Since their creation in the 1940s, the Department of Energy’s, or DOE’s, National Labs have been a cor- nerstone of high-impact, federally funded research and development. The labs have helped seed society with new ideas and technologies in leading disciplines such as energy, biotechnology, nuclear physics, and material science. While the labs’ primary mission must continue to focus on supporting the nation’s research needs not met by the private sector, the time has come to move the DOE labs past their Cold War roots and into the 21st century.
As the United States moves deeper into the 21st century, the importance of advancing innovation be- comes even more important if our nation is to thrive. Creating wealth depends on the use of traditional inputs such as natural resources, land, and labor, but most importantly, it requires the discovery and development of new ideas and technology. Today’s science and technological challenges are increasing- ly complex and require multidisciplinary and often unique solutions that the labs can help provide.
