Disability Law

The National Academy of Sciences said it had chosen a group of engineers, scientists and auto safety experts to examine unwanted acceleration and electronic systems in vehicles throughout the auto industry. The study, conducted at the request of the U.S. Department of Transportation, is expected to take 15 months to complete.

The 13-member panel will hold its first meeting on June 30 in Washington, D.C. It will be led by Dr. Louis Lanzerotti of the New Jersey Institute of Technology. Other panelists include: Dr. Adrian Lund, president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety; former NHTSA Administrator Nicole Nason; Dr. Daniel Dvorak of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory; and professors from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Notre Dame and the University of Wisconsin.

A separate study sponsored by the Department of Transportation by a team from the National Aeronautic and Space Administration is studying potential electronic ties to unintended acceleration concerns, specifically in Toyota vehicles.