Issues in Science and Technology articles from January 2009

Issues in Science and Technology archives from January 2009

Budget doubling defended.(FORUM)(National Institutes of Health budget)(Viewpoint essay)
January 1, 2009... Richard Freeman and John Van Reenen ("Be Careful What You Wish For: A Cautionary Tale about Budget Doubling," Issues, Fall 2008) provided a thought-provoking analysis of the budget doubling for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). They...

Innovating for innovation.(FORUM)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2009... In "Creating a National Innovation Foundation" (Issues, Fall 2008), Robert Atkinson and Howard Wial make a compelling case for public policies that address how research discoveries become innovations, creating economic activity, jobs, and new...

Better environmental treaties.(FORUM)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2009... Lawrence Susskind has identified some key problems with the very structure of environmental treaty formulation ("Strengthening the Global Environmental Treaty System," Issues, Fall 2008). Some of the remedies he proposes are, however, already...

Managing military reform.(FORUM)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2009... In "Restructuring the Military" (Issues, Fall 2008), Lawrence J. Korb and Max A. Bergmann call the Pentagon "the world's largest bureaucracy", implying that it can be managed much like other very large organizations. They then go on to discuss...

Sadan begynder en Epidemi.(Cartoon)
January 1, 2009... Atisch. Sadan begynder en Epidemi. (Achoo. Thus begins an epidemic.) [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Kobenhavns Sundhedskommission, Copenhagen, Denmark. Artist: Storm P (Robert Storm Petersen). Color lithograph, 24.4 x 33.5 inches, 1930s.

Not just for kids.(FORUM)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2009... Brian Bosworth's assessment in "The Crisis in Adult Education" (Issues, Summer 2008) is right on target. At a time when our country faces unparalleled economic uncertainty and unprecedented competition, the United States must dramatically...

Science and foreign policy.(FORUM)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2009... Gerald Hane has a valuable piece in the Fall 2008 Issues ("Science, Technology and Global Reengagement") arguing that the new administration must recognize the critical role of science and technology (S&T) in the conduct of the nation's foreign...

Biotech regulation.(FORUM)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2009... In "Third-Generation Biotechnology: A First Look" (Issues, Fall 2008), Mark Sagoff raises a number of useful and interesting points regarding ethical, legal, and social concerns about third-generation biotechnology. In my view, however, some of...

Research on patents.(FORUM)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2009... I support the policy direction proposed by Robert Hunt and Brian Kahin in "Reexamining the Patent System" (Issues, Fall 2008), but does their analysis go far enough? Arguably, innovation is as important to the long-run health of the economy as...

Yes to an RPS.(FORUM)(Renewable Portfolio Standard)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2009... "A National Renewable Portfolio Standard? Not Practical" (Issues, Fall 2008), by Jay Apt, Lester B. Lave, and Sompop Pattanariyankool, correctly asserts that the United States needs a comprehensive strategy to address climate change and that...

Research funding flat in 2009 as budget stalls.(FROM THE HILL)
January 1, 2009... Fiscal year (FY) 2009 began on October 1 with final budget decisions for most federal agencies postponed until at least January 2009. To keep the government operating, lawmakers combined three final appropriations bills into a continuing...

NASA funding boost authorized.(FROM THE HILL)(National Aeronautics and Space Administration)
January 1, 2009... Emphasizing the important role that a balanced and adequately funded science program at NASA plays in the nation's innovation agenda, Congress in October approved a bill with broad bipartisan support that could significantly increase NASA's...

Climate change proposals multiply.(FROM THE HILL)
January 1, 2009... As the 110th Congress wrapped up, legislators were already looking ahead to the next session, releasing drafts of climate change proposals they hope to advance. The measures reflect growing interest in Congress in addressing the broad spectrum...

Big boost in energy R&D funding supported.(FROM THE HILL)(research and development)
January 1, 2009... Although most of the energy policy debate in Congress during the fall of 2008 centered on expanding offshore drilling and renewable tax incentives, both of which were approved in the waning days of the 110th Congress, legislators also examined...

Overcoming Stone Age logic.(PERSPECTIVES)(fossils fuel dependency)(Viewpoint essay)
January 1, 2009... Through a remarkable manipulation of limited knowledge, brute force, and an overwhelming arrogance, humans have shaped a world that in all likelihood cannot sustain the standard of living and quality of life we have come to take for granted....

Science on the campaign trail.(PERSPECTIVES)
January 1, 2009... In November 2007, a group of six citizens decided to do something to elevate science and technology in the national dialogue. They created Science Debate 2008, an initiative calling for a presidential debate on science policy. They put up a Web...

Restoring and protecting coastal Louisiana; The challenges facing the Gulf Coast reflect a national inability to come to grips with the need to deal with neglected infrastructure, both natural and built.(COASTAL RESTORATION AND PROTECTION)(Report)
January 1, 2009... The sustainability of coastal Louisiana is critical to the nation. It is the location of a large part of the nation's oil and gas industry and its largest port complex. It provides vital habitat for economically important fisheries and...

The high road for U.S. manufacturing; Manufacturing employment could be stabilized with more widespread use of advanced production methods. Government policy can play a key role.(HIGH ROAD MANUFACTURING)(Report)
January 1, 2009... The United States has been losing manufacturing jobs at a stunning rate: 16% of the jobs disappeared in just the three years between 2000 and 2003, with a further decline of almost 4% since 2003. In all, the nation has lost 4 million...

A full-court press for renewable energy: transformation of the energy system will require steady and generous government support across technological, economic, and social domains.(RENEWABLE ENERGY)(Report)
January 1, 2009... Any effort to move the United States away from its current fossil-fuel energy system will require the promotion of renewable energy. Of course, renewable energy alone will not solve all problems of climate change, energy security, and local...

Low carbon fuel standards: the most direct and effective policy for transitioning to low-carbon alternative transportation fuels is to spur innovation with a comprehensive performance standard for upstream fuel producers.(LOW CARBON FUEL STANDARDS)(Report)
January 1, 2009... When it comes to energy security and climate change concerns, transportation is the principal culprit. It consumes half the oil used in the world and accounts for almost one-fourth of all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In the United States, it...

Reduce greenhouse gases profitably; a regulatory system that rewards energy companies for innovations that boost efficiency can appeal to environmentalists and industry alike.(ENERGY EFFICIENCY)
January 1, 2009... After the Senate's failed effort to pass the Lieberman-Warner climate change bill, Congress could conclude that reducing greenhouse pollution is a political impossibility--the costs too high, the benefits too uncertain, the opposition too...

Getting more miles per gallon; The answer may require looking beyond CAFE standards and implementing other consumer-oriented policy options to wean drivers away from past habits.(MORE MILES PER GALLON)(Report)
January 1, 2009... In December 2007, concerns over energy security and human-induced climate change prompted Congress to increase Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards for the first time in 20 years. The new standards aim to reduce petroleum consumption...

Energy Security for American Families; Helping moderate-income households invest in energy-efficient cars, appliances, and home retrofits would benefit financially struggling families as well as the U.S. economy.(ENERGY SECURITY)
January 1, 2009... In July 2008, Americans were paying $4.11 per gallon of gasoline--nearly three times the price six years earlier, according to the Energy Information Administration. Most people have felt the pinch of higher energy prices, but those hurt the...

Growth without blight: The Bridge at the Edge of the World.(Book review)
January 1, 2009... by James Gustave Speth. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2008, 295 pp. In November 2008, Al Gore authored an op-ed essay in the New York Times titled "The Climate for Change" in which he offered a five-part plan for how we can save...

Danger: Bell curve ahead: Real Education: Four Simple Truths for Bringing America's Schools Back to Reality.(Book review)
January 1, 2009... by Charles Murray. New York: Crown Forum, 2008. When I was in my junior high-school play, one of the parents in the audience was overheard saying that there were only two things wrong with our performance: The curtain went up, and the seats...

Follow the money: Science for Sale: The Perils, Rewards, and Delusions of Campus Capitalism.(Book review)
January 1, 2009... by Daniel S. Greenberg. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2007, 324 pp. On the one hand, it appears that the sky is falling yet again. Science is caught up in a competitive arms race for funding, universities are driven by internal...

Two-fluid snap off.(ARCHIVES)(liquid fissioning)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... A drop falling from a faucet is a common example of a liquid fissioning into two or more pieces. The cascade of structure that is produced in this process is of uncommon beauty. As the drop falls, a long neck, connecting two masses of fluid,...