A panel of experts assembled by the National Research Council issued a report in October advocating the creation of a high-level “Science and Security Commission” to maintain U.S. competitiveness and mitigate security risks.

The panel was co-chaired by Alice Gast, who earned a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from Princeton in 1984, is president of Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pa.

“The U.S. security and research communities need to work together to weigh the latest information about potential threats and ensure the continuation of scientific research that could help mitigate them,” said Gast. “Establishing this standing body would allow the nation to strike the appropriate balance between science and security.”

The group also called for more flexible rules regarding visas, technology-transfer and contracts to foster a more productive environment for science and engineering in the United States.