Editing Think tank (section)

===== U.S. government think tanks =====
Government think tanks are also important in the United States, particularly in the security and defense field. These include the Center for Technology and National Security Policy at the [[National Defense University (Washington, D.C.)|National Defense University]], the Center for Naval Warfare Studies at the [[Naval War College]], and the [[Strategic Studies Institute]] at the [[U.S. Army War College]].

The government funds, wholly or in part, activities at approximately 30 [[Federally Funded Research and Development Centers]] (FFRDCs). FFRDCs, are unique independent nonprofit entities sponsored and funded by the United States government to meet specific long-term technical needs that cannot be met by any other single organization. FFRDCs typically assist government agencies with scientific research and analysis, systems development, and systems acquisition. They bring together the expertise and outlook of government, industry, and academia to solve complex technical problems. These FFRDCs include the [[RAND Corporation]], the [[MITRE Corporation]], the [[Institute for Defense Analyses]], the [[Aerospace Corporation]], the [[MIT Lincoln Laboratory]], and other organizations supporting various departments within the United States Government.

Similar to the above quasi-governmental organizations are [[Federal Advisory Committee Act|Federal Advisory Committees]]. These groups, sometimes referred to as commissions, are a form of think tank dedicated to advising the US Presidents or the Executive branch of government. They typically focus on a specific issue and as such, might be considered similar to special interest groups. However, unlike special interest groups these committees have come under some oversight regulation and are required to make formal records available to the public. As of 2002, about 1,000 of these advisory committees were described in the FACA searchable database.<ref>{{Cite web |date=18 November 2002 |title=Search Page |url=http://fido.gov/facadatabase/search.asp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021118003800/http://fido.gov/facadatabase/search.asp |archive-date=18 November 2002 |access-date=19 February 2018 }}</ref>