The U.S. secretary of commerce, Carlos M. Gutierrez, today announced the appointment of 12 business and academic leaders to the newly formed Deemed Export Advisory Committee.

The Advisory Committee will deal with the complex issues surrounding the transfer of dual-use technology—known as “deemed exports”—to foreign nationals in the United States (The Chronicle, May 15). The unauthorized release of such sensitive technology could contribute to the development of weapons of mass destruction, and the issue was the subject of controversial proposed regulations that the department withdrew three months ago (The Chronicle, June 1).

Mr. Gutierrez named Norman Augustine, retired chairman and chief executive of the Lockheed Martin Corporation, and Robert M. Gates, president of Texas A&M University at College Station, as co-chairmen of the Advisory Committee.

Other academics on the panel are Albert Carnesale, a former chancellor of the University of California at Los Angeles; Anthony A. Frank, provost and senior vice president of Colorado State University at Fort Collins; Sean C. O’Keefe, chancellor of Louisiana State University at Baton Rouge; Eva J. Pell, senior vice president and dean of the graduate school at Pennsylvania State University at University Park; James Siedow, vice provost for research and professor of biology at Duke University; and William A. Wulf, president of the National Academy of Engineering and professor of computer science and university professor at the University of Virginia.