssIons is primarily a long-term potentjaL Those fuels and technological systems most likely to be used in the next few decades should lli21 have a large impact, either positive or negative, on net greenhouse emissions. All of these fuels have the long-term potential to generate much levels of greenhouse gases if they are derived from renewable, low-chemical-input biomass feedstocks or solar-, hydro-, or nuclear-generated electricity. COMMERCIAL IMPEDIMENTS Key sources of uncertainty are: rapidly changing vehicle and fuel supply system technology, including substantial potential for long-term advances that could significantly alter costs and impacts; for most of the fuels, limited expe rience with transportation use, often confined to laboratoiy or prototypes systems that dont reflect constraint imposed by mass production requirements or 'real world' maintenance prob lems; sensitivity of costs and performance to numerous (and uncertain) future decisions about regulating, manufacturing, financing, and marketing the fuel systems; and continuing improvements in the competing gasoline-based system. Copies of the 148-page OTA report can be ordered from the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office (GPO), Washington, D. C. 20402-9325; phone 202/783-3238. The GPO stock number for Replacing Gasoljne: Alternative Fuels for Ught-Duty Vehicles is 052-003-01206-5; the price is $7.00. OTA is a nonpartisan analytical agency that serves the U. S. Congress. Its purpose is to aid Congress in dealing with the complex and often highly technical issues that increasingly confront our society. For further information, please contact John H. Gibbons of the OTA in Washington, D. C. at 202/224-8996. (OTA)

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! ......... -.... ... OILTECHNOLCGV Shift to Alternative Fuels Requires Leadership, OTA Report Says By Nick Snow. <] ,1 j 42Gt L WASHINGTON -Feasible alternatives exist to the U.S. highway transportation system's nearly total dependence on petroleum if enough lime, technology, development and investment is~ent on it, the congressional Office of Tech nolot; Assessme'li concludes. "Te alternatlves promise significant relief in the three critical policy areas of clean air, energy security and global warming ... With the current dependence of light duty highway transportation on gasoline, however, OTA be I ieves that little progress is Ii kely in moving to alternative fuels without strong public policy and lead ership," it says in a newly-released report. OTA examined six alternatives to gasoline methanol, ethanol, compressed natural gas, electric ity, hydrogen and reformulated gasoline -and found that all offer some potential to reduce urban ozone and toxic emissions. It founq,i,hat hydrogen, electricity and CNG offer large and quite certain per vehicle reductions, while methanoi and ethanol offer smaller and currently less quani tifiable, though still significant, re-,, -j019 ductions. OT A found that reformulated gasoline's potential air quality im provement contribution is the most speculative since this alternative's makeup is still so uncertain. Regulatory Follow-Up "For most of the fuels, ensuring that the potential benefits are actually obtained requires vehicle emission standards that properly account for the differences in che mical composition (and ozone., OJI OAIL Y WASHINGTON, DC LIAILY '.l,000 Wl:.DNESOAY SEP 26 1~Hl0 BUtJgELLE.,S ML forming potential) between alternative fuel-related emissions and gasoline-related emissions," it emphasized. The report suggests that re formulated gasoline, methanol and CNG, while the most likely motor fuel alternatives in the near term, do not offer the kinds of energy security advantages from options such as coal-derived liquid fuels which rely on a domestic feedstock. "Moderate quantities of CNG enough to replace at least a few hundred thousand barrels per day of gasoline could come from domestic and other North American sources. The rest would be im ported, by ship, as LNG from dis tant sources," it pointed out "Most likely, virtually all methanol will be imported by ship. And reformulated gasoline, which merely reshapes gasoline rather than replacing it, should have little effect beyond that caused by the addition of oxygenates that may be made from natural gas or biomass," OT A continued. Still Could Contribute Nevertheless, it said, CNG and methanol use still can enhance energy security by reducing press ure on oil markets and diversifying to an energy resource, natural gas, whose supply base is less fully de veloped than oil's and consequently has greater potential for new re serves, and a less easily manipu lated market "The degree of additional security may be enhanced if the United States supports the development of secure methanol or LNG supply sources, and if investors insist that supplier nations be large equity holders (and thus risk-sharers) in the capital-intensive supply sys tem," said OT A. It added that the six motor fuel alternatives offer only long-term potential to reduce global warming, and listed cost and commercialization as two other obstacles to be overcome in expanding alternative motor fuel use in the United States. )r

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OTA REPORTS ON MANAGEMENT OF RENEWABLE' R.ESOUACES ---i 7 '-. Wa0.!1in_gton, DC (U.S./R&D) The congressional Office of Technolog_y Assessment (OTA) I Forest Service P(anning, tha_t soys Congress, the Administration and the Fori~ Service must w:rekc~nt \~ele~sed a report, long-term, sustained protection and management of America's renew bl I d oge er o assure the products, fish and wildlife habitats, recreation, and wilderness. a e an resources which provide water, forage, wood Forests and rangelands account for two-thirds of the land in the United States nd 40 f h Federal Government. With. the growing human population, increasing leisure ti,;e aand se~~~~ent o t at is owned by the rl e~ewable resources hove risen, leading to greater conflicts over forest and rangeland management homes'. tlhl e dehmands on evel. espec1a y at t e Federal BACKGROUND: The OTA report soys that Forest Service planning hos foiled to meet the strafe ic vision f h b Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Ad of 1974 (RPA) requiring the Secreto of A rTc I r set ort ,Y Congress when they enoded he resource s1tuot1on on Federal State and private lands, 1'2) a not1onol Pro f F t <. ry g u tu e to prepare t l) an Assessment of the renewac,e gram or ores .,.,rv1ce act1v1t1es, and (3) A I R t ac11v,t1es and RPA implementation, and to provide feedback. These documents Ion 'th th ? 'd S an nnua ;'Port o monitor Forest Service' a g wi e res, ent s totement of Policy, ore submitted annually 10 !/ 13688 Congress for use in policy and budget deliberations. I) The 1989 RPA Assessment, according to OTA, reflects an enormous effort and is on improvement over previous reports. However, OTA finds that tc,e dofo are ,nsufficient for evaluating trends in the quantity and quality for most renewable resources, and while investment opportunities and research neeas are presented, the ,nformotion is inadequate for weighing budget decisions. The OTA report soys that the Draft 1990 RPA Program tokes a step toward strategic planning but that it still fails to set clear goals and priorities. The Draft Program, OT A has found, suffers from inadequate data on resource conditions and on costs and results of activities because of incomplete inventories in the Assessment, poor linkage between the findings of the Assessment and the direction in the Program, and failure to document new data sources and analylicol methods. The OTA report stresses that the Forest Service has again failed to discuss budget priorities as required by RPA to permit informed budget choices. The Presidents' Statements of Policy intended to provide guidance for framing budget requests, but ta date they have only been general proclamations. The OTA report shows that the Statements have not yet served any real purpose, because past Presidents have submitted budget requests which deviate s1gn1ficantly from the policy statement, without any explanation. OTA found that the Annual Report which is required to display Forest Service accomplishments and expenditures and to assess implementation of 1he RPA Program hos not been useful for overseeing agency activities because accomplishments are not related to resource conditions and there is virtua,ly no cost analysis. Furthermore, OTA says, the Annual Report did not attempt to assess RPA Program implementation until 1988 and that evaluation still does not fully describe successes and failures or explore the reasons for them. Despite these difficulties, OT A supports retaining the strategic nature of the RPA process as desirable and feasible. OTA says tho! while the RPA process has not served as strategic planning, the shortcomings have resulted mainly from inadequate implementation and lack of commitment from the agency, the Administration, and Congress. OTA points to improvements in three areas data, analysis, and direction that would substantially enhance !he strategic nature of RPA planning. The OTA report says that the RPA documents need better data on resource outputs: both quantity and especially quality. Furthermore, the data used should be linked using consistent measures in the Assessment, Program, and Annual Report. However, the report does not claim that better data will "fix" RPA planning, but that it can reduce disagreements about current conditions and thus focus the debate on choosing the appropriate direction for the future, OTA says that the RPA Program must be more effedive al identifying impending threats for the nation's forest and rangeland resources. Evaluation of opportun1t1es and discussion of priorities should be improved, and costs should be compared to benefits and to direct and indirect government returns. Finally, the Annual Report must be expanded to evaluate fully the success and fa,lures in implementing the RPA Program. OTA points out that the RPA process has not provided the strategic direction that Congress expeded for considering tradeoffs among resource conditions and outputs or for framing and evaluating Forest Service budget requests. Furthermore, the Administration and Congress have not been sufficiently committed to the process to develop policies and budgets consistent with the RPA Programs. The 1990 effort is clearly the best effort so far, but still falls short of ful~lling the promise of RPA. OTA staff, testifying before a hearing al the Fores!, Family Farms, and Energy Subcommittee of the House Agriculture Committee, concluded that if Congress, the Administration and the Forest Service address the problems identified in the report, RPA planning can become the strategic process envisioned in the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act. The OTA report was requested by the House Committee on Agriculture, the House Interior and Insular Affairs Subcommittee on National Parks and Public lands and the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. Copies of the 148-page OTA report for congressional use are available by calling 4-92 41. Copies for non-congressional use can be ordered from the Superintendent of Documents, U,S. Government Printing Office (GPO), Washington, D.C. 20402-9325, phone (202) 783-3238. The GPO stock number for Forest Service_!fanning: Setting Strategic Direction Under RPA is 052-003-01202-2; the price is $6.50.( l 3-09047SM2431)

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f I NI JI I.'() u l 1) ';Ati JUAN, I I, <,it It 1,UtlD/\V i'Jfl. ?l,tl MONIIA'i' OC r l Hl!lO Su'rgen dudas de informaci6n sobre la terapia Por REBECCA KOLBERG De United Press International 1' 7;J O TfJ WASHINGTON -Los datos disponibles no corroboran los resultados dramaticos obtenidos con tratamientos no ortodoxos contra el cancer usados por miles de estadouni denses, informa el Congreso. En el primer examen global de terapias anticancerosas alternas, que van desde tacticas psicologicas hasta enemas con cafe y suministro de per6xido de hidr6geno, la Oficina de Evaluaci6n de Tecnologi~ (OET) resolvi6 que los resultados atribuidos a tales procedimientos "son mas extrava gantcs" que la evidencia a la mano. Sin embargo, el informe reconoce que ha habido "algupara el cancer ( ',imara de Representantes, quicn solicit6 el informe, dice que considera que el esfuerzo tuvo buenos resultados. "NINGUN TRATAMIENTO prometedor para enfer mcdadcs tan terrihles puede ser desechado antes de ser evaluado adecuadamente. Pero el hecho de que algunos tratamientos puedan dar algun alivio no es excusa para otros que son cuando mucho pura charlataneria y, en cl peor de los casos, perjudiciales para los pacientes", dijo Diogell. Entrc los mas conocidos tratamientos no convencionales examinados por los investigadores del Congreso estan el laetrile, la v!tamina C, los planes de dicta de Gerson y Kelley, la dicta macrobiotica, la "quimiotcrapia, guiada hiol6gicamente", de Rcvici; los antincoplastoncs y el trata-'. ''" nos resultados estimulantes" en el area psicologica. Todos los anos una "minoria visible" de pacientes esta dounidenses con cancer, probablemente miles, recurren a tratamientos no convencionales, definidos como terapias fuera de los limites de la mcdicina cientifica, inform6 la OET. QLJIENES RECURREN a tales terapias son una amplia varicdad de la poblaci6n, no solo unos pocos individuos ingenuos y carentes de educaci6n, como han dicho algunos profesionales de la medicina, dice la OT A en su informe del tunes. Los investigadores de la OET dicen que encontraron que "muchos pacientes que recurrian a tratamientos no con vencionales ya hahian pasado por todos los tratamientos cientificos disponibles ya sea antes o recientemente". El atractivo de los tratamientos no convencionales parece surgir en parte de lo inadecuado e inc6modo de los trata mientos convencionales disponihles, tales como la terapia de radiaci6n o quimioterapia, asi como de la "muy frecuen te falta de atenci6n a la calidad de la vida de los pacientes por parte de quienes practican la medicina cientifica", dice el informe de 312 paginas. El costo de la terapia no convencional varia mucho, pero la mayoria de las clinicas cobran de $5,000 a $40,000 por un reg11nen de tratamiento promedio, dice el informe. Ge neralmente, los seguros no pagan esos tratamientos. El representante John Dingell, dem6crata por Michigan, presidcnte de la Comisi6n de Energia y Comercio de la :TUBAE DE 1990 fi Grupo de celulas cancerosas: son las de color mas claro y de mayor tamai\o, atacadas por los anticuerpos que son los mas pequei\os y oscuros.

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-. November 16, 1990 klab~ma i,tau i,tnau ROOM 309 STATE CAPITOL 2300 NORTI-i LINCOLN BOULEVARD OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA 73105 4051524-0126 ext 761 e z Federal Action Monitor \/rd V ~1,... -1C: .... '. ~' '.,...., ...,v RURAL HEALTH CARE Although rural health care availability in 1990 Is better than It was 20 years ago, the congressional Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) has concluded In its report. Health Care ID Amal America. that the future for rural health care is "grim" ii there is not intervention from the federal or .s1a.l..e, governments. The report assesses the availability of health services in rural communities, the problems rural providers face, and the remedial strategies that might be influenced by federal policy. RURAL HEALTH Nearly 57 million people--or 23% of the U. S. population-live in nonmetropolitan areas. These rural residents have low incomes (one in six families live In poverty\: a lack of health insurance coverage (18% of those under age 65 are uninsured): and live great distances from health care. OTA found that these problems are il.Q1 improved by better overall health. Rural residents have mortality rates than their urban counter parts. but they have~ rates of chronic disease and disability. HOSPITAL SUPPORT OTA found rural America c.anJ1.Q.1 support her present complement of 2,500 hospitals. Rural hospitals with fewer than 1 00 beds-72% of all rural community hospitals--have lliQ.h..e.J: costs than revenues, even after tax subsidies and private donations. Many larger .rural hospitals are in .s.i.!Ililar. shape. MEDICAL SHORTAGES Rural areas find it increasingly difficult to recruit and retain the variety of qualified health personnel they need. Some areas face severe shortages. Half a million rural residents live in counties with W2. physician trained to provide obstetric care: 49 m1ll1on live in counties with W2. psychiatrist. Over 300,000 people live in counties with .o..o. physicians at all. INTERGOVERNMENTAL INTERACTION Effective federal rural health care policies m..u..s.1 accommodate the tremendous diversity in rural health issues and problems In different areas of the country. Achieving this requires the active inyolyement of the~ In designing and implementing solutions; but state capabilities to carry out this role successfully v..aa. considerably. Federal coordination, technical assistance, and information are to states and communities trying to address their rural health needs. CONGRESSIONAL CATALYST OTA recognizes that the federal government c.anru21 fix all rural health problems, but it can be the catalyst for many improvements. OTA cites that the bulk of the federal role is carried out through four types of programs: 1) Health care financing programs--most notably Medicare and Medicaid--which pay directly for health care services: 2) Health block grants allocated to to spend on any of a variety of programs in general topic areas; 3) Federal programs to enhance rural health resources: and 4) Federal coordinating, undertaking, and funding of research on rural health topics. The OTA report lists 29 separate options for congressional consideration and possible action. OTA is a nonpartisan analytical agency that serves the U. S. Congress. Its purpose is to aid Congress in dealing with the complex, and often highly technical, issues that increasingly con front our society. For more information, please contact John H. Gibbons, Director of OTA, at 202/224-8996 in Washington, D. C. Copies of the 540-page OTA report can be ordered from the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office (GPO), Washington, D. C. 20402-9325; phone 202/783-3238. The GPO stock number for Health Care in Rural America is 052-003-01205-7; the price is $22.00. (OTA 9/12/90)

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J HAT lOH 'S HEALTH WASHINGTON, DC 10-TIMES/VEAR 46,000 OCTOBER 1990 Bu~EJ.1.Ff -4692 --oz OTA Report Calls Outlook for Rural Health Care "Grim" l,,;2. '1 7 '/ AlthQugh the ratio of hospital beds to people is now about the same in rural areas as in urban areas, "the future pros pect for rural health care in the absence of intervention is grim," a recent report from the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment says. One reason for the bleak outlook is that rural parts of the country cannot sup port their current numbers of hospitals and many of the facilities are going broke, according to dT A. The agency's recent large study on rural health care notes that almost three fourths of rural hospitals have fewer than 100 beds, and these very small hospitals have particular difficulty: they have the fewest admissions, the lowest level of .. occupancy and the highest expenses, proportionally, of all rural hospitals. And although rural health is better today than it was 20 years ago, the report notes, it is complicated by a number of other factors. The lack of transportation and the long distances to health care facilities create real barriers to getting care. In addition, 18.2 percent of rural residents have no health insurance, as compared to 14.5 percent of urban dwellers. And, for people who are living below the poverty level, only 35.5 percent are covered by Medic aid as compared to 44.4 percent of people of that income living in cities. Among the most important of the many actions that the federal government could take, OT A said, is the identifying of the areas. where residents' access to care is most endangered. The agency suggests that the current concepts of Health Manpower Shortage Areas and Medically Underserved Areas could be extended to focus on rural hospitals and other facili ties to help in targeting federal aid. Other options, OT A suggests are: encouraging comprehensive and coordinated rural health care with small grants for development of networks; directing more of the funds that go to medical education to primary care speci alities; expanding the funding for the current Area Health Education Centers, putting more emphasis on training and continuing education for health professionals who are not physicians. expanding the National Health Ser vice Corps. providing liability insurance under the Federal Tort Olaims Act to Commu nity and Migrant Health Center staff and contract providers of obstetric care. encouraging reimbursement ofmidlevel mental health providers and en couraging linkages between rural health and rural mental health services. The report is "Health Care in Rural America." It is available from the US Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402, for $22.00. The stock number is 052-003-01205-7.

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satetv and Health Health care crisis worse in rural America The word "doctor" stirs images of the "old country doc" who knows everybody's name. But talk of a "health care crisis" stirs images of broken-down city hospitals jammed with junkies and gun shot victims. With all due respect to Marcus Welby, this vision is upside-down. As bad as our city problems may be, the health care crisis is hurting small town America worst of all, the non-partisan Congres sional Office of Technology As sessment (OTA) reports. For starters, rural America Is starving for doctors and other health professionals. More than one half rrnlhon rural Americans live In counties with no obstetnc1ans, ,md 300,000 rural residents lack access to any doc tor at all, OTA found In rural America, the hospitals ore going broke. The lure of higher salaries and a richer social life draws doctors nurses, and medical profession als to the cItIes like a rnaunet. There are, on average, only 91 doctors for every 100,000 rural residents, compared to 261 physi cians per 100,0000 city-dwellers. And it's harder every year to draw doctors to the country and keep them there. Millions of rural Americans may lose their access to hospitals as well. "Rural America cannot support its current complement of hospi tals, and the hospitals are going broke," the OTA bluntly warned. Some 72% of all rural hospitals today are running in the red, even after tax subsidies and private do nations are counted in. One basic reason: the rural population tends to be poorer, older, sicker and un insured. Seventeen percent of all rwal farrniles are poor. compared to 13% of all city residents. And rural residents are 25% more likely not to be covered by health insurance or Medicaid, so small-town hospitals get stuck with huge bills from patients who have no way to pay. Tiny country hospitals are even less prepared than their big city cousins to cope with the rising tide of the uninsured poor. Three-quarters of all rural hos pitals have fewer than 100 beds and their "occupancy rates" (the number of beds in use at any given time) run 22% lower that the rates for urban hospitals. That translates into extremely high per-patient costs. And when patients can't pay; when equIp me nt costs skyrocket each month, and when well-off patients travel to large urban centers for treatment, that's a prescription lor disaster. Current goverqment poilc1es, however, make a bad situation worse. The federal National Health Services Corporation (NHSC) once provided thousands of scholarships to medical students who agreed to practice in rural America. In 1978, for example, more than 3,000 NHSC scholarships were issued. But in 1981, budget cuts chopped the number to 162, and last year the total fell to only 43. Where will the next generation of country doctors come from, to replace the few who are practicing today? The "Marcus Welby" style of personal, professional medical care Is a worthy vision, indeed. But until the U S. adopts a sen sible national health plan, the best place to look for the country doc tor may be on TV

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I. ,,,:::. :~ .; REPORT CALLS FOR NAT'l DEMENTIA REFERRAL SYSTEM The cun:zressional Office of Technology _\,;,;e,-,;ment (()T.\l ha:,; released a report that :m,;ent,; a framework for a ,.;vstem to link [lt'(>pl( with dtmentia to appropriate ser\icc,.;. The report. "Confused :\linds. Bur cienecl Fc.inilies: Finding Help for People with .\lzheirner's and Other Dementias," also disn1,.;se:,; congre:-;,;ional policy options for establi,.;hing such a ,;y,-tem. .-krnrcling to OT.\. the type of ,;ystem rH'L'ckcl to link pt'(lple with dementia to ,;ervice,.; deptncb ,>n the characteristics and ser \icl' rwecb ot people with dementia and those "t their families and uther informal care ,1c;iv,rs .. \bu important are the characteristics of 11 c'(>!lllllLillity's service tnvironment and the ""lirns of public and private funding fur servrc,,;. nw ( lT.\ rtj)(,rt concludes that c1n effective ,v,-ttm must include: Pubiic education: infor mation and rderral: outreach: and case man-11genwnt. There are also ,;everal criteria for and icctive sy,;tem. including: .\ Lommon name, logo ur telephone num ber to make the system easily identifiable llJ tionwicle .\vailabiliry throughout the patient's ill ness The ability ro work t'ltectivelv with farnilits and other informal care giv,rs. as well as with victims of den1t'ntia whu du n()t have care givers TI1e ability to serve "long-distance" care givers L'p-to-date information about available --enices and sources uf funding n1e repurt ,-ugge,;ts 11 categories uf agencies that C,rngre:-s cuuld tlworetically de,;ig ;iate to create a national system. Included are area agencie,; on aging, community mental ilt'a!th chapters, home health agencies and adult da\' ,-are L'enters. \\ 'hile the report notes that atttrnpting to create a national system may be hindered by "turf issw:>s" among var ious provider agencies. it added that such barriers must be overL'Ome. "[The OT.\] study should pro,ide a spring buard for developing a system that effectively link,; peuplt with dementia and their care giv,-r,.; with the services they need," said Olympia J. Snuwe (R-:\!E). cl member of the House ~tlect Cummirtee un .\,1c;ing. In ,ingu i Ilic!' .\lzlwimer',; rese::irc h. a 00-111,m lwr inttrnati,mal tl'am has found evic!ence that .\lzheimer..; di,.;ease is actually a ,1c;roup ui disorders, and not a ,;ingle c!isec1se \vith only one cause. The researchers' t1ncling..; came from a study of -1,,'i families with a history of farni lial .\lzheimer',disease r. F.\Dl. Cases of early un,;et F.\D (appearing in inclivicluab less than lj:') years old) were linked to gene marker-; ,in chromo,;urne :21. while late unset cases ,if the di,;ea,.;e were not. The researcher,;, rqiort ing in a recent i,;sue ,>f .\'//t11re, ,-onclucle that tlw rin,:ings indicate .\L-:htimn, disease is not a ..;ingle. :1, 11;1( ,. geneou,; di,;orcler. but instead may be cau,;ul bv :i \ ariety of genetic and ,mir1Jn mental factors.

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C.' ---------~-~-------------News Report: DNA Tests Valid But OTA says standards, quality assurance needed Serious questions remain over the reliability of DNA fingerprinting, according to a congressional report that is spurring talk of federal regulation. Although DNA testing is valid when done properly, the report says, steps must be taken to establish minimum testing standards and to ensure quality. The report, "Genetic Witness: Forensic Uses of DNA Tests," was issued in August by the Qffice of Technology Assessment I OTA1. ---. DNA test-ing is done using specimens of blood, hair and semen that are collected at the crime scene and matched with DNA from a particular suspect. Setting the standards to regulate laboratorv practices ''is th~ C, c:, most controvera. in jail for life or send someone to the electric chair. It better be accurate,'' said Edwards. u.S. Sen. Paul Simon, D-Ill .. a member of the .Judiciarv Committee, says the OTA report will help frame the policy debate over DNA evidence in criminal investigations. DNA Tests Skyrocket The use of DNA testing has grown dramatically. First introduced in a criminal case in 1986. DNA tests have been performed in 2,000 ,;ial and unset-' c:, tled issue, "~ --.. ~~.. l but] necessary if high-quality DNA forensic l~ analysis is to be ~-------'----------'ensured," the report concludes. The situation demands immediate attention." To ensure quality, according to the report, legislation could require licensing of labs and personnel, and proficiency testing of lab workers. Although no new bills are expected before next year, U.S. Rep. Don Edwards. D-Calif., chair of the House Subcommittee on Civil and Constitutional Rights, says he's considering legislation "to bring about the development of tough standards." In a prepared statement, Edwards said he sees a role for the FBI, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and other experts in developing those federal standards. "A DNA test can put someone 26 ABA JOURNAL / OCTOBER l 990 criminal investigations and admit' ted in at least 185 criminal cases in 38 states. In seven additional states. DNA evidence has been used by police but not admitted at trial. It is also done in thousands of paternity disputes each year. The FBI had received more than 6,000 samples for DNA fingerprinting from state and local police as ofFebruarv 1990, and the bureau anticipates it eventually will be able to process 10,000 DNA samples annually. :\fore than 75 percent of state and local crime labs surveyed by the OTA believe DNA testing is important to their mission. Nearly half of the crime labs contract with an outside facility, but many plan to do their own DNA testing soon. Two types of DNA technologie, have found their wav into C.S courtrooms-restrictio~ fragmen length polymorphism I RFLP, anc amplification of DNA by poly merase chain reaction r PCR1. The OTA report highlights prob !ems such as varying interpreta tions of test results, human erro and improper monitoring of tests. The report gives several op tions to Congress. These include encouraging voluntary efforts fo1 minimum standards. seekmg uni form state prac tices. or enac1 ing federal la \V: covering forensi1 labs. The OTA re port also say, that due proces, and privacy is sues raised b) DNA testine have not beer full v addressed Questions stil remain "abou what type of re cords are kept on whom. b, whom. and thE protocols for ac cess to them." Some civ1 libertarians fear that employers anc insurance companies may try to ge1 access to DNA test information especially if the tests are expandec to discern genetic-related illnesses. Law-enforcement proposals car for storing DNA specimens and fo1 placing the DNA test results ol convicts and evidence collected at crime scenes into national comput ers. As of Januarv 1990, at least 11 states already required D:\'A typin of convicted offenders. "Legislation may also be necessary to address the standards for indexing DNA information in com puter data banks,'' said Edwards. ] have serious reservations about ac tually storing the DNA. That would be subject to abuse.'' -Paul J,farcotte

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-. lrf1~ -K~\1~i~1n {~f .. ,~t rr1t1 ~i1i:; J. :: : ~: rilA.2 r-_ : ._ 1_S~~~g Up the Cosmos here. Surely the responsibilitv to main tain Mother Earth extends to the outer reaches of her gravitational field. It seems that maltklft~ a6ility to clutter up his environment is getting as tronomical. A new government report ~ays old satellite parts and other space Junk are accumulating in orbit above the earth to the point that someone could get hurt. The of Technolow Assess m.ent...an investigative arm o the U:-S. Congress, reports that the congestion in the most traveled orbits has forced NASA to teach its space shuttle pilots how to avoid collisions. The U.S. Space Command tracks some 6,645 objects zipping around 100 miles above the earth at around 10 kilo meters per second, or 21,600 miles per hour. They may appear to float incon spicu?usly across the heavens. but catching one broadside would be akin to riding a bicycle in front of a bullet train. An even bigger threat comes from the 30,000 to 70.000 objects that are too small to track, flotsam from more than 30 years of space travel. TheH12Qrt not ed that a paint chip hit a space shuttle windshield in 1983. and the windshield had to _be replaced. Such a chip would have npped open the spacesuit of an astronaut, the report noted. That's right, killer paint chips. Thankfully, space is an undeniablv roomy place. The chances of a manned vehicle colliding with junk are still only one in 100.000. But there is a principle involved While the garbage-choked world below has countless ~ontributors. the space-Junk problem rargely rests on the shoulders of the United States and Sovi et Union. which put the vast majority of 1t up there. Given that_the Soviets are struggling Just to b?Y _cigarettes. the space-litter problem 1s likely a mighty low priority over there. Once again. the world looks to America. Try as they might to distance them selves from the problem. Utahns have con_tributed. and they will have to do their part to rectify it. The Oll report sa1~ debris from solid rocket motors. of which the state has two major manufac turers. makes up a significant portion of the tiny projectiles. Among the report's suggestions. it was recommended that booster rockets be directed back toward earth so that the_y will disintegrate on re-entry. the ultimate hazardous-waste incinerator. Other suggestions call for improved surface treatments to keep space vehi cles from shedding debris and less-explosi ve batteries for unmann~d spacecraft. As for the stuff already up there. the scope of the problem mav leave little solution other than an inventorv of shut tle windshields. It's not like you can send a troop of Boy Scouts up there with trash bags Hazardous space There is less space out there than meets the eye. That is a rea:;onable way of putting the fact that :33 years aiter mankind began sending objects into orbit around the Earth. enough of them have accumulated to become a matter of concern for the safety of astronauts and automatic stations. Plan ners \\ill have to de\ise ways to pre\ent fu1ther accumulation and perhaps even to vacuum up some of what is up there alread~-. A study by the Congressional Office of Techno.: logical A,~sesrnnt has led to a \\arning that un less American and other space programs reduce the amount of debris in space, it \\ill become unac t:eptably dangerous to conduct near-Ea1th pro grams involving human beings. Even unmanned spacecraft \\ill be at risk of collisions that would be costly. and avoid such collisions a ta:::k possible, ,nly 1.1,ith the a:::sistance of computers. :\lore insidious. there are uncountable num'bers of objects too .,mall t,1 track and catalog spinning around the Earth. Damage to the \\indshield of one of the shuttle" was attributed to a drifting paint chip 11,huse impact. because of the high speed of colli~ion. 11,:1" like that of a rock at ~lower speeds. The injection )f ail the~e objects was created by an inadvertent pollution of space in the course of nqnnal. peaceful operationil. In the light of such a problem when the programs were benign. spat:e policy makers should contemplate the effect;; were there to be more malicious effo1ts. There are more than 6.600 objects in orbit be ing tracked b~ American programs to anticipate r The "stai wars" program. now on a ,:lower track for political and budgetary reasons. deserw" e\en greater scrutiny becauile any testing of space weaponry would litter orbital space \\ith debris that would probably be even haider to track.

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J H/1S!U Nffl ON nr I.IS::[KL y ?. 307, ?11, OCl tl 199U C_.'_;07 ,/ 7 / U.S. NEWS JUNK IN SPACE .~ Space, the linal frontier, is turning into a celestial _junkyard. Of the more than 2ll,000objccts that have been fired into orbit since llJ57, fewer than 5 percent remain operational. But the rest-J,000 tons of spent rockets, nuclear reactors, defunct ,atellites, dead batteries and other dchris--still arc zooming around the earth. threatening future shuttle llights and even the lives of astronauts. warns the congressional Office of Technology Assessrrn;n}. Already, the I luhhle Space'Tclescopc7ias a 1-in-l0ll chance of being damaged by debris during its 17-year stay aloft. A harbinger ot the potential danger came in llJ83. when a grain of paint ,truck the space shuttle ( "hallenger with such force that a lront window had to be replaced after the !light. Most of I he objects hurtling around in space arc larger and more dangerous. In space, says Ray Williamson. director of the < )TA study. an object having 1/.l~th the weight of an asririn 1;,lill'l would hit with the impact of a .30-calibcr bullet. I ,1 11 l< I If I' I 1/i t 1',/\i,\ 1\/~ 11 S NI \\'-, & \V( ll IH.1'111(1. ()( f'( >Ill I<::. l'I~\) -'-1 ... TORONTO SUH TOROHTO, OHTARIO, CN DAILY 308,000 FRIDAY OCT 12 1990 95 BV{I,BELL.E'S SW Space garbage Li ~M~!p~ Aeru!I~ i ~o.,tln~~w~~~al J of man-made junk in Earth's orbit could debris could by 2000 or 2010 render some render some well-travelled pathways too well-used low-Earth orbits loo risky to risky lo use. use," the OT A said. It could even imperil the space shuttle The congressional analysis offered no and planned space station, a congres-exact estimate of the amount of man-sional report warned yesterday. made debris currently orbiting Earth. 'Loss of life' "Unless nations reduce the amount of orbital debris they produce each year, future space activities could suffer loss of capability, loss of income and even Joss of life as a result of collisions between spacecraft and debris," the Office of Technology Assessment said. ----, So-called space Junk includes deactivated spacecraft, spent rocket stages, fragments of spacecraft and their equip ment, paint flakes, engine exhaust particles and spent Soviet reactors. In the vacuum of space, objects stay in orbit for a very Jong time. Even tiny objects, like a snippet of wire, can inflict considerable damage if they strike spacecraft at high speeds. However, they noted some experts estimate there may be 30,000 to 70,000 bits of debris 0.4 inches in diameter or greater, and many more smaller objects are thought to be in orbit. Damaged shuttle The report said that a tiny paint chip that damaged the shuttle Challenger's windshield in 1983 probably would've had the power to puncture the spacesuit of an astronaut who happened to be conducting a manoeuvre outside a spacecraft. "The OTA study highlights the fact that we can no longer be so cavalier about what we leave behind in space," said Sen. Ernest Hollings, chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.

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TV CLIPS DATE TIME NETWORK PROGRAM 75 EAST NORTHFIELD ROAD LIVINGSTON NEW JERSEY 07039 1201)992-6600 (800)631-1160 01.wber l :::. l lJlJL) t1:llll--Ull .-\\I EDT .-\BC \\"orld '.\ews Thi~ \lorning \like Schneider. anchor: ACCOUNT NUMBER NIELSEN AUDIENCE lll 6297 Y 2.321.~0ll .--\nd the cfl\ ironmcnt is ,1lso l1n the mind ,if Con!!rcss--thc crnironmcnt 111 space .-\BCs Jim Slade reports l1n the grcm 1ng problem -l1f ,pace junk. Jim Sbde repL1rting: The man in the commercial is playing it for laughs. but it really isn't funny. Junk left b\' rc1ckcts and spacecraft is becor:ning a seri1.1us hazard to anything 1.1r ;111~ one in 1.1rbit. The Department of Defense regularly tr;.icks up to sc, en thousand t\\ o hundrcJ pieces of debris in ~pace. ranging from tools and c:1meras up to big rocket parts. But ;rn~ thing ~mailer than a softbc1U doc~nt ~ho,\ up on their scopes and thercs a lot of th.it. Bolts. \\ ire. bits of insubtion that spread \\ hene\er a rocket fires an orbit or every time a satellite i~ deployed. ;.imi it's dangerous because it's mo, ing at high speeds. In [lJ~.-:. a tiny flake of paint mo\ing at six miles per second put this hole in space shuttle Challenger's windshield. It \\Ould h;n c killed a space \\alkcr. The Suvict space st,ition has had lights knocked out by 1.1rbiting debris. In ib report. the Office L1f T cchnolL1'' .-\s~cssmcnt sa,s the junk .:annot be retrieved. Ray \\'illiam~on ( Office Of T cchnolo~~ .-\ssessmcnt ): S1.1 the bottom line is that it \\ ould be extraordinarily cxpcnsi, c to build a nc\\ ~:stem to reach those objccb .md pull them out. Slade: .-\ml that means building spacecraft .:leaner ~o less debris is left in orbit. If it isnt done. some ot the orbital paths doscst to earth will become too littered to be used safely. Jim Sbdc .. -\BC '.\c\\S. Washington. :5-; \\ords ::'.l Clips

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-l. ; 1; .,;~,, ~,,; ... .. '..'tumtor \.. l: .:,i.-ll .)1,,1\,1 .I.I. t ;OSTON, MASS. 0.160.000 rv1..;-2e ButgR.EU.FS I ,: C T 3 l l 9 9 0 --. Jhe Big 'Landfill' in the Sky --'L/7/. O~-J' -~ cloudless evening, among other ventures. both the nations ,o far ha\e mmterecl to vou can see twinkling Soviet \[IR and the planned arnid that fate. ,tars and gleaming planLnited States Freedom ,pace ,ta-Europe. the Smiet Lrnun. ,rnd ets. You mav also see a glint from tions. the Lnited States ha\e tned to junk orbiting in the great "land-Some experts 1,ithin the minimize the likelihood Dt rockets fill" in the sky. Space debris, about American :\auonal .\ernnautics and ,atellites exploding and which there have been several and Space .\dmimstration creating even more debris. Over warnings in recent vears. is a (NASA) and the European Space the next two vears, the Lnited hazard we can no longer ignore. Agencv put things even more '.'iations is likelv to formalize .\ new studv bv the congresbluntlv. The\ 1,arn that. if the guidelines for the ,ate use of sional Oflire of Technology .\~:. junk contimles to accumulate dt space nuclear-power ,ources. sessment (OT.-\) concludes that its present rate. the risk of colli-These guidelines 1,mdd ha\e the "unless nations reduce the sion will be too great for people to force of international l,n,. amount of orbital debris thev pro-venture into orbit at all. HumanHowever. the OT..\ pomt, out duce each vear. tinure space opitvs exuberant entrv into ,pace that existmg treaties ,md .i<_;ree erations could suffer loss of capa-could end up imprisoning us on ments are inadeyu,lte to h,dt rhe bilitv. loss of income, and even our planet for centuries. creauon of ,pace junk. H,t,tl legal loss of life." That
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TV CLIPS DATE TIME NETWORK PROGRAJ.'1 DATE TIME NETWORK PROGRAM 75 EAST NORTHFIELD ROAD LIVINGSTON NEW JERSEY 07039 1201/ 992-6600 1800) 631-1160 Ocwl..,cr l I. ILJlJtl llU-:-,:3ll P\I ACCOUNT NUMBER NIELSEN AUDIENCE C1blc \'c:\\:,, '.\ct\\Ork Hc.idlinc \'c:\\s Scf\i,:c C'.\'.\ Headline '.\c:\\:,, L\ nnc RusseU. ,1111.:lwr: [L)i(l,:l)-:' y \' .-\ .'\.-\S.-\ i:,, trying to h,tndlc: ,1 1wllutiL111 l'r,,blem ,,t s,1rts. 0\ er the yc.1rs they\ e sent tons l,t stuff into ,,rhit. JL1hn HL,lli111,1n re11L1rb it'-.. getting .,:rn\\ded up there. Hl1ili111;in: E\ c:I: rime there\ ,1 l.iun,:h. the -..17,11.e .d,1.1\ e the L1rth becomes mL,re ,1nd nwrc like .1 g.1rl..,:1ge dump. Sp.11.e junk h:1s be,:1.1mc su1:h :1 prol..,lcm ,1U shuttle tli~hts mi.:ht h:t\ e !Ll l'c: 1.-:1111.eUcd ,..,, the e:1r 2Uull. .-\:,,tronaurs \\ ho \\alk in sra..:e ru~ the greatest risk L1r orhit,tl dd~ris. It tr:t\clS ;1t six miles .1 sc:1.'L'lld .. rnd -1r that speed e\ en .1 111i1.-r1.1s1..1pi,: p,1int 1.hip -::111 be dead[\. In 1 lJ~3. :1 1..hip l..,rL1ke 1.1nc 1.1t ChaUcnger\ \\ imbhiclds. Ray \\ illiam~L1n ( Offi1.c Pt T e1.hn1.1l1.1,:, .-\-..-..e-..~rncnr ): .-\n l1l..,je1..t \\ eighing only about one hundredth 1.1f ;1 gram tLI\ cling .1t ten kik1mcters a se1.ond -:arries wughly the cncrg:-1.1f .i .30t1 buUct. Hl1Uim.1n: The Pent-1gL1n Sp:11.c C1.1mm:1nd is rr.11.:king nwre th.in si.\t,-si.\ hundred ol..,je,.'ts right mm. :,,omc ;1:,, smaU as a :-1.1ttbaU. \\ Jli,1ms,l!1: \\ hat '.\AS.-\ and the ,,th-::r ~-1-..,,1,:c .if-:'nc.:,c:.. .ire c.:or.1.crncd .1hout 1-. that at a ccruin point. the dd..,ris builds up w .1 1.eruin--t1.1 a lc\d ,, here it impa--b a ,,orking satdlitc:. destroys that \\1..1rking satc:Uitc \\hil'h ,!lso crca tes lots more debris. O1.tober 11. i 990 5:00-5:30 P\l C1ble '.\e\\S '.\ct\\t1rk Headline \'c,,s Sef\ ice C\':'.\i Headline '.\ c\\ s Chuck Roberts. anchor: Something new tu worry ab1..1ut: Hum;rn-made junk ldt in E.mh's orbit may soon make space tra\el too risk.~-That's the ..::ondusion of the congressional Offi\:-~ of Technolcwy .-\sse~men,. \fosr of the debris is the residue of past space missions. induding spent rocket parts and broken-up sateUitcs. The OT.-\ says such junk could puncture :,,pacc-:raft or 1.au:,,e a di:,,a:,,trous collision. The OT.-\ called for international action to reduce the :1mount of space debris. \':Jc,, c.1,,ct1.:, .ire .1,J1L1bk 1n ~m f,,rmJr r,,r a pcrt,>J ,,f t,>ur \\ed., fr,,m J1r J3rc fr,,m ,,ur Jff:l1Jtc \'!DEO \10\ITORI\t, 'iER\.ICc~ OF .-\..\!ERIC.-\. l\C 12121-_~1,-2l1:Ll

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, -,.-: ,~,-.-' -:. ~:,, ,~-.:'.'-t, "~~' .-., WI/SH-1Nt3TO AJ Posr !=et>ePAL P,1t; 10}3/?o F:"01vl US.\ TOO,\Y'S tl~:n-C1\!Al. Nl:WS NET,,'OOt.: 1;~\ourtr~ Ben.1a,:lnnuars1 t:a se erirls ir~ n1istria.1 AP !-.HEWA.=rr: father of victim /.. mi3tr,aJ vraS dedarcd Tlrnr<.;,d~.y in the case of Charles Stressler, the fourth def;::ndant trie-:l in the Bel1!30n.hur~i, N.Y., racial slaying, al'ter a juror was dismissed i'or scre"uning across the courtroom at M~.es St':w..3 resolve treaty disputes. Earl Charlton, a lawyer for the Mole Lake Chippewa band, C211~ the ruling a miner setback and said the ai~~~=eal=--.._.._ _____ I ;}TA~ 0:U:f::K: Spe.ce activity, including sb.uttle llig.'1ts, cold become too r,sky within tlle next 20-30 years il nations continue to litter tte mcst traveled paths, say:; a report by the Office of Technology Assessment Toe U.S. S~ce CDmmand is already tracking 6,645 artillcial ob.r-,"'Ct5 orbit-ing Earth, each larger than a softball and weighfr1g a total of Hbout -t5 million JX)Unds. Eve:1 small jun.k can b hezarU01..!!i / in space: At orbital speeds, an object having 1 / 35th the weigtt o: an "5j)bin would h.e.ve the impact ot a 3.J-<::.,Y" '-~-~-~ -.c :-~-. S11ac2 litter Could L~1perit : I-, 1r,n ro ,i I 111ttt-re t, .ngnt: Even Pariic:es Calle6 Possibly Dcr.,zaging t\s2ociated Press Shuttle flights and other cG:,c:, activity could become t,:o ric:~> i, within 20 to 30 years if na:ions cu1-i / tinue to litter the most travelc~ I p;,ths, the Office of Technology P"i. se::sment warned yest;;rday. For instance, the co,1grs.x:oc: i. a,;,encv said, the Hubble Sp2cc: 0 ., 1. 1 f Tel.::scoce, wruch tas enougn proo- !ems be.cause cf faulty optics, has : been gi,en a 1-inl 0C chance oi being seve:-ely d;imag~d b~ space de bris du1ing its 17-year liktin=. j 1 "Even small debris particles r:an i produce high levels of d;,,rar;,=,~ : i s;iid Ray Williamson, w:10 di,ect :;{j : the study. "The average col\;sion I :I velocity in low Eacth or:Jit is atou, i 10 !-:ilometers [6.2 miles] a sc.:o,1d.'' I At such speed, an otjec~_ ~~~ing 11 l/35th the weight of an aspn1H Lab11 let wot,ld have the i:np1ct of a .30;: caliber bdlet, he s.iirl. :,J The National A::ro.1autic-:i and ,[ Space Administratior. is inclnb1::, shielding for critical elem-::,:ts a:; : designs the s;,..:c;; station an J i:~ looking in~o possible collisicn z,vo:,~ ance r.1aneuvers for the s;-,.1ttle, ac cording to the OT A report. In the only documented ccllisior., tiny paint chip damaged the win9shield of space shuttle Challenge, 1 1983 to the extent that it had to '.c:... replaced. As of last wee!-:, the U.S. S~J.cc: Command was tr~.cking 6,6,~5 arti ficial objects orbiting E.irth, e;;;ch larger than a softball an
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.. -... .. ,.-,_, __ ._ '.: ~--:-i~ ,._,i. Experts Say Space Junk May Create Peril by 2000. ---------. I .. lly WILLIAM J. BROAD Unless concerted action is soon taken, low orbits around the Earth could become so clogged with space junk by the turn of the century that they will be too dangerous for satellites and manned spacecraft to use, Federal experts said yesterday. The Congressional Office of Tech nology Assessment warned in a report that unless space-faring nations worked together to reduce the orbital debris they generated, their space operations would suffer loss of ability, income and life. "Continuing steady growth of orbital debris could, by 2000 or 2010, render one centimeter in diameter might alocean-going ship more tnan 200 feet rea~y be orbitin~ the earth. A centime-Jong. .: .. ter 1s about the size of an aspirin tablet. The Congressional report said These tmy particles. can be quite dantracked objects had been growing gerous. A on~-cent1meter aluminum steadily since 1959 at a rate of about sphere travelmg at 22,000 miles an 240 items a year and were expected to hour would strike a spacecraft with the continue growing unless steps were energy of a 400-pound weight str-iking taken to correct the problem. It said the ground at 60 miles an hour. The imonly about 5 percent of the tracked ob-pact cou(d_ be catastrophic. jects were working satellites. The military now tracks 6,645 objects The report, "Orbital Debris: A Space m space that are 10 centimeters in Environment Problem said the shutdiameter or .larger. Ten centimeters is tie and the proposed space station about the size of a softball. Objects could be endangered by space junk. It much smaller than that are difficult to noted that in 1983 a chip of paint col ?etect_. The total mass of tracked ob-lided with a shuttle and badly damaged Jects 1s about 2,200 tons, equal to an a window. some well-used low-Earth orbits too!========================,,....---risky to use," the report said. Low-----... = earth orbits are typically used by manned spacecraft, science missions and spy satellites. The report said the vast majority of space junk was made up of fragments from spacecraft that had broken up. In audition, it said,_there are paint flakes, spent rocket sl'hges, abandoned nuciear reactors, inactive payloads and debris from tests oi space weapons. Treaties Termed Inadequate The report said limiting debris would take concerted action by space users around the world. These space users, it said, need to become more aware of the danger. It urged them to take immedi ate steps with accepted techniques to limit the amount of debris they produced, to develop new plans to re duce the debris and perhaps to enact laws against the creation of space junk. "Existing international treaties and agreements are inadequate for mini mizing the generation of orbital debris or controlling its effects," the reportl said. "An international treaty or agree-I ment specifically devoted to orbital debris may be necessary." Danger From Tiny Objects The report said that the extent of the current threat was difficult to judge but that some experts believed that 30,000 to 70,000 bits of debris at least .--'71-(; (t~_ IC/i :21<;,, /

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LOHOOH FREE PRESS LONDON, ONTARIO, CN OAILV 127,003 SATURDAY HOU 3 1990 43 SW SPACE Orbiting junk puts exploration at risk A pill-size piece of space debris carries the force of a 180-kilogram ( 400-pound) safe. By Arden Moore Knight-Ridder \9 en \J FORT LAUDERDALE. Fla. Once dubbed man's final frontier, space is fast becoming man's outermost junkyard. Orbiting debris some bigger than a bus. some smaller than the period on this sentence -has turned space into a shooting gallery, with satellites, space shuttles and astronauts as vulnerable targets. Millions of swirling objects are orbiting at speeds 20 times faster than. the supersonic Concord and with lifespans .of up to 1,000 years. Two recently released federal studies on space debris point out present and future dangers: an imperfect tracking system, lack of international laws to regulate lau11ches and examples of spacecrafts and sat ellites crippled and destroyed by col liding debris. "Unless we do something in the next (few) years to cut way back on the amount of debris left in orbit in the next decade or two, we will have very serious problems." said Ray Williamson. project manager of a space debris report by the U.S.,Con gressional Office of Techno~ Assessment. -By 2000 or 2010, some well-used low Earth orbits could be declared too risky for further use, he said. Studies show that the orbits cruised by satellites, shuttles and the Soviet space station Mir are littered with junk, including a thermal glove from a Gemini 4 mission in 1965, a dozen screws from a 1984 shuttle mission and a screwdriver lost by a Soviet cosmonaut on a spacewalk. A piece of space junk the size of an aspirin tablet carries the force of a 180-kilogram (400-pound) safe travelling at 100 kilometres an hour. Even a paint flake can deliver a powerful blow in orbit. A recent report issued by the U.S. General Accounting Office indicated that the windshield from the Challenger space shuttle was so severely damaged by a paint flake in 1983 that it had to be replaced. The Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) satellite, rescued in January after a six-year journey in space. was clobbered more than 10.000 times by space debris, said William Kinard, the LDEF's chief scientist. The damage was estimated at' $2 million (U.S.) from objects no bigger than the width of a pencil, he said. "The LDEF is much_smaller than the space station and won't be' up as long," Kinard said. "This gave us a good sampling of what to expect." IN JEOPARDY: Tne safety of the planned $30 billion (U.S.) space station Freedom and its astronauts is in jeopardy unless more aggressive steps are taken to clean up the de bris, warns Don Kessler, a NASA senior scientist and space debris expert. "The space station. with its 30-year lifetime, has a 50-50 chance of colliding with categorical items. those softball-size and larger," Kessler said. He said that ground-based tracking stations can manoeuvre spacecraft away from large debris and that technology exists to provide protec tive shielding against items smaller than marble-size. "There is no mechanism against something between marble and soft ball size." Kessler said. "It's too big to shield against, and there is no tracking ability. So, we can't dodge them."

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/I !f()i f H : 11," ,i ........... -Tl H ''.f t, OCT !} 1!t~}f} ~ELLE'S 1Vledicaid dental p is assailed :y PATRICIA ANSTETT <>e Press Medical Writer "4(17, Y C, ""'-t P oor Michigan children 'do not receive basic dental services through the state's Medicaid program, Congress says. A survey released last week by '1e_ Office of Tech09Jogy .J\ssess111ent an 1vestigative arm of Congress, said 'the 11lure of Michigan and six other states to over routinely some basic dental services, s well as more preventive ones, violates "deral law, though the government does 1ttle to force states to comply. This raises "disturbing questions" about he priority given dental care in federal 1ealth care programs, the agency concluded. The study compared dental manuals of he states to see which services are included 11 Medicaid programs and surveyed nearly 1,500 dentists to identify problems in the ,rogram. The study was spurred in part by a Detroit consumer group, the Dental Survey ,f America. It has challenged the adequacy ,f the state's. Medicaid program and ques t 1011ed what 1t sees as overly aggressive prosecution of Medicaid fraud by state and lederal prosecutors. "We are alarmed at the number of dentists dropping out of the Medicaid progr~m and th_ e difficulties they have getting paid for their services," said Dr. Norman Clement, a pharmacist and former dentist who heads the group. Only 38 percent of the state's dentists accept Medicaid patients. Many, including Fraser dentist Dr. John States poor children are deprived, study says Breza, president of the Michigan Dental Association, which represents 5,000 dentists in the state, say they have stopped takmg them because they consider the reimbursement inadequate, the red tape cumbersome and the administrators unwilling to approve such routine procedures as root canals. "Many of the things they have talked about have proven to be realistic," said Breza of Clement's group. He shares many ?f Clement's criticisms of the program, mcludmg a belief that administrators too often pay only to pull teeth, and not for root canals, braces or other preventive measures that most dentists consider standard care. "Medicaid forces providers to adhert to outdated standards, and the poor receive substandard care," said Clement, who has made Medicaid his top interest ever since Florida ousted him from its program in a billing dispute that he says ruined his dental practice, He believes his case is typical of overzealous prosecution that further drives physicians and dentists from the Medicaid program, a charge the state Attorney General's Office, which polices Medicaid fraud has denied. Clement, Fraser dentist Dr. David Apsey and Detroit dentist Dr. Daryl Williams have contacted dozens of health officials and politi cians to prod them to reform the Medicaid program and to dcx-urnent problems in the program. The three men say that while the Medicaid program on paper appears to provide many services for the poor, the reality is that it doesn't. As a result, the poor don't get routme care bt'cause dentists can't get the state to approve payment for many proce dures. Years later, these same patients are likely to have serious problems that take much more money to correct, according to Clement, Apsey and Williams. Even if the state authorizes payment, they add, it often '' M edicaid forces providers to adhere to outdated standards, and the poor receive substandard care. 7 7 -------DR. NORMAN CLIMENT holds up the payment for months, even years Clement sees the congressional study as vindication for his group. "The report clearly shows what we've been saying all along," he said. "The Medicaid program has failed the practice of dentistry and it does not require basic services required by the federal government." He hopes the report spurs the profession to demand minimal compliance with federal and industry standards. Bruce Huckaby, assistant director of Michigan's Medicaid program, said he was surprised by the findings. "By and large, particularly for children, I think our program is efficient and effective, so far as providing services," he said. Michigan has broader Medicaid eligibility standards, so more poor families are covered by the program than in many other states. Still, the $30 million annually spent on dental Medicaid services about 2 percent of the state Medic.iid budget translates to only $35 a ye.ir for dental care for Medicaid recipients, according to Medicaid program administrator Kevin Seitz. The program hopes to remove some red tape that requires prior authorization for some services, Huckaby said. But he denied the program routinely refuses to authorize such basic services as root canals, and he said payments are delayed only in cases in which there are disputes about whether work was properly performed. Pamela Simerly, who directed the study, said the next step is up to Congress, which must decide what should be done to ensure better dental care for poor children.

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.... Poor children mi~sing basic dental care Medicaid study By Deborah S. Pinkney 0 '.19 7 y AMN STAFF Medicaid programs fail to provide basic dental services to poor children as required by law congressional researchers say. The lack of such care has serious implications for the overall health of these youngsters, they add. The study, "Children's Dental Ser vices Under the Medicaid Program," was released last month by the congres sional Office of Technology Ass e ss ment. It reported that state programs provide inadequate services to children on Medicaid -and in some instances, fail to meet federal requirements "Each of these programs failed in varying degrees to adequately cover ba sic dental services in their Medicaid program," the report said "Particular-ly initial visits x-rays and restorations, newer technologies, and many basic \ therapeutic services, including peri odo~tal, prosthetic, and orthodontic services, are generallv not covered or arc of limited availability." \ A spokeswoman for the Health Care Financing Administration, which over sees Medicaid, declined comment on the findings until the agency could complete its review of the report. The OT A evaluated services in California, New York, Texas. Michigan, Ohio, Mississippi, and Nevada The states represent about half of the nation's children covered bv Medicaid. I~ also surveyed about 4,500 dentists, asking them to assess the level of care offered in their state. I Dental_ care ror Medicaid-eligible children_ 1s. provided through its Early and Penod1c Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment program, a comprehensive health care service that has a dental cor1_1ponent. Though states put together their own package of dental serv i ces und~r the EP~DT pro~ram, federal reg-~latwns require certain basic services. "The theme of that report is what the American Dental Assn. has been hear ing from dentists and dental societies for years," said Jack O'Donnell the ADA 's director of legislative p~licy "Dentists have long complained about the inadequacy of Medicaid." Dentists surveyed by OT A reported that Medicaid patients received few e r services than those provided to other patie_nts. "They feel they do not equally provide to their Medicaid patients un der_ 18 c~mpared to their other young patients, the report said. They cited low Medicaid reimbursement as a major factor in the disparity. "It is very difficult for dentists in many states to treat Medicaid patients an_d cover _their expenses O'Donnell said. "Obviously that is going to affect the ability of dentists to provide care to Medicaid recipients." In addition, the OT A identified a number of other barriers to care, such as low provider participation and a high administrative burden associated with operating the programs. "T~is study raises some disturbing questwns about this system and the priority it gives to the oral health of poor c _hildren," said Pamela Simerly, who directed the study. Norman Clement, DDS, founder of Dental Survey of America, a group formed to address problems in Medicaid coverage, said the group applauds the report "The ultimate impact is on the pa tient," he said, "and as this report points out, they arc not receiving even basic health care services." The report said that non-white children ages 5 to 17 .have more missing teeth due to decay and have fewer teeth filled than do white children even though_ the average number of decayed teeth in the two groups differ only slightly Poor oral health can lead to headaches, muscle strain, and digestive and nutritional problems Dental care, after all is h e alth," said Dr. Clement. "No one should be considered he a lthy when active diseas e persists in any part of the body." An additional concern related to the poor level of services provided by states is that these programs often serve as a guideline for other third, party programs, he said. i Medicaid spends less than I% of its payments on dental care for adults and children the report said. "Although this study did not critique the effec ti ve ness of these bas ic dental s e r v i c es or their costs, the in ev itable next ques ti o ns are: given that some basic dental s ervices arc not ro utinely a v ailabl e to low-income c hildr e n what are the oral health and othe r impacts on th e s e children, and what are the shortand long t e rm costs for the public health care s ystem?" the report asked "Poor oral health has a real impact on the health of the population most at risk: the kids who are not getting s er v i c es, for wh atever the reason Simer l y s aid. It's a very real problem, she added "and it's amazing that so little money and attention has been spent on something so basic. O 'Donnell said the ADA, whi c h as si s ted with the study, wclcorned the re sults and hoped they would be us e d to develop a full ra ng e of services for poor children n a t i onwide. "This is a 50 -state problem he said The study is under review b y the House Committee ,on Energy and Commerce and its Subcommittee on Health and Environment, which ini tially commi ss ioned it. j flML R t U\ N Hlll lCAL NlWS r. HICAGO, lL ~ H 1 LMlS/YFAR J ~U,000 OCT 26 1990 _DuRREffO Dentists surveyed by OTA reported that Medic(}id patients received fewer s e rvices than those provided to olhe r patients.

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tor u tttbtl..$' ~utt~a-tt ~t~pa:w1 COLUMBUS, OHIO SUN. 383,144 OH-387 I SCIENCE HoW/JJlfCh will folks pay to be healthy? For centuries.' physi--~~...,......,,..,..,..,. precancerous lesions that could develop into tuc1ans have struggled un'," "' '\, mors. One, the fecal occult blood test, looks for successfully with the ques-traces of blood products in the stool. The other. tion over the worth of a sigmoidoscopy, involves inserting a device into the ~ingle human life. rectum and large intestine in a hunt for polyps that But until recently, might become tumors. : they were spared the help The study asked whether a more organized. that modern cost-benefit program of the use of both of these among, the analysis can bring to the dderly would be "profitable" in the long-run.-That issue. ,s. did the value gained in a longer life outweigh the Now. statisticians and ~"--- oost of the 5CTeening program. health economists are able EARLE A clear am,wer to this question might provide to conjure up realistic esti-lawmakers with som~ r~tional. rather ~han. emo-mates -not of the value HOLLAND uonal. approach to legislatmg health care fundmg .. of one life, but of the cost -------LJnfortunately. while colorectal cancer is fairly'. of maintaining that life. A new report out this week well understood. the amount of research on th_~: from the Congressional Office of Tech no logy :alue of the occult blood test to detect cancer 1.s As,sessment offers a fJSCaJ accountmg of the pnce hm1te~. The _research data on the efficacy or of saving a single life. s1gmo1doscopy 1s even less. In this case. the agency study concentrated on The study concluded_: one set of diseases ..:.. colorectal cancers among About 23.000 fewer cases of colorectal a specific subgroup of the public -the elderly. cance! would develop among the 2.1 million peaThe analvsis makes sense, both becauSc of the pie 6:, years old. disease s inherent role as a major health problem If true. that would add ~!most -45.000 and as an example of other often-fatal conditions. add1t1onal years to that group of md1v1duals. Colorectal cancer is a diScase of the dderlv. But that would cost about S 1.5 billion jn Like prostate cancer in men, experts warn that if additional funding for health care benefits for you. live Ion~ enou~. the odds ar~ that you'll get it. these elderly, a pri~ of between 5737 and S l.26~ While thats a slight exaggeration, the truth is per person undergoing the screening for the re frightening enough. mainder of his life. This year, more than I 10.000 Americans 65 That places the "net cost per added year of life years old or older will be diagnosed as having at a!J?ut $35.000, .. the. report said. almost equal 10 colorectal cancer. Of those, more than half will die the figure equated With breast cancer screening from it. And as age increases. so does risk. among elderly women. A 65-yea_r-old Q1an has a 6 percent chance of _Legislato~s contemplating resumption of -developing this cancer and a 3-percent chance of Medicare fundmg to support breast cancer screendying from it. The odds are five times worSc than ing programs should remember the cost of addithey were ~hen he w_as 15 years younger. By 75. the tional programs as well. It's a question of how odds have Jumped eight-fold. Women. while not at much we're willing to pay to be healthy. as grave a risk, still increase their chances threefold during the same time period. Physicians agree that two methods provide the best chance of uncovering early stage tumors or Earle Holland is a science writer with The Ohio State University. His column appears bi- weekly. .. -

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RADIO CLIPS D.:..TI TI'.-IE :IEH:OR1' PROGRAM Sc:1~,tc:t11i"'c-r -=~~. \ ll~J1 ,1 .::: ; I I .~ l I ii p .\ I .\ l1111c\ R.tlli,, \e[\\ 1ri--\l,111e\ R,1di,, .\lc:di,:c1l \linutc:. 1 D,1u,; Le\\ .-\ C,111,;rc:,,i,111,d re\Wrt ,,1\, ,1l-i1.1ut '-e\clllc'cll 1 1e1..c11t ( 11 1..l,il,11 ,1n1..I rc:1..t.il ,;rn1..c:r 1..,1,c:, ,1rn1.111~ cider\\ ..\rncri1..-.rn, 1..,,uk\ he 11rc1.cnlc'd it the\ Li11d::-r\\c::,t ,1 rel 1ti\:->h ,i11111!c:' ,,r,',cn.in-.: k,t ,.,, ':'1, ':'."-l'hc Otti1..c l1t Tc.,h1h1i, 1:..'.\ .-\ ... ,c,,Il1c:nt ~'-llll1,;tc', rh,1r ,111 -,rnnu,d tc',r tL1r hidden bl, 11.11..1 in the: ,r,1 1 l \\ 1u!cl prc\ cnt .1111.1ur l\\ cnt;-thrcc: tlWLb,!11'-I ,._-_1..,c:, or (11l,,-1c:,:t.1l 1..'.1111..c:r in [\\,, milL,111 eklc:rl\ .-\rnc:ri1..:111, c:\ c:1, \ c.1r E.1,:h \ c.1r ,1h 1ur .i lH111-lrcd kn tlwu,.111d fcl'f'lc:. ,i.\'.: -ti\ c: 1 r ,,kier .. ire: 1..li:1,;n,1,cd \\ ith rhi, !--in1..I ,1t ,.1111..cr .-\, 11n1 1k _sc:t ,1icic.'r. rheir :i..,!-_ 1 t thi, 1...1n1..c1 1;1(:c.1,c, Thc ''-Tcc11111; 1 1 r, 11..cdurc i, 1...:tlcd tc ... .d ,11.....-Lilt Hl1,11..I lc',r,. The\ l'Ut J11\\ n ,,11 ,le.1th, 11 \ ,.1rc-hi11,; 1..\1i,111 ,._,1111..cr in ii'c.1rl1cr trc.1t.tHc ,r.1;c 011 the ,lc1\\ 11,11..k. the-lJT.-\ .. uti, 111, th,:r thi, 1--inll ,,t \\ i1..k,111c:.1d ,l'rccnin; 1..,1 uid 1r,\ c: r,, l1c-,111 c\r1c.,i1, c: c-11tu1-: t,,r .\lc:d11...1rc:. u11 r,, ,c\ c:n hundrc:d 1..k1U,1r, i'c.: 11c1,,,11 1\c.r r:,::-1:k,!'.111 ,': rh,,,c: c!,kti, \'c','j'!c The: tc:,r it,c:lt 1..,1,r, 111h .tl1 1ur t,1u1 1..i,111.11 ,. hut lJT.-'\. .111.tl\ ,r, L11..t,1rc:1..I t,,lll1\\ -u;, k'-t' .md the: [c."illl'\ ,ii ,1t f'l'I\ f" !lie\1 r 11c-, 1 \ c!,tll ,,1,r 1! the. '-1..Tc'c:'11:ll_:'. dtl11"l Thi, i, D,1u:..: L~-,' >' \\ \ )] -..!"; i1 l~! ',,

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OHR1CnN HEOLCAL HfUS CHICAGO, IL i8-TIMS/VEAR 390,000 OCT 12 1990 336 8Uf!8EJ.J.f MX ,Smokeo~i!::.!::....V e 6 2-1t I EDITT)~IAL A mencans 10v~_ equels, and they will get another one this week. Thursday is the 14th Great American Smokeout. The yearly discouragement to smoking is sponsored by the American Cancer Society. T~e Smokeout encourages smokers to give up their h~b1ts for 24 hours. The Lope, of course, is that one day will lead to another and some smokers will give up the habit entirely. By this time, the health warnings on cigarette packages are no longer news. The deleterious effect of tobacco smoke on health is well known and documented. The American Cancer Society estimates 157,000 new cases of lung cancer and 142,000 lung cancer deaths will occur this year. According to_ the Office of Technology Ass~ssment, ~1garette smoking costs the economy $65 billion annually m health care costs and lost productivity costs. Although the smoker is most at risk, secondhand smoke also can be harmful. Both the city of Topeka and ~he sta~ of Kansas have enacted laws that limit smoking m publlc places. Some employers have gone even f urt~er, b~nning s~oking from their buildings. B1t_by ~1t, Amencans are getting the message that smoking IS not the glamorous habit many used to think it was. The Smokeout does the dual job of increasing that a~ar~ness and offering those who do smoke an excuse to give 1t up at least for a day. =?eport highlights early detection Colorectal tests urged for elderly 1 'I 7 y -l ,.. M d-" f 1 1 -ct WASHINGTON Screening the e mg 1or e 1care to cover screening 1or costs o co orecta screening, accor mg ierly for colorectal cancer with an ancolorectal cancer. "Because Medicare to the report. 1Ual fecal occult blood test could predoes not cover these early screening Over the course of their remaining :ent 17% of such cases, an Office of procedures, we are wasting lives that lives, elderly patients will undergo refechnol~ Assessment report says. we know how to save," says Stark, peated screening tests. follow-up diag--rucn tests would hike the lifetime chairman of the House Ways and nostic testing when the screening tests 1ealth care costs for each 65-year-old Means subcommittee on health. are positive, polypectomy, and period .vho undergoes testing by as much as Each year. 110,000 cases of colo-ic surveillance with a colonoscopy or !,700, says the OTA's background parectal cancer are diagnosed in the elother expensive diagnostic procedures er, '"Costs and ffectiveness of Colorderly. Lifetime routine screening could to screen for new polyps. xtal Cancer Screening in the Elderly." add 44,000 years of life to those who Stark also is pressing for reinstate-The report highlights the hard are now 65, says the OTA report. ment of mammography covepi:g('that :hoices facing government policymak-If all 2.1 million Americans who are was included in the repealed Medicare ;;:rs as they try to shift health programs now 65 began a program of annual fe-catastrophic act. Medicare generally toward early detection and prevention cal occult blood tests, the OT A says, doesn't cover preventive health ser in an era of financial constraints. the cost over their lifetimes would be vices, but last year coverage was exCi ting the study's findi~gs,_ Rep. about $1.5 bil~ion. But the test itself tended t~ screening Pap smears for ear Fortney 'Pete" Stark (D, Cahf.) 1s callmakes up a tmy part of the overall ly detection of cervical cancer.

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Office of Technology Assessment Releases Background Paper on :'\/onferrous Industries fr1t' h1,t,,nc, ,ind ,t,Hu, ,,r the L S. curTt>r. ,1lum111um. il,1d ,111d nnc indu :--tnes l1 fl' dLtl1 t lLd in ,1 ...::l 1n1. t1 rt.' hL'n ... i ,t.. '-T' lrt bv the Cungreo~1unc1't Ott1cc: ui T echnuiL,gv .-'\~~e,~ment \UT.-'\1 _\,,,,\ t111, .\kt,/,_. /wfu,tr:1 ~tr:1, turt' re\'lew, the ch,1nge" 111 tht t,,ur 111duotne, during the [ '-1~11s. ,ummannng their 1nd1\idu,1l '-''~'enence". prtlblems,1ncl ,tnicture. ,rnd 1nclud111g LL1t,1 un pr,1ductiun. c,,n,umptllln and prices ,,f the tDur mt'tab L1ch ,111,1lv,1s Lwgins with an ,,1 er\ie1, ,,t the pnice~smg ,111d ,1pplk,1t1tJns ,,t the metal in que,,tiun. The techm1k1gv and its limitat1L>ns ,ue summ,1nzed, ,rnd the price-; regulatiuns, merger,, '-'Ft'n-1n~:::-l1nd .._-1L)~iI1<._:;:.--L)t the l'-l"tl--. ,1rc :l\ lt:1\\.l'd ~llf Jil thL' 11il11Pf p!ll\ l'f'-, 1 ':t.' C':..tlk l)t L',h.:h llf the tUUf Chl1F"ttf-... i-.. ,jt_\ uttd t,, t'rt>dl!Cl'r L'rt>tile, ,, h1ch 'l\ <' : h\.. ~1...nt.'L; l ... tl1tu:--tit .. t ht.1 1 n .... i u--. tr, 1 n .1~ 1 r thL1 !lL)t"'\...,ll(lllli:--t !1l1tlL'I1...,, J-., '.\ t..'ll J-.. ...,~-,t'Lltl( 1nh1rn1,1t1t,n Jbliut thL' nH1-..t -.1._:ri1~1-1.._l1nr1,._-t)l11}-"l1t".1L'~ PL1nt'.L'd ,:h,1n~l1'-. in r'r,,duct1u:1 ,ire ,it,cu,,Ld. '., 1th .111 .1n.1!1 ,1, l)t their '--'tft(t~ \111 L S \'~"L'L1t1t1n:-\1,._lt)t11pl1n} II1~ tl1b!t.h .. l111d }-"'!L' cl1,1rh d'--'F'k: [!,t., h1~tor\ i 1t t.1,h: h ind u~t!"': ,1 r;d rL' k'\ J 1; t ,Utt~tlC~,-.ind ,l~'rL'I1dlcc'" i1,t ,he C:cl11-f--",1!1!t:--1n;1,.1l\t_\d tn the L r:1tld ~t.HL'.., -tnd 1.1ther :111n-..1 'l,1l1--.t u1untnl,...., C1.1 t,"lL'"' 1.1r d1t_' !'L'F'1..1rt ((1['< l -.t1.1..._:, "L:i~> t.,er .)~2-(ltl~-11121\Lt,) clre .\\,1tL1l-
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TV CLIPS DATE TIME NETWORK PROGRAM 75 EAST NORTHFIELD ROAD 'LIVINGSTON, NEW JERSEY 07039 (201)992-6600,/800) 631-1160 ~ovember 15. [990 -+:00-6:00 P!\1 EST Financial '.\ews ~etwork !\lark.et Wrap Doug Ramsey. :rnchor: ACCOUNT NUMBER NIELSEN AUDIENCE lU n2LJ~ Y '.\ ,-\ Our final storv this half hour--an estim;.J.ted ei~hteen million Amcri-:ans fou\!ht the ur~e to srnokc today as part of the Great-.-\merican Sm,1kcOUL The o71c-1.fa\ c\'em ::-pom.orcd b~ the Amcri1.\111 Can1.er Society is aimed ar gc"tting the nation\ fifty million smokers to ki1.k the habit. ;.it least for t\\ent\-four hours, Jerry Cobb reports on the business of smoking and the bu:-.iness l1t quitting. Jcrf\ Cobb reporting: (Americans arc smokin~ less and the tobacco industrv continues ro thri\ e due to di\'ersificarion.) Cobb: But ci~arcttcs ma\-be a d\'inl! business in more wa,-s than one. In .1dditi,1n to the lo;s of life th:n can b~ attributed to smoking. the Office l 1f T e1.h1wl,1k"' .-\ssessment says the loss in producti\'ity costs the nation sixty-fi\'c billion dollars a vear. But perhaps the biggest boost to the smoking-cessation business is the gn)\\ ing negative publicity surrounding 1.ig;.irettes. While there was a time \\ hen cig;1-rctte ads like rh1s dominateLi the airwaves. the~\ e now been repL11.ed \\ ith ads like this. and the American Cancer Society hopes to put the nail in the Cl)ffin of cigarette smoking through education. Their goal--a class 1.1! :-.moke-free high school sen10rs by the \'ear 2000. Jerry Cobb. Financi.d ~e\\ s ~ct\\ 1.1rk. LL1s .-\ngcles. 21 Clips

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I 1thtt:es-lttayuitt NEW ORLEANS, LA. 0. 283,294 1-4-10(1 OCT 3 1990 BU8(JELI.FS Use oil reserves, energy expert urges By BRUCE ALPERT a'7 t Washington bureau }-~'\ \ WASHINGTON A congressional energy expert Tuesday suggested that the United States and other industrialized nations use expanded petroleum reserves to limit price fluctuations and encourage increased production from non-Arab sources. "Buy cheap and sell high,'' ,John Gibbons, director of the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment, urged dunng a hearing before the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Gibbons said petroleum stor age sites, including the 590 mil lion-barrel U.S. reserves in Texas and Louisiana, should be ex panded during times of declining prices. Supplies then could be sold to combat the kind of increases that followed Iraq's invasion of Ku wait, he said. Stabilizing prices would en courage production, not only in the United States, but in such "friendly" oil-producing nations as Venezuela and Mexico, Gibbons said. But he and other experts told the Senate committee that the only way the United States will reduce dependence on foreign oil is through a comprehensive pol icy combining conservation and domestic production incentives. Daniel Yergin, president of Energy Research Associates, said Japanese government and industrial leaders were amazed that the United States did little to counter the loss of a significant portion of its domestic energy production during the 1980s. "The loss of that production turns out to be a heavy cost for the whole nation, as every motorist is finding, and as we see re. cession stalking the economy," Yergin said. I Henry Schuler of the Center for Strategic and International Studies warned the committee that the "elimination of (Iraqi President) Saddam Hussein whether political or physical ~ill not long guarantee the world's access to secure supplies of Middle Eastern oil at reasona ble prices." He said the Palestinian-Israeli dispute, the unpopularity of some Middle East dictatorships and in creasing ethnic and religious ten sions may bring more disruptions of oil supplies in the future. "We must try to reduce the growth in oil imports by reassess ing the costs and risks of domes tic energy alternatives in light of the costs and risks associated with sending a quarter of a mil lion American servicemen to the Middle East," Schuler said. Alternatives should include natural gas substitution, research and de velopment, clean coal technology, nuclear power and offshore oil development in the United States, he said. Yergin said a major problem with current U.S. policy is a re duced commitment to research and development. The Energy Department, in terms of constant dollars, now is spending less than half as much on research of alter native fuels as it did in 1980. ...

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... THB SIJNDAY TIMES 18 NOVEMBER 1990 Greens walk on thin ice in the Antarctic wastes A ntamica is becomina a was a aood thin&, in its time. Bu battleground. TomOITOW, Environmentalists who the world bas mo-1 OD. If Olli" represe111auves of the 38 !m!l'.i~._ Briwn would use its authonty,. countries that run the A.olarellc have challenged a polar ban would be posuble." T-iy SyslCIII meet 1n Vuia del Briwn believes 11 bas a uniqu Mar, Chile. to work out a 11:1 al. agreement risk doing p()SIUOD in Alltarenea because 0 rules to CODtrOI and pombly bu more harm than good, its bistoncaJ u,volvement and th, the cxplonation of Ille 6-way 11 promoted much of Ant conunent's reserves al ail, -, says Richard North arctica's environmental pro iron and other metals. ~~-Ii:' tecnon. The UK's offic:,aJ posiuo, But is this initiative rally .: DOW IS tbat it would like to act a esaary? Many Ammcan and 9rir,. ..:,...;;.:;.;... ________________ brollcrforanynewconsensus.wtu ish ezpena believe the islae it would not Sl&D ii last year and more than 20 others. what it pro!DdeS is an open 1111Dd. ~ved by the Antan:tic M1naala wu Joined tater by France, where The conunent where milliom of There is a poaible compromJs. Convenaoa. qn,ed u, 1988 after Jacques Cousteau bad been petllWDS are the main animals, that could sau.sfy all parues. Con yean of neaouauon. campugmng. The convention is where there are no land mammals sresa voted overwbelmmgly The convenuon's fans say it now 1n abeyance and probably apan from sctenUsts (500 1n wmter Oc:tober for a moratonum on min would have rqulated the explordead. Ausu:wa and France, wtth and up to 2.500 in summer), and era! explonauon on the conunem ation for and explo11ation of 11l1D Italy, Be!g,um and New Zealand, where countries have qn,ed to The World Resources lnsutute 1 erala, whether liqwd (oil and gas) are now p=1ng fora mineral ban, fn:eze their claims 10 temtory, Wash1n1ton an unusuatt or solid (such a coal), to limit their a sll'engthened envuonmental re-seemed in capable hands. thouahtful environmental pressur. environmental damqe. It went 111me (the UK is keen on that, too) Anlarellca wa the place when: sroup-believes tlus could be use< filnber. any one of 20 nauom and for the continent to be deJoe Farman, then of BAS. found in conjUIICllon wtth the e:usua, (includins Ar&entina. AusU'alia, clared a Na1ural Reserve Land of the ozone hole, and wu able to do convenuon, with the unponan Chile. France. New Zealand, NorSaence. so because of the punt)' of its m. benefit of being seen to endorse -y. the UK, the US and tho Nobody thinks Antarctica would The discovery temtied Austra-and strensthen, the conseDSUc USSR) could have vetoed any devbe easy to explo1L How would you lians. who are sufl'erin& an increase b'a.tymalana pr0CeSI that ha dopment proposal. build offshore nas u, the stonruest u, uin c:ancer (wluch the hole may served Antarctica well Dr O.,nd Walton, a senior sci--ters on earth, on a phenomencourage), and is credited witll Tbcre is another move tba entisl at the IDfluenual Bnush Ant enally deep conunental shelf, tuntiDc public 01)inioD there could be made. The minera an:uc Survey (BAS), believes it wa where they would be rouunely at wants the sanc:tity of Antarc:ticL convention, fo, all ill VlrtUes, wa: a clever l)lece of work: ~aAS bas ns.k from 1c:eberp 25 aules tone, Few A.otan:tic scientillll deny relatiwty lu about the 1D1ua. been on the record u sayina tha1 11 dnven by WUlda wluch reach that a total ban would be an ell prospec1in1 for mtnerals tha believed the convenuon would be 190mph? cdlent idea, aJthoUlh so-re., would have to precede theu a proteCUon apmst development, I Qwtc possably you could one l that the envvonmentalisu milhl cxploatauon. Tbe best tnct wouk: beca11111 of the veto ~ents day,~ a 5lUdy by the Office of wtn too many reslnCllons on sc,en. be to live the ua.ry countries the beca11111 the convenuon brinp ~y a [$JM!;J tific wort. Bui critics po,.nt out thal W veto over commerc:,aJ pros. m enVU'Onmental safeauanls much pro the Chile process IDJ&{lt encowwar pecuna a the convenuon woulc hishcr than apply vinually anyvtce for the Amencan Coqresa. some countnes to arauc for tesa, pve them over devdopment. where ebe. It wa extremely diili-poinu111 out how much ha been not more, than the convention had There may be a coanensm cull to eet that consensus. and you achieved in Arctic explouauon. achieved. and name Japan q a amons ua.iy natiolls for a mora shouldn't wtlliDalY live 1t up." moet of it untluntabte 20 years possible recak:itranL tonum on proepecbDI and dev-But some nauons. backed by the aao.. Without a total ban, the Ant In any case, it is presumed that elopment. That would leave it for World Wide Fund for Nature and an:uc could well be next. new ne1Qtiatiom will tate years. future aenerauons to deade Ant Greenpeace, are delishted wtth the Conaemus is everythiq in Ant Several 9en1or fiaures i.!1 arcuca's fulllJ'e u. u, pnctice. Chile iniualive: they tlunt an out-an:uca. Since 1959, when the Ant Bn:nn;Jier, wl!lr they would anyway wlule k.eei>-risht ban is wtthin rach, and amic T-ty wa sagned by the ~ew othe new v ins it free from_ even the smallesc would enshrine Antan:tica u a small number of countries which tion-saialiiiweelr.lhat wor-chanceofexplouaaonu,ournme. symbol of man's prepamlnesa to either had claims on bits of terri-ned about the vacuum that could The difficulty is that green cam leave raw nature with one las! liiDItory there, or resarch bu.es, there e:ust for some ume. paicnen may be so comminal tc dom, one and a half times the liza bas been an cxU'&Ordinary aa:ord Simon Lyster, of the World the bi& phrase-1111 outnght bllll for of the United States. that Antarctica should be kept a a Wide Fund for Nature, says the all time tha1 they scupper tht Althouah Australia had qn,ed pristine laboratory. It bas survived convention'ssupportershavegot1t mineral agreement and gooc IO the 1988 convention's wordilll, the onaim,I SlalCS be1J11 joined by wrong. "The mmcrals convenuon 1overnance of Alltan:tica as well. ..

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lr,I -=ducati;,, Long-Distance Teaching Distance learmng 1s revolut1omzmg the teaching profession _,, --, l Telecommunications technologies promise to create many new opportunities for teachers and improve the quality L)f teaching in the United States, according to a report bv the U.S. Office of Technology Assessment (OT A):,_ Distance learning -the use of computers, interactive video, satel lites, and other media to link class rooms that are far apart has in creased dramatically in recent I Teleteacher" broadcasts Russian lessons v,a satellite vears. Students can now work on science projects with "classmates" nn the other side of the country or partiopate m classes from their homes. These same technologies allow teachers to teach the subjects they specialize in, to continuously improve their skills, and to work where and when they wish, accord ing to the report, Linking for Learning. Long-distance teachers can help enormously to overcome shortages of qualified teachers in many school districts, says OT A. "Teleteachers" can also serve as elec tronic mentors and as master teach ers, allowing classroom teachers to take in-service training without leaving their own school facilities. Similarlv, student teachers mav electron'ically observe experienced teachers in action. The technologies also allow teach ers to network with colleagues in order to share resources and experiences, according to the report. OT A stresses that distance learning is not for every teacher and that electronic classrooms will not completely replace traditional ones. Many teachers first attempting to conduct classes electronically have had to struggle to learn new preparation and organizational procedures and how to deal with the technologies themselves, the report notes. Some teleteachers have reported that being "on stage" can be intimidating and that they need much more time to prepare classes that rely heavily on visual presentations. And some teachers simply do not like being so far removed from the majority of their students. More training and support are needed for teleteachers if they are to use the technologies effectively, according to the report. But, OT A concludes, "distance teachers are excited about the opportunity to be innovators, to teach the subjects they love to a wider audience of students, and to use technology as a springboard to creativity." Source: Linking for Learning: A Nt?W Course for Educatzon, Office of Technology Assessment, U.S. Congress. $9. Available from the Supenntendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402-9325. GPO stock number 052-00301170-l. FUTURIST BETHESDA, 11D BI-110NTHLV 30,000 HOU-DEC 1990 -2797 BVt.f./?EL.L.E'S CI


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