[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 5]
[Senate]
[Page 7244]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO RICHARD T. ROCA, PH.D.

 Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I wish to pay tribute to a 
distinguished scholar, accomplished leader, and a treasured member of 
the Maryland family, Dr. Richard Roca, director of the Johns Hopkins 
University Applied Physics Lab, who will soon step down after a decade 
of distinguished leadership and service in that position.
  The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab is a national 
treasure. Since it was created in the early days of the Second World 
War, APL has helped maintain our Nation's military, our intelligence 
agencies, our space community, and our medical profession on the 
cutting edge of technological achievements. Now the largest university 
affiliated research lab in the Nation, the dedicated scientists, 
engineers, technicians, and researchers at APL have time and again 
solved the problems no one thought possible, and in the process kept us 
safe and secure. Since 2000, Dr. Roca has led this uniquely talented 
and diverse team of world renowned scientists as they rose to the 
challenges of the post-September 11 world.
  Dr. Roca was the right leader at the right time to guide APL through 
these fast-paced and challenging times. Like many visionary leaders in 
his field, Dr. Roca understands that for a forward-leaning, high-tech 
institution like the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab can never be 
static. He knows that in order for APL to play its role solving the 
problems of the 21st century and helping our Nation's national security 
apparatus adjust to an ever-changing world, that APL itself must 
continually be updating and reinventing itself.
  Dr. Roca's leadership over the last 10 years has embodied that 
mindset on continual improvement and self-reinvention. During his 
tenure, APL adapted to a changing world by expanding its roles and 
capabilities into homeland security, cyber defense, space exploration, 
and information-centric operations. After September 11, under Dr. 
Roca's leadership APL established the Electronic Surveillance System 
for Early Notification of Community-Based Epidemics--ESSENCE--at APL to 
monitor the threats from new diseases in the United States. That system 
is now on watch across the country to provide early warnings against 
new epidemics created by nature or by terrorist activity. Dr. Roca was 
also one of the first to recognize the threat from cyber attacks and 
call for comprehensive cyber defenses. It was under his leadership that 
APL established major partnerships with the National Security Agency to 
develop and test new cybersecurity tools. These are just a few examples 
of how Dr. Roca saw the world changing and mobilized APL to meet the 
new challenges. We are safer for his leadership in keeping APL on the 
cutting edge of helping counter new and emerging threats to our 
national security.
  Dr. Roca also kept APL on the cusp of new explorations in space and 
science. During his tenure, APL helped design, build, and send 
satellites into space that have explored the Eros asteroid; that are 
enroute to explore Mercury and Pluto, and which play valuable roles in 
understanding the Sun's impact on Earth's atmosphere. These 
contributions to understanding and exploring our universe cannot be 
overstated. They are major achievements that will lead to decades of 
scientific study and achievement.
  So as Dr. Roca comes to the end of his tenure, I want to thank him 
for his tireless service, his devotion to excellence, his dedication to 
the mission of the Applied Physics Lab, and for his inspired leadership 
in keeping APL at the cutting edge of keeping our Nation safe and 
advancing valuable science in hundreds of different areas. We wish you 
the very best, Dr. Roca, in whatever the next chapter in your 
professional life holds for you. Wherever that takes you, know that you 
will always and forever be a member of the Maryland family.

                          ____________________