The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and the National Technical Information Service (NTIS) have announced an agreement ensuring long-term preservation and access to the NTIS collection of authenticated and secured digital scientific, technical, and engineering information (STEI). It is expected that the results of this agreement will have a positive impact on the public, academia, corporations and federal, state, and local government agencies.
The National Archives will work in partnership with NTIS to encourage and promote agency transfers of digital STEI materials to NTIS as successful fulfillment of an agency obligation to transfer permanently valuable digital STEI records to NARA. Currently, the NTIS collection consists of more than two terabytes of scientific, technical, and engineering information. Access to STEI records will be provided by NTIS. The National Archives will maintain a 'dark archives' back up copy of all the STEI records, and assume legal custody of the records when they become 40 years old.
The National Archives and Records Administration is the US' record keeper. Of all documents and materials created in the course of business conducted by the US federal government, only 2 percent – 3 percent are so important for legal or historical reasons that they are kept by the National Archives forever, and made available to researchers. National Archives holdings and diverse programmes are now available to more people than ever before through modern technology and dynamic partnerships.
NTIS seeks to improve access of new cutting edge scientific, technical, and engineering information. The mission of NTIS is to permanently enlarge, preserve and provide ready access to support innovation and economic growth. It promotes the development and application of this STEI collection by providing technologically advanced global e-commerce channels for dissemination to business, industry, government, and the public.
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