On October 4, 1957, America’s cold war arch-rival, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik — the first spacecraft to orbit the Earth. The United States went ballistic with envy and fear. President John F. Kennedy announced America would go to the moon, and marshaled American science to that, and much more. The US economy flourished.

On January 31, 2006, George W. Bush sounded a new alarm in his State of the Union address. This time it is global competition challenging the United States, he said, and he outlined a new initiative to respond. But is it enough?

Craig Barrett, chairman of Intel, and others talk about the challenge to American competitiveness, now.

Guests:

Craig Barrett, Chairman of Intel

Shirley Ann Jackson, President of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Michael Lemonick, Senior writer, Time magazine