Enter your address to receive notifications about new posts to your email.
Policy & Advocacy
-
Policy & Advocacy
Urging Congress to pass spending bills with increases for research
The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) has issued an action alert encouraging members of the research community to contact their Members of Congress to support passage of spending bills that support research. GSA is one of 27 FASEB member societies. As reported earlier, the federal government is operating under a continuing resolution that…
-
Policy & Advocacy
National Academies Human Gene-Editing Initiative holds public meeting
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.…
-
Policy & Advocacy
National Academies calls for streamlining regulations
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…
-
Policy & Advocacy
Shutdown averted…for now
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…
-
Policy & Advocacy
Authentic ethics in synthetic biology
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…
-
Policy & Advocacy
Scrutiny on fetal tissue impacts research community
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,…
-
Policy & Advocacy
NIH selects new extramural research director
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.…
-
Policy & Advocacy
NIH seeking new director for National Library of Medicine
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…
-
Policy & Advocacy
National Science Board seeks nominations for Vannevar Bush Award
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…
-
Policy & Advocacy
Guest Post: The Story Behind the Campaign to Put a Woman of Science on the $10 Bill
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…
-
Policy & Advocacy
GSA endorses Barbara on the Bill campaign
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…