# Presentation: 374750

## Activities of the PITAC(2003—2005)

**Daniel A. Reed**
- University of North Carolina
- 28 March 2006

## Areas of Focus for PITAC

- PITAC concentrated on three major areas of networking and information technology R&D:
- IT for Health Care (Presidential priority, recommended by PCAST)
- Cyber Security R&D (joint PITAC and OSTP interest)
- Computational Science (joint PITAC and OSTP interest)
- PITAC formed a subcommittee for each area
- One to three domain experts (through the NCO) used for technical / editorial assistance
- Examination of each major area resulted in a report

## IT for Health Care

- Activities involved full PITAC meetings, subcommittee meetings, hospital site visits, a town hall meeting, many telecons
- Began in Fall of 2003, report approved June 2004
- Culminated in report *Revolutionizing Health Care through Information Technology*
- Twelve detailed findings / recommendations in two broad categories
- Promoting Electronic Health Records (EHRs) and associated technologies
- Promoting secure, private, interoperable health information exchange

## IT for Health Care (2)

- Findings / Recommendations involved:
- Providing economic incentives for investing in health IT
- Implementation and adoption of standard health care vocabularies and EHRs
- Retaining doctor/patient relationships unimpeded by health IT
- Improved USG coordination of efforts
- Unambiguous patient identification
- Secure, trusted information access and transmission

## Cyber Security R&D

- Formal charge letter from OSTP with specific questions to be answered (focus, balance, stewardship)
- Activities involved full PITAC meetings, subcommittee meetings, a town hall meeting, an OMB datacall to agencies, a written request for information from agencies, many telecons
- Began in Spring of 2004, report approved January 2005
- Culminated in report *Cyber Security:  A Crisis of Prioritization*
- Four findings / recommendations
*Insufficient USG funding for cyber security R&D – specifically increase NSF by $90M / year*
*Cyber security R&D community too small, USG should promote recruiting and retention*
*Tech transfer of cyber security R&D results is inadequate, USG should strengthen partnership with the private sector*
*USG cyber security R&D not well-coordinated, USG should centralize the responsible NSTC coordinating body under the NITRD Subcommittee*

## Computational Science

- Formal charge letter from OSTP with specific questions to be answered (focus, balance, stewardship)
- Activities involved full PITAC meetings, subcommittee meetings, a town hall meeting, many telecons
- Began in Summer of 2004, report approved May 2005
- Culminated in report *Computational Science:  America’s Competitive Challenge*
- Recognized that the field of computational science forms an “ecosystem”
- Multiple findings / recommendations in five chapters
*A Wakeup Call:  The Challenges to U.S. Preeminence and Competitiveness*
*Medieval or Modern? Research and Education Structures for the 21st Century*
*Multi-decade Roadmap for Computational Science*
*Sustained Infrastructure for Discovery and Competitiveness*
*Research and Development Challenges*

## Computational Science (2)

- Findings / Recommendations involved:
- Recognition of the importance of C-S to the U.S. (leadership, competitiveness, national security)
- Structural impediments to C-S in USG and at universities (calls for an NRC study)
- Coordination and long-term planning are needed
- Cites need for a multi-decadal roadmap for C-S (calls for an NRC study)
- Need for sustained C-S infrastructure:
- software sustainability centers
- data and software repositories
- high-end computing leadership centers
- community integration and sustenance

## Related activities and next steps

- Health IT
- Creation of Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT
- Presidential focus on Health IT for efficiency and reduction of medical errors
- Cyber Security
- Structural change in NSTC to implement PITAC recommendation
- Increased coordination, and increased funding request in 2007 budget (NSF, DHS, NIST)
- Computational Science
- Dramatic increase in support for Leadership computing in 2007 budget (DOE/SC and NSF)
- Enhanced interagency coordination on HEC, greater recognition of the need for long-term software support
- Next steps

## P.L. 102-194: High-Performance Computing Act of 1991 
Established PITAC to provide the Director of OSTP with an independent assessment of the National HPC program, specifically:
progress made in implementing the Program;
the need to revise the Program;
the balance between the components of the Program;
whether the research and development undertaken pursuant to the Program is helping to maintain United States leadership in computing technology; and
other issues identified by the Director.
P.L. 105-305: Next Generation Internet Research Act of 1998 
Adds to PITAC responsibilities, including assessment of:
Geographic penalties (Internet access in rural locations);
HBCU/MI participation; and
Agency R&D coordination and/or duplication.
PITAC to report to the President and Congress annually reviewing program implementation, final report due in 2000.
Executive Order 13385
Extends PITAC’s responsibilities, assigning them to PCAST

*P.L. 102-194: High-Performance Computing Act of 1991*
- Established PITAC to provide the Director of OSTP with an independent assessment of the National HPC program, specifically:
- progress made in implementing the Program;
- the need to revise the Program;
- the balance between the components of the Program;
- whether the research and development undertaken pursuant to the Program is helping to maintain United States leadership in computing technology; and
- other issues identified by the Director.
*P.L. 105-305: Next Generation Internet Research Act of 1998*
- Adds to PITAC responsibilities, including assessment of:
- Geographic penalties (Internet access in rural locations);
- HBCU/MI participation; and
- Agency R&D coordination and/or duplication.
- PITAC to report to the President and Congress _annually_ reviewing program implementation, final report due in 2000.
- Executive Order 13385
- Extends PITAC’s responsibilities, assigning them to PCAST

## Slide 10

## Slide 11

- History of NITRD PCAs