Given the wide communications gap between the academic and government practitioner communities, and the significant opportunity for improved practices through collaboration, new methods are needed for disseminating research results to practitioners and for infusing research with the problems of practice. NSF should encourage the development of organizational structures, information sharing mechanisms, and funding methods to bridge the gap between these two cultures. Specific recommendations include:

• Sponsor workshops on topics of importance to both practitioners and researchers to provide opportunities for members of both communities to express their needs, explain their capabilities, and explore mutually beneficial activities.
• Require researchers funded under the Digital Government Program to prepare reports specifically for a practitioner audience periodically throughout the grant period.
• Sponsor one or more Web sites that support practitioners' use of research skills and results and researchers' quest for field tests and other practical venues for their investigations.