The National Research Council (Italian: Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, CNR) is the largest research council in Italy. As a public organisation, its remit is to support scientific and technological research. Its headquarters are in Rome. History The institution was founded in 1923. The first president was Vito Volterra, succeeded by Guglielmo Marconi. The process of improvement of the national scientific research, through the use of specific laws, (see Law 59/1997), affects many research organisations, and amongst them is CNR, whose "primary function is to carry on, through its own organs, advanced basic and applied research, both to develop and maintain its own scientific competitiveness, and to be ready to take part effectively in a timely manner in the strategic fields defined by the national planning system". On 23 December 1987, CNR registered the first Italian internet domain: cnr.it Reorganisation With the issuing of the legislative decree of 30 January 1999, n. 19, which defines "The reorganisation of the National Research Council" the central role of CNR in the Italian research system was confirmed. In particular CNR is defined (see Article 1 of the above-mentioned decree 19/1999) as a "national research organisation, with general scientific competence and with scientific research institutes distributed across Italy, which carries out activities of primary interest for the promotion of science and the progress of the country". CNR has the legal status of a public organisation, and defines for itself autonomous rules and regulations, in accordance with the existing laws and the Civil Code. Mission The new CNR has the following mission and activities: to promote and carry out research activities, in pursuit of excellence and strategic relevance within the national and international ambit, in the frame of European cooperation and integration; in cooperation with academic research and with other private and public organisations, ensuring the dissemination of results inside the country. to define, manage and coordinate national and international research programs, in the scope of its triennial plan of activity and within the framework of collaboration with universities and other private and public organisations, in addition to supporting scientific and research activities of major relevance to the nation. to promote the valorisation, the precompetitive development and the technological transfer of research results carried out by its own scientific network and by third parties with whom cooperative relationships have been established. to promote collaboration in scientific and technological fields, and in the technical regulations field, with