All,

I've been involved in space activism since the 1970s. I also worked at
NASA Goddard as a contractor from 1990 to 1999.

These days I'm going around giving lectures about dysfunctional
aerospace management. To date I'm basing my lectures on my own
experiences, the CAIB report and the grad work I did in social
psychology. I bill myself these days as the "Marathon Running Mensa
Member Who's Not Good Enough to Work for NASA."

What I am currently looking for are reports from other people who work
or worked at NASA (or on a NASA project), either as a civil servant or a
contractor.

Data I am especially looking for includes:

1. Length of work week -- average, maximum, minimum, number of weeks
per year of maximum and minimum.

2. Sleep hours/night -- again average, maximum, minimum.

3. Opinions about management -- both good and bad. A rating on an A to
F scale would be a nice plus.

4. Do (or did) you have a significant outside interest while working in
aerospace? One that took up at least 10 hours per month? What was it?

5. What work do (did) you do in aerospace?

6. What is your marital status? Has it changed since beginning in
aerospace?

I want to hear the good as well as the bad.

Yes, I'm working on articles I hope to publish. Yes, I want to have a
political impact if possible.

I realize this is not as objective as it could be. I am looking for
information that could be used to develop stronger, more scientific and
objective studies.

You may reach me via e-mail at chuck.divine@... Or you can
telephone me at (301)794-6436 if you wish.

All replies will be kept confidential unless you expressly give
permission to use your name and whatever affiliation you care to offer.

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely yours,

Chuck Divine

--- Chuck Divine chuck.divine@...
> I realize this is not as objective as it could be.
> I am looking for
> information that could be used to develop stronger,
> more scientific and
> objective studies.

While I am in the aerospace industry, I have not
worked directly for NASA. However, this is a subject
I have looked into myself and I have two book
recommendations that should prove to be very useful:

Nasa and the Space Industry by Joan Lisa Bromberg
(ISBN 0801865328)

Inside Nasa: High Technology and Organizational
Change in the U.S. Space Program by Howard McCurdy
(ISBN 0801849756)

The McCurdy book is especially good and is right ni
line with what you are trying to do. In the appendix
is the results of a two identical surveys of NASA
employees held roughly 20 years apart that examines
employee attitudes toward management.

The brombreg book is good as it details the ins and
more often the outs, that NASA has had with the
aerospace industry that works with NASA.

I also recommend talking with NASA chief historian
Roger D. Launius. I've queried him for information in
the past and was surprised at how forthcoming he and
his staff is. Its best if you goto their office in DC
to work with them. If your serious about a more
serious scientific and objective study, I highly
recommend going there. You can also peruse alot of
their works online at:
http://history.nasa.gov/series95.html

I hope that helps,
Ryan Z