Policy & Advocacy

The Human Gene-Editing Initiative launched earlier this year by the National Academy of Science and the National Academy of Medicine held a public meeting to provide an overview of the state of gene editing science in preparation for an international summit to conducted in partnership with the Royal Society and the Chinese Academy of Sciences.…

A new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine concludes that the continuing growth of federal research regulations and requirements is “diminishing the effectiveness of the nation’s research investment” by forcing investigators to spend more time on administrative and compliance matters, rather than research. Optimizing the Nation’s Investment in Academic Research: A…

On Wednesday afternoon, just before the end of fiscal year 2015, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a short-term spending bill on a vote of 277-151. Earlier in the day, the Senate passed the bill on a 78-20 vote. Without this agreement, the U.S. government would have shut-down as the new fiscal year begins on…

While the science behind the synthetic yeast genome project is cutting edge, the ethical questions surrounding it aren’t new. The scientists of the Sc2.0 project have a goal that sounds akin to science fiction – they’re working toward building a completely synthetic yeast genome. This new strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, affectionately named Sc2.0, will be…

The use of fetal tissue has drawn increasing public scrutiny in recent weeks as a result of secret video recordings involving the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Getting less attention is how fetal cells can be essential research tools. A story on NPR’s Morning Edition this morning focused on the research and clinical applications of fetal cells,…

In a message earlier today, NIH Director Francis Collins announced the appointment of Michael S. Lauer, MD, as the new Deputy Director for Extramural Research. In this role, he will oversee the NIH Office for Extramural Research, which “provide the leadership, oversight, tools and guidance needed to administer and manage NIH grants policies and operations.” Dr.…

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is seeking applications from exceptional candidates to be the next director of NIH’s National Library of Medicine (NLM). NLM is the world’s largest biomedical library that maintains and makes available a broad range of print and electronic resources. Current NLM databases include GenBank, PubMed, and ClinicalTrials.gov. Following from the…

The National Science Board is seeking nominations for its Vannevar Bush Award, which “honors truly exceptional lifelong leaders in science and technology who have made substantial contributions to the welfare of the Nation through public service activities in science, technology, and public policy.” According to the award website, candidates for the Vannevar Bush Award should…

Don Gibson (University of California, Davis) describes how he decided to start the Barbara on the Bill Campaign When I heard that the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced that a woman will be on the $10 bill, I started reading several articles about which woman it should be. I was shocked that so few women…

The GSA Executive Committee has agreed to endorse a campaign led by GSA graduate student member Don Gibson and colleagues at the University of California, Davis, to get former GSA president Barbara McClintock on the new $10 bill. The Society leadership thought there was no better way to honor one of the true giants of…

GSA has responded to a request for information from NIH’s National Institute of General Medical Sciences on “Innovative Approaches to Technology Development for the Biomedical Research Community.” In its comments, GSA argued that technology development need not be tied to specific research questions and that it can be difficult to anticipate all of the innovative…