If Congress resumes Thursday and passes a financial rescue plan, it will have a significant impact on discretionary spending next year. Yesterday, Science and National Geographic both reported on the potential effect a budget crunch will have on federal science funding. (But unless we solve the unfolding financial crisis, there won’t be enough money to fund much of anything.)
BIOETHICS
Drugs that improve attention or prevent fatigue raise ethical questions in many workplace settings. But what about hospitals, where med students can supply themselves with the pills that let them work harder?
The impact of Hurricane Ike on the research labs in the storm’s path is generating a small number of headlines. At the end of last week, Science reported on the state of things at the University of Texas Medical Branch. Fortunately, the Center for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases Biocontainment BSL-4 Lab at UTMB suffered minimal damage.
Here’s a roundup of some of the science and technology policy events happening around Washington, D.C. from September 29 to
October 3.
WEISS'S NOTEBOOK
The face of stem cell research is changing as research moves towards the clinic and commercialization, and as patients demand access to experimental treatments.
When James Thomson’s and Shinya Yamanaka’s research teams published their ground-breaking papers last year on induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPS cells, one of the major hurdles to clinical application was the propensity of the cells to cause cancer. Now, scientists from Harvard University have successfully introduced the pluripotency-inducing genes into mouse somatic cells by way of adenoviruses, which are less harmful than retroviruses.
This afternoon, the Senate Environment and Public Works committee will hold a hearing examining the Bush administration’s environmental record. Our Center for American Progress colleagues took a hard look at the president’s legacy on this issue earlier this year. Their conclusion? “Seven Years of Failure: Bush gets an F for the Earth.” While the interactive timeline they prepared only runs through May 2008, you still get a pretty clear picture.
The Department of Health and Human Services to propose a rule that would ostensibly protect healthcare workers who object to performing abortion and sterilization procedures. The catch is that there are already federal laws in place that do just that. The regulation would instead open the door to denying patients access to all sorts of potentially controversial health care services. The comment period closes tomorrow.
SCIENCE, CULTURED
When the public hasn’t been monitoring developments in science, people can fall back on Hollywood images of big strange projects that go badly awry. If scientists monitored public perceptions, they could engage before misinformation spreads.
The MacArthur Foundation today announced its annual list of 25 fellows. Recipients of the award get $500,000 to spend over the next five years with no strings attached. Many of the fellows are distinguished scientists working in fields as diverse as plant genetics, astrophysics, and epidemiology. One neuroscientist, Sally Temple, works extensively with stem cells.
No one is expecting an executive order mandating federal regulation of greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act between now and January, but it is promising to have the Senate Committee on Environmental and Policy Works addressing the issue this morning.
The National Academies have just offered a report detailing the most critical presidential science appointments in the executive branch and ways to streamline the process of getting new hires into their posts. Their first recommendation, however, is to hire the top science adviser at the level of assistant to the president.
HereHere’s a roundup of some of the science and technology policy events happening around Washington, D.C. from September 21 to September 27.
WEISS'S NOTEBOOK
Since April, researchers publishing work done with NIH support must submit manuscripts for access in a free database. The experiment is working, but large journal publishers aren’t satisfied with the results.
In addition to a stumbling automotive industry, Michigan is home to some of the most restrictive regulations on stem cell research in the country. A new report from the Michigan Prospect calculates the scale of the negative economic impact of the hobbled biotech research on the state.
About two million patients take warfarin, or coumadin, each year to prevent blood clotting during medical procedures. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services of the Department of Health and Human Services invited public commentary on whether Medicare should fund genetic tests to determine a patient’s warfarin response. This possible change in policy might save thousands of lives and highlights the need for a more comprehensive approach to the field of personalized medicine.
STEM CELLS
In the past year, stem cell research has taken great strides forward. Advocates and researchers alike are pushing for the federal government to expand its support.
Early this morning, the new Minneapolis bridge on interstate 35W opened. What you can’t see in this CNN video is the network of electronic sensors that will monitor the bridge, allowing engineers to forestall major damage from future wear and prevent catastrophes like the bridge’s collpase that killed 13 people and injured 145 last August.
Today the FDA released its long-awaited—and in some quarters, long feared—proposed new rules for marketing foods from animals that have been genetically engineered to have particular traits.
The Environmental Protection Agency announced today that Dr. Deborah Swackhamer will be the new chair of the EPA Science Advisory Board. Unfortunately, the only thing that may save the EPA is a new administration.
Science Progress and American Progress's Doing What Works project teamed up to produce a set of policy proposals that the Obama administration and Congress can adopt to reinvest in the building blocks of American science, innovation, and economic competitiveness. Read the overview of the five reports.
Science Progress proceeds from the propositions that scientific inquiry is among the finest expressions of human excellence, that it is a crucial source of human flourishing, a critical engine of economic growth, and must be dedicated to the common good. Scientific inquiry entails global responsibilities. It should lead to a more equitable, safer, and healthier future for all of humankind.