Perspectives on Trends in International APT Research

The National Academies sponsored a series of three APT Syntheses since 1996. The last synthesis was conducted in 2011. This was followed by the fourth, most recent international APT conference that was held in Davis, California in 2012. It is thus now an opportune time to look back at the information identified in these syntheses, the trends predicted and the actual development since 2011. The paper starts with a brief evaluation of the trends identified in the 2011 synthesis, identifying those that were deemed to be new and receiving attention in the immediate future. This is compared to the APT work published in the last 5 years to compare the generation of new knowledge in the area of APT, and a discussion and analysis of the trends. At the same time, the synthesis of 2004 is scrutinized to capture aspects that may still have been left without being addressed. Finally, an opportunity is provided for updating the database of international APT facilities with respect to the new international APT programs that were initiated since the 2011 synthesis.