[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 487 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 487
Recognizing the contribution of modeling and simulation technology to
the security and prosperity of the United States, and recognizing
modeling and simulation as a National Critical Technology.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 14, 2007
Mr. Forbes (for himself, Mrs. Drake, Mr. Feeney, Mrs. Jo Ann Davis of
Virginia, Mr. Keller of Florida, Mr. Conaway, Mr. Tom Davis of
Virginia, Mrs. Wilson of New Mexico, and Mr. Ortiz) submitted the
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Science
and Technology
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the contribution of modeling and simulation technology to
the security and prosperity of the United States, and recognizing
modeling and simulation as a National Critical Technology.
Whereas the United States of America is a great and prosperous Nation, and
modeling and simulation contribute significantly to that greatness and
prosperity;
Whereas modeling and simulation in the United States is a unique application of
computer science and mathematics that depends on the validity,
verification, and reproducibility of the model or simulation, and
depends also on the capability of the thousands of Americans in modeling
and simulation careers to develop these models;
Whereas members of the modeling and simulation community in government,
industry, and academia have made significant contributions to the
general welfare of the United States, and while these contributions are
too numerous to enumerate, modeling and simulation efforts have
contributed to the United States by--
(1) expanding the understanding of nuclear chain reactions during the
Manhattan Project through some of the earliest simulations replicating the
reaction process, which ultimately contributed to the end of World War II;
(2) serving as a foundational element of the Stockpile Stewardship
Program, which enabled the President of the United States to certify the
safety, security, and reliability of the nuclear stockpile for more than
ten years without the use of live nuclear testing, which demonstrates the
Nation's commitment to nuclear nonproliferation;
(3) accelerating the effectiveness of joint, coalition, and interagency
training exercises, while dramatically reducing the costs of such
exercises, as demonstrated by United States Joint Forces Command's 2007
homeland security exercise, Noble Resolve, which was conducted virtually
and required 5 months, 140 personnel, and $2,000,000 for development,
compared to a 2002 Millennium Challenge exercise that was conducted live
and required 5 years, 14,000 personnel, and $250,000,000 for development;
(4) preserving countless human lives, as well as military and civilian
aircraft, ships, and other vehicles through the rehearsal of repeatable,
simulated emergencies that otherwise could not have been practiced;
(5) increasing the quality of health care through the development of
medical simulation training, which led the Food and Drug Administration to
require such training for physicians before certain high-risk procedures to
treat heart disease and strokes;
(6) reducing the cost of health care, as demonstrated by medical
malpractice insurance rate discounts being provided to anesthesiologists
and obstetricians who include simulated procedures in their biennial
training requirements;
(7) simulating large scale natural or man-made disasters to improve the
effectiveness of local, State, and Federal first responders, law
enforcement, and other agencies involved in a coordinated emergency
response;
(8) forecasting weather and predicting climate change to enable
scientists, industry, and policymakers to study the effects of climate
change and also to prepare for extreme weather, such as hurricanes;
(9) protecting rivers, waterways, and endangered species reliant on
these waters through the Environmental Protection Agency's hydrology
Dynamic Stream Simulation and Assessment Model, which predicts impacts on
water quality for the Truckee River, including its effect on Lake Tahoe and
other portions of its basin;
(10) producing analysis that resulted in enhanced designs and
construction of critical infrastructure, such as roads, interchanges,
airports, harbors, railways, and bridges that increases transportation
capacity and safety, and reduces travel time and environmental impact; and
(11) providing National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
astronauts training to ensure a safe and productive mission in space,
including the utilization of the Shuttle Training Aircraft, which simulates
real aircraft shuttle characteristics and enables NASA pilots to have 1,000
simulated shuttle landings before they land the Space Shuttle for the first
time as a glider;
Whereas these contributions, in addition to numerous contributions that are not
listed but that equally have brought prosperity to our Nation,
demonstrate that modeling and simulation efforts have, and will continue
to--
(1) provide vital strategic support functions to our Military;
(2) defend our freedom and advance United States interests around the
world;
(3) promote better health care through improved medical training,
improved quality of care, reduced medical errors, and reduced cost;
(4) encourage comprehensive planning for national disaster and
emergency preparedness response;
(5) improve and secure our critical infrastructure and transportation
systems;
(6) protect the environment; and
(7) allow the Nation to explore the Earth and space to further our
understanding of our world and universe;
Whereas modeling and simulation frequently complements or replaces
experimentation where experimentation is hazardous, expensive, or
impossible, thus providing far greater capability than experimentation
alone;
Whereas the modeling and simulation industry provides well-paying jobs to many
Americans and represents an opportunity for Americans with strong
foundations in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics to
contribute to the prosperity and security of the United States;
Whereas other countries have recognized the value of modeling and simulation as
an opportunity to gain a competitive advantage over the United States
economically and militarily, and some of these same countries produce
more engineers each year than the United States;
Whereas modeling and simulation efforts are critically dependent on a
fundamental education in science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics;
Whereas modeling and simulation require unique knowledge, skills, and abilities
that are not adequately incorporated into governmental occupational
classification codes; and
Whereas advances in modeling and simulation can be achieved through innovation
in the private sector, and proper export controls and intellectual
property rights are critical to the continued growth and innovation in
this sector: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) commends those who have contributed to the modeling and
simulation efforts which have developed essential
characteristics of our Nation;
(2) urges that, consistent with previous legislation passed
by this and previous Congresses, science, technology,
engineering, and mathematics remain key disciplines for primary
and secondary education;
(3) encourages the expansion of modeling and simulation as
a tool and subject within higher education;
(4) recognizes modeling and simulation as a National
Critical Technology;
(5) affirms the need to study the national economic impact
of modeling and simulation;
(6) supports the development and implementation of
governmental classification codes that include separate
classification for modeling and simulation occupations; and
(7) encourages the development and implementation of ways
to protect intellectual property of modeling and simulation
enterprises.
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