Subject: CSTB petition support

From: [email-masked] (Mitchell Wand)
Date: Mon, 21 Sep 92 11:50:22 -0400

I have now read the executive summary of the report, selected chapters in the
body of the report, and a substantial portion of the commentary and discussion
in the "sponsors" file.

While I agree with SOME of the material in the CSTB report, and I disagree
with SOME of the comments made in the petition, on the whole I believe that
the report as currently distributed is bad for computer science.  In
particular I find the following items distressing:

1.  The listing of "Core subfields" in Table ES.1 omits important subfields
that are vital to the future of computer science.  The response from the
committee concerning the correct interpretation of the table is at best naive 
and at worst disingenuous.  

2.  I, too, am offended by the characterization of working researchers as
"troops on the ground" to be led by generals.  Again, I am not swayed by the
committee's response.  Had the report contained a similarly offensive
characterization of women, it would never have been released.

I hope that the report and the petition mark the BEGINNING of a debate on the
future directions of computer science research support.

----------------
Mitchell Wand
College of Computer Science, Northeastern University
360 Huntington Avenue #161CN, Boston, MA 02115     Phone: (617) 437 2072
Internet: [email-masked]          Fax:   (617) 437 5121