Failing science.

• Author: Pugliese, Frank
• Position: READERS' FORUM: VIEWS ... COMMENTS ... SUGGESTIONS - Letter to the editor

* I much enjoyed your article on the Pentagon's science advisors, "Scholars Give Defense Department Failing Grade" (November 2008). This subject is very interesting and also a bit scary that we are losing this type of talent and not successfully replacing it. This might be another area where a concerted effort by the Defense Department and the larger federal government might be well served by an active and aggressive recruitment and exchange program between industry and government as a first step. In recent years there have been many organizations that have focused on recruitment and retention in the government. This is the type of challenge they look for because it clearly makes the case for why we should be encouraging and recruiting the best talent we can find. We are also at a critical time right now and perhaps this could be the jumpstart we need to focus on this need.

Frank Pugliese

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* Your article in the November issue, "Scholars Give Defense Department Failing Grade," provides an excellent summary of the current situation facing the science and technology sector of the Defense Department and the role that it will play in our defense posture in the coming decades. You convey to the reader the essential role of long-term sustained funding to the success of our science and technology efforts. This is commendable.

The downturn in S&T funding during the past 30 years is similar to the downturn in corporate funding for S&T in the private sector, where corporate emphasis has shifted from...