2021-05-31-哈佛肯尼迪学院-给美国决策者参考的现代高新科技评估和行动手册（英文）_60页_3mb

Summary of Building a 21st Century Congress: A Playbook for Modern Technology Assessment

Core Content

This report, authored by Mike Miesen, Laura Manley, and Ash Carter, outlines a comprehensive strategy for modernizing the U.S. Congress and the Executive Office of the President (EOP) to better understand and respond to emerging technologies. It emphasizes the importance of technology assessment as a critical tool for shaping policy that aligns with the public good, especially in the face of rapid technological change and complex societal challenges.

Main Views

• Technology assessment is essential for evaluating the societal implications of emerging technologies and guiding policy decisions.
• The current system lacks sufficient capacity and structure to effectively engage with and assess these technologies.
• Strong governance, responsiveness to consumer needs, expert input, and offering policy options are the four key pillars of effective technology assessment.
• The 117th Congress and the Biden Administration must prioritize the development and use of technology assessment to ensure informed decision-making.

Key Information

Technology Assessment Defined

Technology assessment is a policy analysis process, not merely a technical one. It aims to understand the broader impacts of technologies on society, including their social, political, economic, and ethical consequences. It is a process, not a solution, and should provide insights and options, not definitive answers.

The Need for Modernization

The U.S. Congress and EOP currently rely on limited resources such as the GAO's STAA team and the OSTP/PCAST. These bodies, while useful, are under-resourced and underutilized. The report argues that to keep pace with the next generation of technologies, there must be a refocus on technology assessment principles and a recommitment to thorough analysis.

Four Pillars of Effective Technology Assessment

Recommendations for Congress

1. Create a Congressional Support Agency:

   • Embedded within Congress.
   • Provides shared staff and objective consultation.
   • Incorporates external perspectives.
   • Offers policy options.

2. Improve S&T Talent Recruitment:

   • Develop new pathways for STEM professionals to join Congress.
   • Include undergraduate and mid-career routes.
   • Expand policy training for STEM experts to better equip them for roles in Congress.

3. Invest in Internal Resourcing:

   • Increase budget and staffing to support more subject matter experts.
   • Allow junior staffers to develop expertise over time.

Recommendations for the EOP

1. Selectivity in Technology Analysis:

   • Limit the number of topics for broad analysis to ensure depth and focus.

2. Coordination Among Agencies:

   • The OSTP, PCAST, and OMB should coordinate research priorities to avoid duplication and ensure strategic alignment.

3. Flexibility and Accessibility:

   • Ensure the PCAST has resources to adapt to crises.
   • Allow direct engagement with the President to prioritize key issues.

4. Rapid Response Capacity:

   • Congress needs a dedicated resource for quick synthesis and analysis of S&T issues.
   • This would allow committee staff to focus on policy work rather than responding to ad-hoc requests.

Conclusion

The report calls for a recommitment to technology assessment as a foundational practice for 21st-century governance. It argues that without such a commitment, Congress and the EOP will be ill-equipped to address the profound societal implications of emerging technologies. The Office of Technology Assessment (OTA), which was defunded in 1996, could be a model for restoring this capacity. The authors stress that funders and policymakers must invest in S&T expertise and structural reforms to ensure that the U.S. can leverage technology for the public good.

Additional Considerations

• Technology assessment must anticipate future crises and the technologies that may mitigate or exacerbate them.
• A "tragic imagination" is needed to understand both the benefits and risks of emerging technologies.
• The next generation of technologies, including AI and synthetic biology, will transform society and require proactive policy engagement.

Final Thoughts

The U.S. must ask itself whether it is prepared to govern in the 21st century. The report suggests that investing in technology assessment is not only necessary but also a duty to future generations. It is a call to action for both Congress and the Biden Administration to modernize their approach to science and technology policy.