[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 29 (Wednesday, March 7, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E294-E295]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




100 YEARS OF ACCOMPLISHMENT--A CELEBRATION OF THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF 
               STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY'S 100TH BIRTHDAY

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                       HON. SHERWOOD L. BOEHLERT

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, March 7, 2001

  Mr. BOEHLERT. Mr. Speaker, last night I had the honor to participate 
in the celebration of the 100th birthday of the National Institute of 
Standards and Technology (NIST). As I noted in my remarks at the event, 
NIST was one of the very first and one of the most important actions 
Congress took at the beginning of the 20th Century.
  NIST was established to help bring rationality to the profusion of 
standards that were plaguing this country at the turn of the last 
century. As to its future, it could be anything from looking at the 
molecular structure of ceramics or the security of our computers or 
guidance to a small manufacturer on how to update operations. We are 
indebted to NIST for what it has done in the past as I am sure we will 
be for what It provides us in the future.
  Mr. Speaker, I doubt that very many people are aware of NIST, its 
history and its importance to the nation. Since I touched on many of 
these points in my address last night, I insert the full text of my 
remarks for the information of my colleagues at this point in the 
Record.

              Statement on NIST Anniversary, March 6, 2001

       It's a delight and a privilege to join with you this 
     evening to celebrate the 100th birthday of the National 
     Institute of Standards and Technology. And I have to say that 
     the timing of this event is auspicious for me, in particular. 
     It's great to be assuming the chairmanship of the House 
     Science Committee as NIST is celebrating its centenary 
     because the existence of NIST is concrete proof that Congress 
     can get some things right when it comes to science and 
     technology policy.
       Establishing NIST was one the very first and one of the 
     most important actions Congress took at the dawn of the 20th 
     Century--a century that was to see technology and 
     standardization change our world as never before. And we are 
     still reaping the rewards of that foresight as we begin the 
     21st Century.
       I have to note, though, that while NIST is richly deserving 
     of tonight's gala; the festivities are a little out of 
     character for NIST, which from the start has gone about its 
     business in an unassuming, even inconspicuous way. Even the 
     law that created the laboratory didn't have a name--it was 
     known by the rather plain and workaday designation, ``the Act 
     of March 3, 1901''--a date that has lived in neither infamy 
     nor fame, a date that no schoolchild has been forced to 
     memorize.
       Given NIST's ``nose-to-the-grindstone'' work ethic, its 
     stream of consistent productivity without fanfare, its focus 
     on the essential but largely invisible foundations of modern 
     technology, one might think that a good title for a history 
     of NIST's first century would be ``One Hundred Years of 
     Solitude.''
       But how extraordinarily misleading that would be--because 
     the actual secret of NIST's success has been its 
     ``partnerships''--partnerships with the private sector, 
     partnerships with other federal agencies and laboratories, 
     partnerships with state and local governments. NIST is well 
     known to the people who keep our economy healthy, and it's 
     NIST's ability to work with just about anybody that has kept 
     it fresh, vital and valuable--as fundamental a key to 
     American prosperity as it was the day it was created.
       NIST is a worthy and needed partner because its mission is 
     problem-solving. NIST was established to help bring 
     rationality to the profusion of standards that were 
     afflicting the United States at the turn of the last 
     century--a profusion that could have tragic consequences 
     when, for example, major fires could not be extinguished 
     because of varying standards for hoses and hydrants. And that 
     problem-solving ethos has been maintained to this very day--
     whether NIST is probing abstruse questions about the 
     molecular structure of ceramics, or helping to ensure the 
     security of our computers, or providing guidance to a small 
     manufacturer on how to update his operations through the 
     Manufacturing Extension Program.
       And we also still draw on NIST's expertise to solve 
     problems that are endemic to the economy as a whole--with the 
     Advanced Technology Program, for example, which has helped a 
     wide variety of companies pass through the so-called ``valley 
     of death'' that can prevent good research ideas from becoming 
     good processes or products.
       But tonight's focus is not on the past--although NIST's 
     record accomplishment provides plenty of cause for 
     celebration. We're really here to make a downpayment on the 
     future by showing all the current and former directors and 
     staff at NIST how grateful we are for their dedication, their 
     imagination and their insight. Working steadily and 
     fruitfully outside the limelight, they have enabled our 
     nation's reputation for technological progress to shine.
       Now it's hard to know what the technology of tomorrow will 
     look like. History is littered with embarrassingly misguided 
     predictions--a few of them even uttered in hearings before 
     the House Science Committee. But I think it's safe to say 
     that, whatever

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     the technology of the future is, NIST will have played a role 
     in its creation, enhancement or propagation.
       So I want again to thank everyone who has made NIST a 
     success and to pledge to all of you that I will do my best to 
     ensure that NIST continues to set the standard for what a 
     federal lab should be.

     

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