Institute for Defense Analyses
Encyclopedia
The Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA) is a non-profit corporation that administers three federally funded research and development center
s (FFRDCs) to assist the United States government in addressing important national security
issues, particularly those requiring scientific and technical expertise. It is headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia
.
, IDA does not work for private industry.
Two of the centers primarily serve the Department of Defense
and the third serves the Executive Office of the President. Throughout its history, IDA also has assisted other federal agencies. Recent work includes research performed in support of the Department of Homeland Security, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Director of National Intelligence, and others.
, the Joint Chiefs of Staff
, and the unified military commands
. It includes the following divisions:
.
.
. The first was the necessity for unifying the several Services into a single, coordinated department. The second was the realization of the strength of the relationship between science—and scientists—and national security.
The first reached fruition when President Harry Truman signed the National Security Acts
of 1947 and 1949, creating the Department of Defense. (In 1947 the Department of War had been renamed the National Military Establishment. From it the present Defense Department was created in 1949.)
To give the nascent Office of the Secretary of Defense
(OSD) the technical expertise and analytic resources to hold its own and to help make unification a reality, James Forrestal
, the Department’s first Secretary, established the Weapons Systems Evaluation Group (WSEG) in 1948 to assist OSD and the Organization of the Joint Chiefs of Staff by:
The demands on WSEG were more than its small staff of military and civilian analysts could satisfy, and by the early years of the Dwight Eisenhower administration, there were calls for change. The several options gradually coalesced into one and, in 1955, the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff asked James R. Killian, Jr., then President of MIT, to help establish a consortium of major research universities to sponsor a civilian, nonprofit research institute
. And so, in April 1956, IDA was incorporated as a non-profit organization
. In 1958, at the request of the Secretary of Defense, IDA established a division to support the newly created Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA), later renamed the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
(DARPA). Shortly after its creation, the mandate of this division was broadened to include scientific and technical studies for all offices of the Director of Defense, Research and Engineering (DDR&E).
Universities overseeing IDA expanded from the five initial members in 1956 — Caltech, Case Western Reserve, MIT, Stanford and Tulane — to twelve by 1964 with the addition of California, Chicago, Columbia
, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Princeton
. University oversight of IDA ended in 1968 in the aftermath of Vietnam War
-related demonstrations at Princeton, Columbia
, and other member universities.
IDA’s support of the National Security Agency began at its request in 1959, when it established the Center for Communications Research in Princeton, New Jersey. Additional requests from NSA in 1984 and 1989 led respectively to what is now called the Center for Computing Sciences in Bowie, Maryland and to a second Center for Communications Research in La Jolla, California. These groups, which conduct research in cryptology and information operations, comprise IDA’s Communications and Computing FFRDC.
In 2003, IDA assumed responsibility for the Science and Technology Policy Institute, a separate FFRDC providing technical and analytic support to the Office of Science and Technology Policy in the Executive Office of the President, and to other executive branch organizations.
.
Federally funded research and development center
Federally Funded Research and Development Centers conduct research for the United States Government. They are administered in accordance with U.S Code of Federal Regulations, Title 48, Part 35, Section 35.017 by universities and corporations....
s (FFRDCs) to assist the United States government in addressing important national security
National security
National security is the requirement to maintain the survival of the state through the use of economic, diplomacy, power projection and political power. The concept developed mostly in the United States of America after World War II...
issues, particularly those requiring scientific and technical expertise. It is headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...
.
Sponsors
IDA only works for the US government. To avoid institutional pressures to support Service positions, IDA does not work directly for the military departments. Also, to ensure freedom from commercial or other potential conflicts of interestConflicts of Interest
"Conflicts of Interest" is an episode from the fourth season of the science fiction television series Babylon 5.-Arc significance:* Garibaldi begins to work for William Edgars. In the process Garibaldi is reintroduced to his ex-girlfriend, Lise, who is currently married to Edgars.* The "Voice of...
, IDA does not work for private industry.
Two of the centers primarily serve the Department of Defense
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
and the third serves the Executive Office of the President. Throughout its history, IDA also has assisted other federal agencies. Recent work includes research performed in support of the Department of Homeland Security, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Director of National Intelligence, and others.
Studies and Analyses Center
The Studies and Analyses Center is the largest of IDA’s three FFRDCs and is co-located with the IDA headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia. The center supports the Office of the Secretary of DefenseOffice of the Secretary of Defense
The Office of the Secretary of Defense is a headquarters-level staff of the Department of Defense of the United States of America. It is the principal civilian staff element of the Secretary of Defense, and it assists the Secretary in carrying out authority, direction and control of the Department...
, the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Joint Chiefs of Staff
The Joint Chiefs of Staff is a body of senior uniformed leaders in the United States Department of Defense who advise the Secretary of Defense, the Homeland Security Council, the National Security Council and the President on military matters...
, and the unified military commands
Unified Combatant Command
A Unified Combatant Command is a United States Department of Defense command that is composed of forces from at least two Military Departments and has a broad and continuing mission. These commands are established to provide effective command and control of U.S. military forces, regardless of...
. It includes the following divisions:
- Cost Analysis and Research Division (CARD).
- Information Technology and Systems Division (ITSD).
- Intelligence Analyses Division (IAD).
- Joint Advanced Warfighting Division (JAWD).
- Operational Evaluation Division (OED).
- Science and Technology Division (STD).
- Strategy, Forces and Resources Division (SFRD).
- System Evaluation Division (SED).
Communications and Computing Centers
The communications and computing centers support the National Security AgencyNational Security Agency
The National Security Agency/Central Security Service is a cryptologic intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the collection and analysis of foreign communications and foreign signals intelligence, as well as protecting U.S...
.
Science and Technology Policy Institute
The Science and Technology Policy Institute (STPI), located in Washington, D.C., supports the White House Office of Science and Technology PolicyOffice of Science and Technology Policy
The Office of Science and Technology Policy is an office in the Executive Office of the President , established by Congress on May 11, 1976, with a broad mandate to advise the President on the effects of science and technology on domestic and international affairs.The director of this office is...
.
Staff
IDA and STPI employ approximately 1,500 research, professional, adjunct, and support staff. Many have attended the nation's military service academies or served in the military. Approximately 61% hold doctoral degrees; 29.3% hold master's degrees; and 8.9% hold bachelors' degrees. As of December 2008, the staff specialized in the following research disciplines:Studies and Analyses Center |
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Science & Technology Policy Institute |
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Centers for Communications and Computing |
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History
Two ideas critical to IDA’s birth emerged from World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The first was the necessity for unifying the several Services into a single, coordinated department. The second was the realization of the strength of the relationship between science—and scientists—and national security.
The first reached fruition when President Harry Truman signed the National Security Acts
National Security Act of 1947
The National Security Act of 1947 was signed by United States President Harry S. Truman on July 26, 1947, and realigned and reorganized the U.S. Armed Forces, foreign policy, and Intelligence Community apparatus in the aftermath of World War II...
of 1947 and 1949, creating the Department of Defense. (In 1947 the Department of War had been renamed the National Military Establishment. From it the present Defense Department was created in 1949.)
To give the nascent Office of the Secretary of Defense
Office of the Secretary of Defense
The Office of the Secretary of Defense is a headquarters-level staff of the Department of Defense of the United States of America. It is the principal civilian staff element of the Secretary of Defense, and it assists the Secretary in carrying out authority, direction and control of the Department...
(OSD) the technical expertise and analytic resources to hold its own and to help make unification a reality, James Forrestal
James Forrestal
James Vincent Forrestal was the last Cabinet-level United States Secretary of the Navy and the first United States Secretary of Defense....
, the Department’s first Secretary, established the Weapons Systems Evaluation Group (WSEG) in 1948 to assist OSD and the Organization of the Joint Chiefs of Staff by:
- Bringing scientific and technical as well as operational military expertise to bear in evaluating weapons systems;
- Employing advanced techniques of scientific analysis and operations research in the process; and
- Approaching its tasks from an impartial, supra-Service perspective.
The demands on WSEG were more than its small staff of military and civilian analysts could satisfy, and by the early years of the Dwight Eisenhower administration, there were calls for change. The several options gradually coalesced into one and, in 1955, the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff asked James R. Killian, Jr., then President of MIT, to help establish a consortium of major research universities to sponsor a civilian, nonprofit research institute
Research institute
A research institute is an establishment endowed for doing research. Research institutes may specialize in basic research or may be oriented to applied research...
. And so, in April 1956, IDA was incorporated as a non-profit organization
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
. In 1958, at the request of the Secretary of Defense, IDA established a division to support the newly created Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA), later renamed the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is an agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the development of new technology for use by the military...
(DARPA). Shortly after its creation, the mandate of this division was broadened to include scientific and technical studies for all offices of the Director of Defense, Research and Engineering (DDR&E).
Universities overseeing IDA expanded from the five initial members in 1956 — Caltech, Case Western Reserve, MIT, Stanford and Tulane — to twelve by 1964 with the addition of California, Chicago, Columbia
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Princeton
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
. University oversight of IDA ended in 1968 in the aftermath of Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
-related demonstrations at Princeton, Columbia
Columbia University protests of 1968
The Columbia University protests of 1968 were among the many student demonstrations that occurred around the world in that year. The Columbia protests erupted over the spring of that year after students discovered links between the university and the institutional apparatus supporting the United...
, and other member universities.
IDA’s support of the National Security Agency began at its request in 1959, when it established the Center for Communications Research in Princeton, New Jersey. Additional requests from NSA in 1984 and 1989 led respectively to what is now called the Center for Computing Sciences in Bowie, Maryland and to a second Center for Communications Research in La Jolla, California. These groups, which conduct research in cryptology and information operations, comprise IDA’s Communications and Computing FFRDC.
In 2003, IDA assumed responsibility for the Science and Technology Policy Institute, a separate FFRDC providing technical and analytic support to the Office of Science and Technology Policy in the Executive Office of the President, and to other executive branch organizations.
Other information
In order to preserve its impartiality, IDA maintains a low profile and minimizes contact with the press. However, IDA's status as a defense-related organization has sparked controversy, most notably during the Columbia University protests of 1968Columbia University protests of 1968
The Columbia University protests of 1968 were among the many student demonstrations that occurred around the world in that year. The Columbia protests erupted over the spring of that year after students discovered links between the university and the institutional apparatus supporting the United...
.