AIBS Washington Watch

November 2009: Turning the Tide on Aquatic Invaders

Ports in the United States are among the busiest in the world—ships made more than 60,000 port calls here in 2008. Along with the 2.3 billion metric tons of goods moved through these ports were untold numbers of aquatic hitchhikers,......

October 2009: Stem Cells: Growth and Development...in Policy

Many scientists and patient advocates cheered earlier this summer when the National Institutes of Health (NIH) released new guidelines for human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research. The guidelines came after President Obama's March 2009 executive order lifting the restrictions on......

September 2009: Debate over Science Funding Heats Up in Canada

Two years ago, the Canadian government launched a new strategy to improve the country's scientific competitiveness by, among other things, promoting partnerships with industry and improving scientific infrastructure. In June, the government trumpeted its success in Mobilizing Science and Technology......

July/August 2009: A Rising Tide of Support for a National Climate Service

Climate change is a hot topic in the halls of Congress. News coverage has centered on the Waxman-Markey climate change bill, The American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 (HR 2454), which the House passed by a slim margin—219......

June 2009: Will Congress Include Ecosystem Monitoring in Climate Legislation?

Coral bleaching, earlier leaf budding, pika range shifts—these are only a few of the documented effects of climate change on species and ecosystems. Congress is trying to pass legislation responding to climate change, yet some scientists are wondering whether policymakers......

May 2009: Great Lakes: Sailing to the Forefront of National Water Policy?

While all eyes were on the presidential election last fall, the US Congress quickly—and rather unceremoniously—approved legislation that will shape the face of US water policy for years to come. On 3 October, then President George Bush signed into law......

April 2009: Grand Theories: How Far Have We Come and Where Will We Go?

President Obama's call for science to be "restored to its proper place" excites science policy advocates. Science, it appears, may play an important role in informing societal decisions and restarting the country's economic engines. Lawmakers heeded his call during the......

March 2009: US Struggles to Clear Up Confusion Left in the Wake of Rapanos

For two decades, Michigan developer John Rapanos battled the US government over the extent of protection for wetlands and streams under the Clean Water Act (CWA). Now, more than two years after the Supreme Court issued its 4-1-4 split decision,......

February 2009: On Moral Grounds: Bioethics Training for Scientists

The philosophical exploration of ethical concerns in the life sciences—"bioethics"—has focused largely on research protocols involving research subjects in medical studies. Now, however, the application of biotechnology to environmental problems is triggering ethical questions. Today's scientists confront this question: "Can......

January 2009: Nothing Average about Change

On 4 November 2008, a long, expensive, and unprecedented general election finally concluded. By the next morning, one would have been hard-pressed to find a field biologist even in the most remote locale who had not learned of the historically......

December 2008: The Cost of Conservation: The National Wildlife Refuge System

More than a century ago, the federal government established the National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS) to conserve fish, wildlife, and plants, as well as their habitats; today the NWRS manages more than 40 million hectares of federal land on 548......

November 2008: The Sound of Silence at the Environmental Protection Agency

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was created on 2 December 1970 to “establish and enforce environmental protection standards, conduct environmental research, provide support to others combating environmental pollution, and assist the White House Council on Environmental Quality in developing and......

October 2008: Science Advice for the Next President

Next month, voters will choose the next president of the United States. Whether they elect Senator Obama or Senator McCain, the president’s responses in coming years to national and global problems and opportunities will require access to scientific and technical......

September 2008: Sweating the Small Stuff: Environmental Risk and Nanotechnology

Nanoscience, or nanotechnology, is science or technology that creates functional materials from atomic particles. Once considered to be little more than science fiction, nanotechnology is now a well-established field, as evidenced by various new journals and federally funded research programs,......

July/August 2008: A New Farm Bill, Research Structure at USDA

The significant challenges facing national food, fiber, and bioenergy systems call for a robust agricultural research system, whether for addressing food safety, security, and availability; thwarting disruptions to food supplies; or managing agricultural and natural resource systems. The federal framework......

June 2008: Shale Oil: Alternative Energy or Environmental Degradation?

In the continuing quest to diminish US dependence on foreign oil, in 2005 Congress passed the Energy Policy Act (EPAct), which calls for developing unconventional fuels. To fast-track the commercial development of oil shale and tar sands, the law directed......

May 2008: Big Bucks for Biosecurity Research—But Who’s Doing What?

After 11 September 2001 and the anthrax attacks that followed, President Bush made it a government priority to protect human health and food systems from biological attack. Federal agencies have allocated billions of dollars to biological security programs and new......

April 2008: Political Science

Whether in response to the “politi­cization” of science, or simply to ensure that public policy is informed by science, many scientists are mobilizing and becoming more active in the public policy arena. Whatever the reason, science is more prominent in......

March 2008: Theory and Funding for 21st Century Biology—Maybe

Compared with other scientific disciplines, some leaders in the science community have said, biology is too heavily centered on facts, with too little emphasis on underlying theory. The propagation of this misperception in recent years has very likely contributed to......

February 2008: Fertilizing the Seas for Climate Mitigation—Promising Strategy or Sheer Folly?

As the effects of global warming appear more ominous, and the world community makes minimal progress in curbing fossil-fuel emissions, geoengineering schemes for climate mitigation are taking on new allure. One proposal, “fertilizing” ocean waters with micronutrients such as iron......

January 2008: FYI: Threats Remain for Evolution Education

Just over two years ago, intelligent design and creationism (IDC) proponents suffered a stunning legal defeat when a federal judge ruled that intelligent design is no different from religious belief in creationism and has no place in the science classroom.......

December 2007: Feds Seek to Ignite Bioenergy Research

Whether from a desire to reduce dependency on foreign oil, to develop new rural economies, or to reap potential environmental benefits, bioenergy-related research has captured enormous national attention in the last couple of years. In June 2007, the Department of......

November 2007: Ocean Acidification: The Biggest Threat to Our Oceans

When it comes to the oceans and carbon dioxide, there’s good news and bad news. To date, the world’s oceans have absorbed nearly a third of the excess carbon dioxide emitted as a result of anthropogenic activities. That may be......

October 2007: Government Looks into Health of Federal Science Collections

Researchers at university-based natural science collections have long known that their institutions face daunting budgetary and infrastructure challenges. It is becoming equally apparent that federal collections face comparable challenges. Recent circumstances at the Smithsonian Institution (SI), the flagship for federal......

September 2007: Congress Advances Multiyear Science and Education Plan

Before leaving Washington, DC, for the August district work period, the Senate and the House of Representatives passed legislation authorizing $43.3 billion for science and science education programs at various federal agencies, and President George W. Bush signed the act......

July/August 2007: National Wildlife Refuges: Death by a Thousand Cuts?

There’s no other wildlife conservation network like it in the world—547 reserves covering nearly 100 million acres (40.5 million hectares) of wetlands, forests, grasslands, islands, and deserts that support thousands of plant and animal species, including 260 listed as endangered......

June 2007: Congress Considers NSF Authorization

Washington, DC, is abuzz with talk about innovation. Leaders in government, business, education, and science are calling for action to enhance the US science and technology enterprise for the 21st century. Both the White House and Congress—the former through the......

May 2007: Wildlife Triggers Change in Congressional Debate on Climate

The 110th Congress is taking a new approach to climate change. Rather than debating whether or not climate change is a “hoax,” the Democratic-majority Congress is moving full steam ahead. With the creation of a select House committee on climate......

April 2007: Transforming the Rules on Federal Regulations

In mid-January, as national attention focused on congressional reorganization and the never-ending controversies surrounding the Iraq war, the White House rewrote key chapters of the book on federal regulations. In one fell swoop, Executive Order 13422 made economic criteria the......

March 2007: Just Another Report, or a Sea Change for Ocean Research?

For several years, ocean science advocates have been buoyed by various reports focusing attention on the importance of invigorating and prioritizing ocean research. Indeed, the US Ocean Action Plan called for the development of a long-range national ocean research agenda.......

February 2007: Declining Amphibian Populations: What Is the Next Step?

Declines in global amphibian populations have been in news headlines around the world since they were acknowledged in 1989 at the First World Congress of Herpetology. Eager to explain the causes, biologists have established ambitious research, monitoring, and inventory programs.......

January 2007: Post Postdoc: Are New Scientists Prepared for the Real World?

Postdoctoral researchers are an essential part of the scientific community, yet their status in the academic community often fails to reflect their significant role in advancing the nation’s scientific research programs. Postdoctoral scholars often spend long periods of time in......

December 2006: Supreme Court Ruling Leaves Future of Clean Water Act Murky

In early 2006, more than 50 briefs were submitted to the Supreme Court in connection with two cases challenging the federal government’s authority to regulate streams and wetlands under the Clean Water Act (CWA). At issue in Rapanos v. United......

November 2006: National Academy of Sciences Issues Gender Equity Plan

Over the past several decades, various agencies, committees, and individual scientists have called for greater gender equity within the ranks of the science and engineering faculty at colleges and universities in the United States. Despite these calls to action, most......

October 2006: Global Warming: Congress Still Stalled, States and Cities Act

Back in 1992, Representative Henry A. Waxman (D–CA) introduced legislation aimed at dealing with global climate change by controlling emissions of greenhouse gases. Fourteen years later, the California Democrat and other environmentally conscious lawmakers are still waiting for Congress to......

September 2006: Where Are All the State Science Advisers?

Since World War II, the federal government has set the science policy agenda for the United States. In recent years, however, states have increasingly sought to expand their role, at least perceptually, in an effort to nurture economic development. Although......

August 2006: Senators Propose Fundamental Change to Scholarly Publishing

Proposals to require free and open access to scholarly publications have spawned an active public policy debate. Until recently, the focus was on making articles arising from research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) available through an NIH-maintained......

July 2006: Republicans Wrangle over Environmental Legislation

In real estate, the key to success is location, location, location. In Congress, the key to passing legislation is assignment, assignment, assignment—committee assignment, that is. In the 109th Congress, Republicans are attempting to reauthorize two pieces of environmental legislation that......

June 2006: NSF's New Strategic Plan

The National Science Foundation is developing its latest strategic plan, which offers veteran NSF-watchers a window into basic priorities and senior-level policymaking at the agency, and also provides an opportunity for input by the scientific community on the foundation's policies......

May 2006: Are There Signs of Life in the Innovation Budget?

For years, members of the scientific community have sounded alarm bells warning of a decline in the competitiveness of US research, development, and education systems. During the past year, taking note of high-profile innovation initiatives from Representative Frank Wolf (R–VA),......

April 2006: Evolution after Dover

The scene: a press conference featuring scientists and religious leaders. The date: 21 December 2005, the day after US District Court Judge John E. Jones III struck down the Dover, Pennsylvania, Area School District's inclusion of intelligent design in the......

March 2006: The Cost of Doing Business: Should the United States Create Incentives for STEM Labor?

Academics, business leaders, and policymakers have all issued the warning: The United States is facing an imminent workforce shortage in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) that threatens the country's economic competitiveness in the global marketplace. Some nonprofit research groups......

February 2006: Europe Gears Up to Double Its Investment in Research

In late 2005, much of the talk around Washington, DC, focused on competitiveness and innovation in science and technology. The National Academy of Sciences released "The Gathering Storm: Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future," warning policymakers of......

January 2006: Congress Likes Innovation, but Will Biology Get Its Due?

Innovation is the order of the day in Washington, DC. While scientists have been pleased by the attention and by the budget increase that Congress voted to give the National Science Foundation (NSF) for fiscal year 2006, some biologists fear......

December 2005: Will Stem Cell Policy Evolve?

When will embryonic stem cell researchers be able to fully tap into federal funding, the financial backbone of the US science community? This is what scientists continue to ask, as well as citizens who remain enthused about cells that show......

November 2005: Does the President's Science Adviser Have an Audience?

Much ink has been spilled about how the current Bush administration has used—or, in the opinion of some, abused—science....

October 2005: Streamlining the Federal Water Research Portfolio

In the United States, vicious battles over water were once viewed as the sole domain of the American Southwest. But today, conflicts over water are brewing all over the country....

September 2005: Politics and Peer Review

Scientists, nongovernmental organizations, and even politicians have warned for years that federal policymakers are politicizing science to achieve political goals. Surveys show that many scientists in some federal agencies feel that scientific findings have been discounted in management decisions in......

August 2005: NSF Funding Still Lags Behind, but More in Congress Show Concern

President Bush is in a tight spot. He faces a burgeoning national deficit and a crop of aging baby boomers who will soon require trillions in Medicare and Social Security benefits. Disinclined to curtail his tax cuts, the president has......

July 2005: The Summers Affair: Has It Prompted an Effective Plan for Harvard?

In May, with his job on the line, Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers pledged $50 million over the next decade for initiatives to help recruit, support, and promote women and members of underrepresented ethnic groups on the university’s faculty. "We......

June 2005: States, Congress, Environmental Groups Oppose New EPA Regulation

Forty-three states have issued advisories against eating mercury-contaminated fish, in recognition of the harm that organic methylmercury pollution can cause to the environment and to human health. In response to stepped-up legal and political pressure on the federal government, the......

May 2005: FY 2006 Research Funding: Boost or Bust?

Although President George W. Bush’s controversial plans to partially privatize social security may grab more headlines, a battle is brewing on Capitol Hill over the administration’s retreat from its promised support for science budgets. The Republican chairman and key members......

April 2005: The Biodefense Buildup: Fallout for Other Research Areas?

Massive expansion of the US biodefense program since 2001 has yielded fresh career opportunities for thousands of American scientists handling infectious disease work. With the Bush administration determined to develop better countermeasures against bioterrorism, this trend is likely to continue......

March 2005: Will NSF's Science Education Initiative Be Left Behind?

International assessments of student achievement in science regularly detail how high school graduates in the United States lag behind their peers in other industrialized nations. Despite some progress over the past few decades, the recently published National Assessment of Educational......

February 2005: White House Responds to Ocean Commission Reports

As required by the Oceans Act of 2000, President Bush has formally responded to the final report of the US Commission on Ocean Policy. On 17 December 2004, the White House released the "U.S. Ocean Action Plan," a 40-page document......

January 2005: Environmental Science Sacrificed in Latest US Budget

In early December, President George Bush told Canadians that by "relying on sound science and mutual goodwill, we can resolve issues." One week later, he signed a budget for fiscal year 2005 that slashes funding for the federal programs providing......

December 2004: New ESA Amendments: Sound Science or Political Shell Game?

The number of species officially listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) is 1261 and still rising. Nine species have gone extinct, and only 8 domestic species have been recovered and delisted. On one point, both......

November 2004: America’s Oldest Science Agency Gets a Facelift

With an annual research budget of approximately $600 million (including $150 million for extramural research), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is one of the government’s largest supporters of environmental research. It’s also the oldest: By executive order in......

October 2004: Are Foreign Scientists Good for the US Scientific Workforce?

Many in the scientific community have expressed concerns that post-9/11 delays in visa processing are deterring foreign students and scientists from studying or working in the United States (see the April 2004 Washington Watch column, BioScience 54: 296). Yet few......

September 2004: OMB Considers New Federal Peer Review Policy

The academic community recognizes that peer review is essential for evaluating research. Indeed, in recent years the scientific community has vigorously defended the integrity of the peer review process and championed its use for evaluating data that underpin government actions.......

AIBS Public Policy Report, Oct 26, 2009