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What’s Ahead
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| National Academy of Sciences President Marcia McNutt speaking at a February symposium marking the 75th anniversary of the landmark 1945 report, Science — The Endless Frontier. (Image credit – Karen Sayre / Eikon Photography) |
NAS Meeting Features Panels on Pandemic, Grand Challenge Initiative
The National Academy of Sciences’ annual meeting this weekend features a special session on the COVID-19 pandemic that includes Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and George Gao, director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, among other speakers. The National Academies has contributed to the U.S. pandemic response through a new standing committee that is providing “rapid expert consultations.” In addition, the three presidents of the Academies released a joint statement last week urging the U.S. to continue funding for the World Health Organization after President Trump halted contributions. The meeting will also include a symposium on the merits of the National Academy of Sciences launching a set of Grand Challenges in Science, described as “a checklist of future civilization-shaping scientific questions to inspire the next generation of students.” Other sessions at the meeting will focus on issues such as solving challenges associated with plastics, discovering and imaging black holes, and building a diverse scientific workforce.
DOE and NSF Computing Advisory Panels Convening
The Department of Energy’s Advanced Scientific Computing Advisory Committee is holding a two day meeting beginning on Thursday. Artificial intelligence will be a major topic of discussion, with the committee hearing a report on a recent series of AI town halls held at DOE national labs as well as updates from a new subcommittee charged with evaluating cross-cutting AI efforts within the DOE Office of Science. The committee will also consider reports from subcommittees charged with reviewing the past four decades of DOE investment in advanced computing and examining what elements of DOE’s Exascale Computing Initiative should be transitioned into research programs. Separately, the National Science Foundation’s Advisory Committee on Cyberinfrastructure will meet on Wednesday and Thursday. Both the DOE and NSF panels have allotted time to discuss the impacts of the pandemic on computing research.
Hubble Telescope Marks Third Decade in Space
Friday is the 30th anniversary of the Hubble Space Telescope’s launch aboard space shuttle Discovery on April 24, 1990. The telescope’s journey from inception to the start of operations required decades of commitment from its backers, who navigated through competing priorities as well as major schedule delays and cost growth. The telescope’s development ultimately cost about $1.5 billion in 1990 dollars, but ancillary costs have brought its price tag to well over $10 billion when adjusted for inflation. Some of the major costs associated with Hubble arose from a series of servicing missions, starting with a risky repair mission in 1993 that corrected for an error in the telescope’s mirror that produced blurred images. Subsequent missions enhanced Hubble’s capabilities and extended its operating life. Throughout its history, the telescope has been among the most consistently productive astronomical facilities of all time. NASA’s latest astrophysics senior review still ranked it in the top tier of operating missions, calling it an “icon of American scientific achievement.” Although events celebrating the telescope’s anniversary have been postponed, NASA’s website includes exhibitions focused on the occasion. Physics Today has also published several articles to mark the anniversary as well as a visualization of all the observations the telescope has ever made.
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In Case You Missed It
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| A chain of tropical cyclones imaged in 2019 by a geostationary weather satellite. (Image credit – Joshua Stevens / NASA Earth Observatory, NOAA National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service) |
Government Seeks Input on Earth System Predictability
An interagency “fast track action committee” stood up this February is collecting public input on what sorts of R&D activities could improve the predictability of Earth systems. The initiative follows from last year’s White House R&D budget priorities memorandum, which directed agencies to prioritize efforts that “quantify Earth system predictability across multiple phenomena, time, and space scales,” as well as to evaluate “how measures of and limits to predictability, both theoretical and actual, can inform a wide array of stakeholders.” The committee is also seeking information about the “practical needs” that improved Earth systems predictability could address and the associated social and economic benefits. In addition, it is welcoming broader suggestions for “transformative big ideas.”
Scientific Societies Propose Coronavirus Relief Measures
Various scientific societies have responded to a request for input from the House Science Committee on research needs that could be addressed in a future coronavirus relief package. Among the respondents, the American Physical Society suggested that Congress provide immigration agencies with “necessary resources or methods to process the backlog of pending visa renewals as well as the applications for new nonimmigrant visas,” noting many international students and scholars have returned to their home countries amid the pandemic. The society also calls for supplemental funding to restart labs, bolster research programs for undergraduates in summer 2021 to make up for cancellations this summer, and enhance domestic scholarship programs in light of a likely downturn in international student enrollment. (APS is an AIP Member Society.) Letters from other societies such as the American Chemical Society and American Geophysical Union draw attention to similar funding and workforce needs, as do submissions from coalitions of research organizations and universities.
NSF Physical Sciences Chief Returning to NASA
Anne Kinney, the head of the National Science Foundation’s Math and Physical Sciences Directorate, is leaving the position at the end of the month to become deputy director of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. Acting NSF Director Kelvin Droegemeier announced the move in a memorandum to staff on April 14. Kinney’s deputy, materials scientist Sean Jones, will lead the directorate on an acting basis as NSF continues its search for a replacement. Kinney previously worked at Goddard from 2008 to 2015 as director of its Solar System Exploration Division and led NASA’s astrophysics division from 1999 to 2006. She joined NSF in 2018 from the Keck Observatory, where she was the chief scientist.
FCC Space Debris and Spectrum Moves Draw Pushback
Last week, leaders of the House Science Committee urged the Federal Communications Commission to delay action on a proposed rule that aims to mitigate the threat of orbital collisions. The committee argues deeper consideration of the matter is warranted in light of concerns raised by stakeholders and notes that Congress is working on relevant legislation. Many comments submitted to FCC claim the rule’s requirements for reporting, indemnification, and satellite maneuverability would impose serious burdens on satellite operators, with one group of university-based small-satellite users warning of potential “irreparable harm” to academic work. Meanwhile, in a separate move, FCC voted on April 20 to move ahead with plans to allow the firm Ligado Networks to use radio spectrum frequencies between 1 and 2 gigahertz, known as the L band, for 5G applications despite objections from the Defense Department and other federal agencies that it could interfere with global positioning systems. Organizations representing the hydrometeorological community have also warned that Ligado’s equipment could disrupt transmissions from geosynchronous weather satellites. Leaders of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees have indicated they are considering bipartisan legislative action to block the Ligado move, though other key members of Congress have expressed support for FCC’s action. Frustrations over such spectrum reallocation controversies have mounted in Congress, leading the House Energy and Commerce Committee to ask the Government Accountability Office earlier this year to review federal spectrum management, arguing that “chaotic” processes have caused serial problems.
DOE Advisory Board Releases Findings on AI, Innovation
Last week the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board released preliminary reports from its working groups on artificial intelligence and innovation. The first report explores how the Department of Energy can advance both “the Science of AI,” which develops AI methods and tools, and “AI for Science,” which applies AI to support DOE’s energy, security, and science missions. The report recommends the creation of an AI Center of Excellence, a new user facility that would serve as the hub of a “DOE-wide AI Capability.” It also suggests the department increase its focus on AI workforce development, data management, and cybersecurity. The second report identifies DOE opportunities for fostering innovation, including increasing engagement with the private sector, expanding awareness of and access to DOE capabilities, and implementing innovative funding approaches.
US Suggests China May Be Violating Zero Yield Nuke Standard
In its latest annual report to Congress assessing compliance with international agreements, the State Department raises concerns about nuclear weapons experiments by China and Russia. The report questions whether China is adhering to the “zero yield” standard observed by the U.S., United Kingdom, and France under their moratoriums on explosive testing, citing extensive excavation activities at China’s Lop Nur test site, use of explosive containment chambers, and “frequent blocking” of data from independent monitoring stations. In response, China’s Foreign Ministry dismissed the assessment as a “complete distortion of facts.” The State Department report also states the U.S. has concluded that Russia has conducted tests that are inconsistent with the zero yield standard but that it is unsure if any such tests were conducted in 2019. Last May, the director of the Defense Intelligence Agency said in a speech that Russia is “probably not” adhering to the zero yield standard and that China could also be pursuing such tests, asserting it had joined with Russia to “water down” language in a United Nations statement affirming the zero yield standard.
‘STEM Corps’ Bill Aims to Address DOD Talent Needs
Reps. Jim Banks (R-IN) and Andy Kim (D-NJ) introduced a bill on April 14 that would establish a “STEM Corps” program within the Department of Defense covering two years of students’ tuition in exchange for four years of service in the department. The legislation follows from a recommendation in a report released in December by the Ronald Reagan Institute’s Task Force on 21st Century National Security Technology and Workforce, which included Banks and Kim as members. The report asserts the U.S. national security innovation base has struggled to maintain its talent pipeline and is overly reliant on students from countries such as China. In recommending a civilian STEM Corps, the report points as models to the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps and the National Guard, which offer special paths and incentives for individuals to enter military service.
Biden Considering Making OSTP a Cabinet-Level Office
Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said at a virtual fundraiser on April 16 that the Office of Science and Technology Policy director is among certain White House positions he may add to his Cabinet if he is elected. He said he is also considering conferring Cabinet rank to the heads of a global health security pandemic office and a prospective climate change organization. Biden’s suggestion highlights the degree to which science advice has become a significant political issue in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Former President Barack Obama also touched on this theme in his endorsement of Biden on April 14, saying the crisis has served as a reminder that “facts and science matter.”
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Events This Week Monday, April 20
Tuesday, April 21
Wednesday, April 22
Thursday, April 23
Friday, April 24
Saturday, April 25
Monday, April 27
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Opportunities Planetary Science Decadal Survey Accepting Nominations and White Papers
The National Academies is currently accepting nominations of researchers to serve on panels for the next planetary science decadal survey, which will establish U.S. researchers’ priorities for the field and inform the work of NASA’s Planetary Science Division. Self-nominations are accepted and all nominations are due May 1. The survey committee is also accepting white papers from the community across the various subfields of planetary science, which, for this survey will explicitly include astrobiology and planetary defense. Submissions should be no longer than seven pages and are due July 4.
APS Seeking Special Projects Organizer
The American Physical Society is accepting applications for a special projects organizer position based in Washington, D.C., that will support the recently launched Physicists Coalition for Nuclear Threat Reduction. The individual will be responsible for updating members on coalition activities and maintaining relationships with local and regional groups. The intended role of the term is two years, and applicants must have a bachelor’s degree and at least three years of relevant experience.
EPA Science Advisory Board Seeking Members
The Environmental Protection Agency is accepting nominations of members to serve on its Science Advisory Board, including the four standing committees on agricultural science, chemical assessment, drinking water, and radiation. Members are appointed by the EPA administrator and serve a three-year term. Nominations are due May 1.
Know of an upcoming science policy event either inside or outside the Beltway? Email us at fyi@aip.org.
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Around the Web
News and views currently in circulation. Links do not imply endorsement.
White House
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Science, Society, and the Economy
- Earth Day at 50 (Science, perspective by James Morton Turner and Andrew Isenberg)
- As the going gets tough, America returns to experts for help (AP)
- As politicians lean on disease modelers, some scientists fear a backlash (Wall Street Journal)
- Scientific integrity and public confidence in a time of crisis (JAMA, perspective by Jesse Goodman and Luciana Borio)
- We need to adjust our expectations of what scientists know — and even what they can know (Vox, perspective by Matt Yglesias)
- Bill Gates, at odds with Trump on virus, becomes a right-wing target (New York Times)
- There are so many coronavirus myths that even Snopes can’t keep up (Washington Post)
- How not to lose the COVID-19 communication war (Issues in Science and Technology, perspective by Dietram Scheufele, et al.)
- ‘Common sense’ is no substitute for science in a pandemic (Wired, perspective by Rhett Allain)
- Americans see spread of disease as top international threat, along with terrorism, nuclear weapons, cyberattacks (Pew Research Center)
Education and Workforce
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