The AI team take a deep dive into a technical note that critiques the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) system used by NASA and the DOD for assessing technology maturity, arguing that its focus on early-stage development is insufficient. It proposes a holistic thinking approach, advocating for a Technology Availability Window of Opportunity (TAWOO) that considers the entire technology lifecycle, from conception to obsolescence. The TAWOO incorporates a dynamic TRL (dTRL) to better predict future readiness and includes factors like Diminishing Manufacturing Sources and Material Shortages (DMSMS). The author suggests further research to refine the TAWOO concept and develop a usable tool. Ultimately, the paper champions holistic problem-solving as superior to traditional approaches for assessing technology availability.
The technical note is Kasser, J.E., Applying Holistic Thinking to the Problem of Determining the Future Availability of Technology, IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics: Systems, Volume 46, Number 3, 2016. A draft of the paper may be downloaded from https://therightrequirement.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Applying-holistic-thinking-to-the-problem-of-technology-maturity-acpt-10.pdf