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Facing America's Trash: What Next for Municipal Solid Waste?

Description: This report discusses options for a national policy based on the dual strategies of MSW prevention and better management. It also presents options to address immediate problems such as increased interstate shipments of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) and unfinished Federal guidelines for landfills and incinerators.
Date: October 1989
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Grain Quality in International Trade: A Comparison of Major U.S. Competitors

Description: This report is one of two that the Office of Technology Assessment completed in an assessment of the issues in grain quality for Congress. The first, Enhancing the Quality of U.S. Grain in International Trade, focuses on the U.S. grain system and possible changes within that system to enhance grain quality. To consider this issue fully, it is important to understand the grain systems of major competitors, a subject covered in this report.
Date: February 1989
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Holding the Edge: Maintaining the Defense Technology Base

Description: This report examines the management of DoD technology base programs and laboratories. It also analyzes the process through which technology is introduced into defense systems, in order to understand why it takes so long and what might be done to speed the process up. Finally, this report examines the exploitation of civilian commercial sector technology for defense needs. It concentrates on the dual questions of expediting military access to civilian technology and keeping the necessary base of… more
Date: April 1989
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Linking for Learning: A New Course for Education

Description: This report discusses the development of telecommunications technologies and the study of distance learning. OTA was asked to analyze various technological options, examine current development, and identify how Federal, State and local policies could encourage more efficient and effective use.
Date: November 1989
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Oil Production in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: The Technology and the Alaskan Oil Context

Description: This report presents the results of an assessment of a subset of these issues focusing in particular on: the oilfield technology being used to develop the Alaskan North Slope’s oil resources and the likely configuration of that technology as it might be applied in the future to the coastal plain; and the prospects for future North Slope oil production, especially the likelihood that the flow of oil through the Trans Alaskan Pipeline System will suffer a serious decline during the next decade.
Date: February 1989
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Marine minerals: exploring our new ocean frontier

Description: A report on exploring the EEZ for its mineral potential is in response to a joint request from the House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries and the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology. It examines the current knowledge about the hard mineral resources within the EEZ, explores the economic and security potential of seabed resources, assesses the technologies available to both explore for and mine those resources, identifies issues that face the Congress and the executive br… more
Date: July 1987
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Neonatal intensive care for low birthweight infants: costs and effectiveness

Description: The purpose of this report is to provide OTA with specific information that can be used in forming general conclusions regarding broader policy issues. The first 19 cases in the Health Technology Case Study Series, for example, were conducted in conjunction with OTA’s overall project on The Implications of Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Medical Technology. By examining the 19 cases as a group and looking for common problems or strengths in the techniques of cost-effectiveness or cost-benefit an… more
Date: December 1987
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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New technology for NATO: implementing Follow-On Forces Attack

Description: The report briefly reviews what Follow-On Forces Attack (FOFA) is and how it fits into NATO strategy, but is primarily concerned with the outstanding technical issues, how our Allies view FOFA, how the Soviets might respond to it, and how the various technical developments might be brought together into “packages” of systems to support specific operational concepts.
Date: June 1987
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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New developments in biotechnology: ownership of human tissues and cells

Description: In this special report, OTA analyzes the economic, legal, and ethical rights of the human sources of tissues and cells and also those of the physicians or researchers who obtain and develop these biological materials. The study describes the potential of three rapidly moving technologies (tissue and cell culture, cell fusion to produce monoclonal antibodies, and recombinant DNA) for manipulating human tissues and cells to yield commercially valuable products. The report includes a range of opti… more
Date: March 1987
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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New Developments in Biotechnology: Public Perceptions of Biotechnology

Description: This background paper is the second in a series of OTA studies being carried out under an assessment of “New Developments in Biotechnology. ” Volume one in the series examined commercialization and ownership of human tissues and cells, and forthcoming reports will include evaluations of: U.S. investment in biotechnology; genetically engineered organisms in the environment; tests for human genetic disorders; and the impact of intellectual property law on biotechnology. The assessment was request… more
Date: May 1987
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Starpower: the U.S. and the international quest for fusion energy

Description: This report reviews the status of magnetic confinement fusion research and compares its progress with the requirements for development of a useful energy technology. The report does not analyze inertial confinement fusion research, which is overseen by the House and Senate Armed Services Committees.
Date: October 1987
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Technologies to maintain biological diversity

Description: The principal aim of this report is to identify and assess the technological and institutional opportunities and constraints to maintaining biological diversity in the United States and worldwide.
Date: March 1987
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Technology Dependent Children: Hospital Vs. Home Care

Description: This technical memorandum is about problems arising out of success. Recent advances in medical technology have permitted sick children who once would have died to survive with the assistance of sophisticated equipment and intensive nursing care. Often, the assistance is needed for just a short time, but sometimes the dependence on life-sustaining technology is permanent. As technology for helping keep children alive has improved, a new population of technology-dependent children has emerged.
Date: May 1987
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Neural Grafting: Repairing the Brain and Spinal Cord

Description: This special report, the second of our neuroscience series, discusses the field of neural grafting into the brain and spinal cord to treat neurological disorders. It describes the technology of neural grafting, the neurological conditions that it may be used to treat, and the patient populations that are affected. Also, the legal and ethical issues raised by the development of neural grafting techniques are discussed. The report includes a range of options for congressional action related to th… more
Date: October 1990
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Neurotoxicity: Identifying and Controlling Poisons of the Nervous System

Description: This Report, the first of the neuroscience series, discusses the risks posed by neurotoxic substances—substances that can adversely affect the nervous system—and evaluates the Federal research and regulatory programs now in place to address these risks.
Date: April 1990
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Nonferrous Metals: Industry Structure

Description: This report profiles the structures of four domestic nonferrous metals industries (copper, aluminurn, lead, and zinc) and the changes they have undergone since 1980. The study also outlines the U.S. position in the world markets.
Date: September 1990
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Orbiting Debris: A Space Environmental Problem

Description: This background paper, OTA sought the contributions of abroad spectrum of knowledgeable individuals and organizations. Some provided information, others reviewed drafts. OTA gratefully acknowledges their contributions of time and intellectual effort. As with all OTA studies, the content of this background paper is the sole responsibility of the Office of Technology Assessment and does not necessarily represent the views of our advisors or reviewers.
Date: October 1990
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Physical Vulnerability of Electric Systems to Natural Disasters and Sabotage

Description: This report offers an analysis of the vulnerability of electric power system specific equipment which is included in a separate appendix that is under classification review by the Department of Energy. This appendix will be made available only under appropriate safeguards by the Department of Energy.
Date: June 1990
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Competing Economies: America, Europe, and the Pacific Rim

Description: This report examines how the economic environment of the United States can be made more conducive to improving manufacturing performance. It considers how Federal institutions, in cooperation with industry, can develop competitiveness strategies for high-tech, fast growing industries; and how trade, financial, and technology policies could be combined into a strategic competitiveness policy.
Date: October 1991
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Affordable Spacecraft: Design and Launch Alternatives

Description: This background paper examines several proposals for reducing the costs of spacecraft and other payloads and describes launch systems for implementing them. It is one of a series of products of a broad assessment of space transportation technologies undertaken by OTA at the request of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology.
Date: January 1990
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agricultural Research and Technology Transfer Policies for the 1990s: a special report of OTA's assessment on emerging agricultural technology: issues for the 1990s

Description: This report addresses the central issues in the debate of the 1990 Farm Bill. It was requested as part of a larger study examining emerging agricultural technologies and related issues for the 1990s by the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and the House Committee on Agriculture.
Date: March 1990
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Arming Our Allies: Cooperation and Competition in Defense Technology

Description: This Special Report is the frost product of OTA assessment of international collaboration in defense technology. It provides an overview of the subject and analyzes the impact that changes in the environment of defense technology and reduced East-West tensions will exert on defense industrial cooperation and associated alliance relations.
Date: May 1990
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Beneath the Bottom Line: Agricultural Approaches To Reduce Agrichemical Contamination of Groundwater

Description: The report discusses contamination of the hydrogeological system (a primer), technologies to improve nutrient and pest management, farmer decision-making and technical assistance to reduce agrichemical contamination of groundwater, and public influences on agrichemical contamination of groundwater.
Date: November 1990
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Big Picture: HDTV and High-Resolution Systems

Description: A report on High Definition Television (HDTV. During 1989, HDTV moved from obscurity to center stage in the ongoing debate over the role of the Federal Government in U.S. industrial competitiveness. HDTV and related High-Resolution System (HRS) technologies in the computer and communications sectors may significantly impact U.S. electronics manufacturing, accelerate fundamental restructuring of the U.S. communications infrastructure, and provide a host of valuable services.
Date: June 1990
Creator: United States. Congress. Office of Technology Assessment.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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