This project addresses the intellectual opportunity as well as the need for technical coordination of research efforts being undertaken simultaneously in the U. S. and Japan on two topics of national importance. They are: (1) U.S.-Japan Cooperative Earthquake Research Program: Composite and Hybrid Structures, NSF Initiative No. 94-154, and (2) U.S.- Japan Partnership for Advanced Steel Structures. While these are separate cooperative research elements, they focus on several similar technical issues and involve some of the same key individuals and institutions. As a result, they are coordinated within a single NSF activity. The objectives of this project are to: (1) Facilitate exchange of basic information and concepts as well as personnel between the U.S. and Japan; (2) Coordinate research efforts on a cooperative basis on topics of mutual interest; (3) Facilitate the exchange of data and results of the specific projects undertaken; (4) Provide a focal point for diverse, independent research projects being conducted in the U.S. and abroad in order to more rapidly advance progress on issues of national importance; (5) Synthesize the results and identify overall observations and conclusions from the various projects undertaken; and (6) Identify areas of needed future research of pioneering nature, as well as areas where generated knowledge is sufficient for implementation. These objectives are being achieved by various means, including; (1) Convening annual joint meetings of researchers participating in the program; (2) Enabling a panel of senior technical advisors of nationally recognized experts to attend the meetings in order to provide input related to the needs of the professional and industrial communities, and facilitate dissemination of information generated in the project of these various groups; (3) Establishing work groups (or sub-committees) that focus on and accelerate the progress of research within narrower disciplinary areas; (4) Gathering summaries of technical reports and test data from each participating project and distributing the summaries through the World Wide Web and other means; and (5) Developing and distributing final documents summarizing the overall findings, observations and conclusions for each element. This project will bring the development and implementation of all current and future US-Japan Cooperative Research activities in these two important subject areas into a well balanced and coordinated program.
