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Off The Wall On Climate At The Wall Street Journal - Huffington Post, Feb. 3, 2012
Off The Wall On Climate At The Wall Street Journal - Marin Independent Journal, Feb. 3, 2012
Gamers on 3-D mission to save world, just don’t tell them they are learning cell biology - Physorg.com, Feb. 3, 2012
White House, religious groups in fight over doctrine, religious freedom and contraception
- Washington Post, Feb. 3, 2012
Report Scolds NASA's Dependence on Old Technology
- National Journal, Feb. 1, 2012
NASA Receives Final NRC Report on Space Technology Roadmaps - Sacremento Bee, Feb. 1, 2012
New Report Pinpoints NASA's 16 Biggest Space Tech Needs
- Space.com, Feb. 1, 2012
Check With Climate Scientists for Views on Climate
- Wall Street Journal, Feb. 1, 2012
National Research Council to present briefing on uranium study in Danville
- Star-Tribune, Jan. 31, 2012
Reclaimed Wastewater for Drinking: Safe But Still a Tough Sell
- National Geographic, Jan. 31, 2012
Hacking Seen as Rising Risk With Car Electronics
- Bloomberg, Jan. 30, 2012
National Academy Picks UC Administrator for Top Staff Job
- Science, Jan. 27, 2012
U.S. needs long-term site for nuclear wast: panel
- Reuters, Jan. 26, 2012
Ray LaHood changes tune, backs Senate bill
- Politico, Jan. 26, 2012
U.S. experts urge more study of nanotechnology threat
- Baltimore Sun, Jan. 26, 2012
NOAA Says It's Getting Better at Estimating Recreational Fishing Hauls
- Science, Jan. 25, 2012
Experts urge more study of nanotechnology threat
- Chicago Tribune, Jan. 25, 2012
Research strategy urged on risks of nanotechnology
- Nature, Jan. 25, 2012
With Prevalence of Nanomaterials Rising, Panel Urges Review of Risks
- NY Times, Jan. 25, 2012
Wasting the Wastewater
- NY Times, Jan. 24, 2012
A ‘Critique’ of Evolution Proposed in Oklahoma - Wall Street Journal Jan. 23, 2012
Citizens pack General Assembly offices to voice opposition to uranium mining - Chatham Star Tribune, Jan. 23, 2012
Little Progress in Congress on Push for Forensic Standards - ProPublica, Jan. 23, 2012
Making wastewater potable: feasible, but getting over the yuck factor is tough - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Jan. 22, 2012
Regulators acted correctly in Toyota accelerator probe - USA Today, Jan. 19, 2012
U.S. Closes The Book On Toyota's Acceleration Cases - NPR, Jan. 19, 2012
Study confirms that Toyota unintended acceleration issue was not an electronic malfunction
- Detriot Free Press, Jan. 19, 2012
Road Safety Agency Is Urged to Add Expertise in Electronics Systems - NY Times, Jan. 18, 2012
U.S. Auto Safety Agency NHTSA Needs Improvement - Study Says - CNN, Jan. 18, 2012
Sudden Acceleration Study Finds Problems at Auto Safety Agency - Los Angeles Times, Jan. 18, 2012
Auto Electronic Faults May Be Untraceable, Need More Oversight, Panel Says - Bloomberg, Jan. 18, 2012
Driver Error, Car Electronics Eyed in New Study of Toyota Unintended Acceleration- Detroit Free Press, Jan. 18, 2012
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Needs More Electronics Expertise, Report Says - Huffington Post, Jan. 18, 2012
The Costs and the Lost Benefits of Graduation Exams - Huffington Post, January 18, 2012
Labs Size Up New Guidelines For Rodent Cages - NPR, January 17, 2012
Gee Whiz, Why Not Recycle Urine for Drinking Water? - Scientific American, Jan. 16, 2012
Panel aims to improve mine safety programs - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Jan. 16, 2012
You May Be Drinking Wastewater Without Knowing It - RedOrbit, Jan. 13, 2012
Retrospective - Paul Mead Doty (1920–2011) - Science Magazine, Jan. 13, 2012
Global climate change: Ralph Cicerone joins WUSTL conversation - Washington University in St. Louis, Jan. 12, 2012
Global climate change: Ralph Cicerone joins WUSTL conversation - Marin Independent Journal, Jan. 12, 2012
Medical physicists say fear of diagnostic radiation is overblown - PhysOrg.com, Jan. 12, 2012
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Feb. 3, 2012
 NASA is considering a hardware contribution to the European Space Agency’s Euclid mission in exchange for U.S. membership on the Euclid Science Team and access to the mission's data. The Euclid mission will employ a space telescope to image a large portion of the extragalactic sky at unprecedented resolution and measure spectra for millions of galaxies. The data obtained will contribute information on dark energy and to the measurement of cosmological parameters.
A new National Research Council report, Assessment of a Plan for U.S. Participation in Euclid, responds to a request from NASA to evaluate this possible U.S. contribution to Euclid and concludes that an investment of approximately $20 million in hardware would be a valuable first step toward meeting the scientific goals of the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope, one of the top-ranked priorities recommended in New Worlds, New Horizons in Astronomy and Astrophysics, the Research Council's recent decadal survey of research priorities in astronomy and astrophysics.
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Feb. 1, 2012
 During the next five years, NASA technology development efforts should focus on 16 high-priority technologies and their associated top technical challenges, says a new report from the National Research Council. The technologies were selected with input from the external technical community as part of NASA’s draft technology roadmaps and include items such as radiation mitigation; guidance, navigation, and control; nuclear systems for both power
generation and transportation; and solar power generation (see news release for full table). These priorities were chosen to align with three main facets of NASA's overall mission: extending and sustaining human activities beyond low Earth orbit; exploring the evolution of the solar system and the potential for life elsewhere; and expanding our understanding of Earth and the universe.
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Jan. 31, 2012
 A new report from the Institute of Medicine says public health actions are urgently needed to tackle the vast and growing toll of chronic illness on individuals and society. The report’s recommendations focus on optimizing efforts to better understand the burden and needs of people with chronic diseases, improving the dissemination of effective community-based interventions and preventive clinical guidelines,
promoting the testing of an aligned health system to help people live well with chronic illness, and promoting the creation and implementation of public health policies in emerging legislation.
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Jan. 27, 2012
 Bruce B. Darling, currently vice president for laboratory management at the University of California, will soon join the National Academy of Sciences and National Research Council as executive officer. His transition from the university to NAS will occur over the next several months. He will succeed E. William Colglazier, who now serves as science and technology adviser at the U.S. Department of State.
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Jan. 25, 2012
 Despite extensive investment in nanotechnology and increasing commercialization over the last decade, insufficient understanding remains about the environmental, health, and safety aspects of nanomaterials. Without a coordinated research plan to help guide efforts to manage and avoid potential risks, the future of safe and sustainable nanotechnology is uncertain, says a new report from the National Research Council. An effective implementation of such a plan would require sufficient management and budgetary authority to direct research across federal agencies.
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Jan. 20, 2012
 The 91st annual meeting of the National Research Council's Transportation Research Board will have more than 4,000 transportation-related presentations in nearly 650 sessions and workshops. Some 11,000 people from around the world -- including policymakers, administrators, practitioners, researchers, journalists, and representatives of government, industry, and academia -- will attend the meeting. This year's spotlight theme is "Transportation: Putting Innovation and People to Work." The event will take place Jan. 22-26 in Washington, D.C.
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Jan. 19, 2012
 The National Academy of Sciences will recognize 17 individuals with awards for their extraordinary scientific achievements. The recipients will be honored in a ceremony on Monday, April 30, during the Academy’s 149th annual meeting.
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Jan. 18, 2012
 The increasing role of electronic systems in automobiles creates new safety oversight challenges that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) must address explicitly and proactively, says a new report from the National Research Council's Transportation Research Board. As these electronics systems become more complex, interconnected, and capable, safety assurance demands will grow, as will the need to maintain public confidence in their safe performance. NHTSA will need to become more familiar with how manufacturers design safety and security into electronics systems, identify and investigate system faults that may leave no physical trace,
and respond convincingly when concerns arise about system safety.
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Jan. 17, 2012
 Harold T. Shapiro, an economist lauded for his ability to distill, debate, and resolve the complex aspects of controversial scientific issues, has been awarded the Public Welfare Medal, the National Academy of Sciences’ most prestigious award. Established in 1914, the medal is presented annually to honor extraordinary use of science for the public good.
“We honor Dr. Shapiro’s tireless efforts to promote public understanding of science,” said Susan Wessler, home secretary of the National Academy of Sciences and chair of the selection committee for the award. “Throughout his long and distinguished career, he has taken on a remarkable variety of complex and important problems, often building consensus among disparate personalities by employing a disciplined approach that emphasizes respect for all viewpoints.”
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Jan. 17, 2012
 As obesity continues to diminish the quality of people's lives and raise health care costs, the Institute of Medicine is pleased to join HBO, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health, the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, and Kaiser Permanente in developing "The Weight of the Nation," a new multipronged initiative to tackle the obesity crisis. In conjunction with the project, IOM will publish a new report funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation that will review progress made so far to implement strategies to curb obesity and recommend selected actions aimed at accelerating progress in the near future.
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Jan. 10, 2012
 With recent advances in technology and design, treating and reusing municipal wastewater for drinking water, irrigation, industry, and other applications could significantly increase the nation's total available water resources, particularly in coastal areas facing water shortages, says a new report from the National Research Council. Moreover, new analyses suggest that the possible health risks of exposure to chemical contaminants and disease-causing microbes from wastewater reuse do not exceed, and in some cases may be significantly lower than, the risks of existing water supplies.
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Jan. 5, 2012
 The draft 10-year strategic plan for the program that shapes and coordinates climate and related global environmental change research efforts of numerous agencies and departments across the federal government is "evolving in the right direction," but several key issues could strengthen these planning efforts, says a new report from the National Research Council.
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Jan. 5, 2012
 The Keck Futures Initiative -- a program of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine -- is accepting nominations for the 2012 Communication Awards for excellence in reporting and communicating science, engineering, and medicine to the public during 2011. A $20,000 prize will be awarded in each of the following categories: book; newspaper or magazine; online; and TV, radio, or film.
Nominations must be completed online no later than Feb. 10, 2012. The winners will be honored in the fall at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. For information on eligibility, submission requirements, and nomination procedures, visit http://www.keckfutures.org/awards/nominate.html.
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Jan. 5, 2012
 T. Peter Brody, George H. Heilmeier, Wolfgang Helfrich, and Martin Schadt will receive the Charles Stark Draper Prize -- a $500,000 annual award that honors engineers whose accomplishments have significantly benefited society -- “for the engineering development of the Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) that is utilized in billions of consumer and professional devices.”
 Clive L. Dym, M. Mack Gilkeson, and J. Richard Phillips will receive the Bernard M. Gordon Prize -- a $500,000 award issued annually that recognizes innovation in engineering and technology education -- “for creating and disseminating innovations in undergraduate engineering design education to develop engineering leaders.” Half of each Gordon prize is awarded to the winner's institution to support the continued development, refinement, and dissemination of the recognized innovation.
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Dec. 27, 2011
 The series begins Jan. 26 with a game scenario where players work in teams to contain the outbreak of an infectious disease affecting global health. In March, the Koshland Science Museum and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences present a lively science café about the science of sleep.
In addition to evening programs, the Koshland Science Museum offers hands-on weekend activities. Bounce around the carbon cycle during the Martin Luther King Day holiday weekend. Then, visit the museum over the Presidents’ Day holiday to test recall ability using memory boxes. This activity acts as a preview to the Life Lab, opening March 3.
Advance ticket purchase is strongly recommended for evening programs. All programs are held at the Koshland Science Museum, 525 E St., N.W.
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Dec. 22, 2011
The National Academy of Sciences is pleased to announce a substantial gift from the Raymond and Beverly Sackler Foundation to endow a fund supporting studies and projects in biomedical science and its application to human health. With the gift, NAS will establish the Raymond and Beverly Sackler Science Fund for activities in basic biology and biomedical science -- including the convergence of biology, physics, mathematics, and engineering sciences -- to help address human health problems.
"This generous endowment from Raymond and Beverly Sackler will help the NAS make important future contributions to a field of science that holds great potential," said NAS President Ralph J. Cicerone.
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Dec. 19, 2011
 A number of health and environmental issues and related risks need to be addressed when considering whether to lift the almost 30-year moratorium on uranium mining in Virginia, says a new report from the National Research Council. The report adds that internationally accepted best practices are available to mitigate some of the risks involved. The committee that wrote the report concluded that there are "steep hurdles to be surmounted" before mining and processing could take place within a regulatory setting that appropriately protects workers, the public, and the environment, especially given that the state has no experience regulating mining and processing of the radioactive element.
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Dec. 15, 2011
 The National Institutes of Health should allow the use of chimpanzees as subjects in biomedical and behavioral research only under stringent conditions, including the absence of any other suitable model and inability to ethically perform the research on people, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine. The report's recommendations answer the need for a uniform set of criteria for assessing the scientific necessity of chimpanzees in biomedical, comparative genomics, and behavioral research.
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Dec. 15, 2011
 The National Institutes of Health has gone to great lengths to improve its draft assessment of the risks associated with a proposed biocontainment laboratory at Boston University, and it is closer to reaching the goal of being scientifically and technically sound, says a new report from the National Research Council. In general, the 1,700-page “90 percent” draft of the revised risk assessment -- the penultimate draft of the document before it is released for public comment -- addresses the concerns raised in previous Research Council reviews of the document. This letter report provides additional suggestions for improving the final draft report that will be prepared for public comment.
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Dec. 14, 2011
 To reduce the risk of another accident as catastrophic as the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill, a new report from the National Academy of Engineering and National Research Council says, companies involved in offshore drilling should take a "system safety" approach to anticipating and managing possible dangers at every level of operation -- from ensuring the integrity of wells to designing blowout preventers that function "under all foreseeable conditions." In addition, an enhanced regulatory approach should combine strong industry safety goals with mandatory oversight at critical points during drilling operations.
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Dec. 14, 2011
 A new Institute of Medicine report specifies the types of research that the Food and Drug Administration should require before allowing companies to sell or advertise ‘modified risk’ tobacco products as being capable of reducing the health risks of tobacco use. While such products could be one part of a comprehensive strategy to lower tobacco-related death and disease in the U.S., especially among tobacco users who are unable or unwilling to quit entirely, little is currently known about the products’ health effects and whether they pose less risk than traditional tobacco products. Examples of modified risk tobacco products may include e-cigarettes and tobacco lozenges.
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Dec. 13, 2011
 Ranging from “grand challenge” questions about how Earth’s interior works to understanding the evolution of the planet’s surface, a new report from the National Research Council identifies seven new research opportunities in the earth sciences for the next decade and presents key instrumentation and facilities needed to support them.
This report is a follow-up to the 2002 Research Council report Basic Research Opportunities in Earth Science, which helped reshape the National Science Foundation's division of earth sciences.
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Dec. 7, 2011
 Advances in breast cancer research point to some steps women can take that may reduce their risk for the disease, including avoiding unnecessary medical radiation, forgoing use of combination estrogen-progestin menopausal hormone therapy if possible, limiting alcohol consumption, maintaining a healthy weight, exercising regularly, and avoiding tobacco use, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine that examines environmental risk factors. For many chemicals and consumer products, evidence is currently insufficient or unclear to recommend specific preventive actions, the report notes. More studies should explore the effects of exposures throughout the entire life span, including at specific stages of breast development, and more research is needed on the cumulative effects of exposures at different life stages or multiple exposures that occur together, the report emphasizes. Most research has focused on adults and on exposures occurring within a few years prior to a diagnosis, but recent studies have shown the importance of exposures at various life stages, including childhood and adolescence.
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Nov. 30, 2011
 Publicly posting enforcement and testing data corresponding to specific meat, poultry, and egg products' processing plants on the Internet could favorably impact public health, says a new report from the National Research Council. The report adds that the release of such data could contribute to increased transparency and yield valuable insights that go beyond the regulatory uses for which the data are collected.
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Nov. 30, 2011
 The effectiveness of using specific fungi as mycoherbicides to combat illicit drug crops remains questionable due to the lack of quality, in-depth research, says a new report from the National Research Council. Questions about the degree of control that could be achieved with such mycoherbicides, as well as uncertainties about their potential effects on nontarget plants, microorganisms, animals, humans, and the environment, must be addressed before considering deployment. Additional research is needed to assess the safety and effectiveness of proposed strains of mycoherbicides.
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Nov. 18, 2011
 A new workshop summary explores how to best share the excitement and value of space science and exploration with the public. The National Research Council workshop was organized around five “grand questions” in space science, and featured leading scientists and communicators.
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Nov. 14, 2011
 Nature provides food, timber, fresh water, recreation, and other important benefits that experts refer to as "ecosystem services." The challenge of maintaining these benefits into the future was addressed by more than 170 participants gathered this week in Irvine, Calif., for the ninth annual National Academies Keck Futures Initiative conference. Top researchers in ecology, economics, engineering, medicine, and other fields discussed how an integrated approach could be used to provide secure supplies of food, fiber, and water while improving the climate and human health.
To encourage further interdisciplinary work, the Futures Initiative announced the availability of $1 million in seed grants -- up to $100,000 each -- for new lines of research identified at the conference. Recipients of the competitive grants will be named in the spring.
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Nov. 14, 2011
 The seventh annual conference of the African Science Academy Development Initiative (ASADI) begins today in Kampala, Uganda, hosted by that country’s national academy of sciences. Officials from several African science academies will meet over the course of three days with counterparts from the U.S. National Academies, European science academies, and other experts from around the world to discuss aid effectiveness in Africa's health sector.
At the opening of the conference, the Uganda National Academy of Sciences unveiled a new report linked to the theme of this year's conference -- Informing Strategies, Improving Results: The Role of Civil Society Organisations in Managing for Results in Africa's Health Sector -- which presents the results of a questionnaire of civil society organizations in Uganda and throughout sub-Saharan Africa. An international planning committee that included representatives of several African science academies oversaw the work that led to the report, and staff from the U.S. National Academies assisted in the report's preparation as well.
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