ADVANCING SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Civil Industrial Technology
The Civil Industrial Technologies Cooperation Plan between the Technology Administration (TA) of the U.S. Department of Commerce and the Agency of Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) of MITI, signed in July 1994 under the UJSTA, brings together Japanese and U.S. researchers from industry and national laboratories to carry out cooperative research in areas such as scientific and technical databases, bioprocessing, and precompetitive processing of functionally-gradient materials and ceramics. AIST, in cooperation with TA, established the "Techno-Growth House" in Tsukuba Science City, Japan, which provides office facilities and short-term accommodations for foreign researchers. Techno-Growth House commenced its operations on July 10, 1995 and has received extremely high marks from American scientists and researchers who have used its facilities.
Transportation Technology
In 1994, the Governments of the United States and Japan decided to cooperate on transportation science and technology. In October 1995, the U.S. Department of Transportation hosted the second meeting of U.S.-Japan transportation experts. Priority areas for cooperation include new designs for oil spill prevention from tankers, marine exhaust emissions, high speed rail transportation, and transit measures for the elderly and the handicapped. At the 1995 meeting, other new priority areas were identified for further discussion, including rail seismic design, earthquake disaster-prevention for seaside facilities, and smart card technology.
Road Technology and Disaster Prevention
The U.S. Federal Highway Administration and the Ministry of Construction of Japan held their fourth Workshop on Advanced Technology on Highway Engineering in Atlanta, Georgia in October 1995. Technical discussions were held on subjects such as intelligent transport systems, disaster prevention for roads, highway bridge design and maintenance, wind-resistant construction, and transportation demand management. A fifth workshop is currently being planned for the fall of 1996.
Information Infrastructure
The Governments of the United States and Japan continue to promote policy dialogue and cooperation on Information Infrastructure in bilateral and multilateral fora. Bilaterally, the National Science Foundation and the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications are continuing to establish international connectivity and interoperability between high speed networks through the G-7 Global Interoperability of Broadband Networks initiative and will commence telemedicine verification projects in September 1996. Regionally, both sides will meet in September 1996 during the APEC Ministerial to monitor the status of Asia Pacific Information Infrastructure. Multilaterally, in May 1996, both sides joined 40 other governments to endorse Information Infrastructure policy and principles and their extension to developing nations.
Educational Technology for the 21st Century
As a new initiative under the Common Agenda, the Governments of the United States and Japan decided to cooperate in exploring ways of harnessing the potential of technology for use in education. Both Governments recognize that education is the foundation for the well-being of any society and that technology will radically change the field of education. The Governments of the United States and Japan intend to bring together educational technology experts and officials from both countries and engage educators and school groups in discussing curriculum, methodologies, and experiences in using technology for learning.
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