The results of Sundro's investigation, obtained by The Scientist through a request under the Freedom of Information Act, also reveal that decisions made by past and present NSF directors were undermined by those responsible for carrying them out. The report documents how former NSF director Erich Bloch and NAS president Frank Press decided to end the academy's 40-year stewardship of the program, but how numerous improprieties in the process of finding a new manager for the program caused current agency director Walter Massey to abort the process and start anew.
The report comes shortly after a major internal reorganization at NSF and while another problem facing foundation administrators continues--the turmoil with- in the NSF division that collects data on the health of the scientific enterprise (The Scientist, Oct. 28, 1991, page 3; Sept. 22, 1991, page 1).
Despite the controversy and the resulting delay in finding a new contractor to ...
