[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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