WASHINGTON—At 1:30 p.m. today, around the corner from the White House, high school students plan to set loose one thousand balloons with self-addressed information cards. They will join 224,000 balloons launched simultaneously around the country by students from 600 schools, in one of the more visible displays of National Science and Technology Week '87.

Sponsored by the National Science Foundation and funded largely by corporate donors, Science Week is observing its third year. Its message—to encourage local groups across the country to do whatever they can to drum up interest in science and technology— is being heard by people in nearly every state.

"We can't keep track of everything that's going on this year, and we don't want to be able to," said Nan Smith, an NSF staffer who works full time on the annual project. "We put the word out, sent out posters and brochures, and let people interpret...

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