What’s Ahead

This week, the Kyoto International Conference Center is hosting the annual Science and Technology in Society forum, which brings leading science officials from around the globe together in Japan. (Image credit – Wikimedia Commons)

Global Research Leaders Convene in Kyoto

With Congress on recess, it is expected to be a slower week for science policy in Washington, D.C. On the other side of the globe, though, leaders in research, government, and business have gathered in Japan this week for the annual Science and Technology in Society forum, currently taking place in Kyoto through Tuesday. The event aims to foster top-level conversations concerning a wide range of S&T-related issues bearing on the quality of life around the world. Among U.S. science agency officials in attendance are Department of Energy Under Secretary for Science Paul Dabbar and DOE Office of Science Director Chris Fall, who participated in Sunday sessions, and National Institute of Standards and Technology Director Walter Copan, who is leading a Monday panel discussion on cybersecurity. NASA Chief Scientist Jim Green is participating in another panel on Monday on science and technology diplomacy and international collaboration. Rush Holt, the former CEO of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, will chair a concluding plenary session on Tuesday on development and sustainability for the future of humankind. Summaries of previous forums are posted here.

Ohio and Indiana Universities Holding ‘National Lab Day’

Indiana University, Purdue University, and the University of Notre Dame are joining together to host the Indiana National Lab Day on Monday to highlight the state’s research capabilities and opportunities for federal research collaborations. Although the state does not host a national laboratory, ten labs run by the Department of Energy are participating in the event. Panel discussions will focus on four major national research priorities: quantum information science, artificial intelligence, hypersonics, and trusted microelectronics. White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Kelvin Droegemeier will speak at the end of the event in a session that is open to the public. Later in the week, the University of Toledo in Ohio is holding a similar event featuring the directors of ten DOE national labs and Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), who chairs the House appropriations subcommittee for the department. Like Indiana, Ohio also does not host any DOE labs, and Kaptur has previously expressed interest in the labs doing more to benefit states that lack them. (Note: This item has been updated to include reference to the Ohio event.)

Delayed Ionospheric Research Satellite Set for Launch

NASA’s Ionospheric Connection Explorer (ICON) satellite is scheduled for an airborne launch Wednesday off the coast of Florida. ICON was originally scheduled to launch in 2017 but has been repeatedly delayed due to problems with the Pegasus rocket that will transport it into orbit. The satellite has an anticipated lifecycle cost of about $250 million and will observe the Earth’s upper atmosphere to improve understanding of how solar activity affects conditions on Earth, including its potentially disruptive effects on electronics. NASA plans to hold a briefing on the mission on Tuesday that will be aired on NASA TV.

In Case You Missed It

Acting NOAA Administrator Neil Jacobs, left, briefs President Trump on Aug. 29 on the forecast for Hurricane Dorian. A marked-up version of the chart became the iconic center of “Sharpiegate,” a scientific integrity scandal that unfolded during early September and quickly ensnared Jacobs and National Weather Service forecasters. In an op-ed, the co-chairs of a new report from the Brennan Center for Justice call it an “absurd incident” that well illustrates shortcomings in the federal government’s current scientific integrity standards. (Image credit – Shealah Craighead / The White House)

Task Force Urges Lawmakers to Shore Up Scientific Integrity

The New York University-based Brennan Center for Justice released a report on Oct. 3 recommending Congress codify a host of new requirements for how federal agencies handle research and data, how appointed officials interact with researchers, and what qualifications appointees to scientific positions must have. While noting previous presidential administrations have infringed on scientific integrity, the report asserts the matter has reached a “crisis point” within the Trump administration, “with almost weekly violations of previously respected safeguards.” Among the numerous examples it cites are last month’s scandal over Hurricane Dorian forecasts, the Environmental Protection Agency’s reconfiguration of its advisory boards’ membership, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s ongoing relocation of two scientific and economic analysis offices, which has already led many of their employees to resign. The report is the second volume to be released by the Brennan Center’s National Task Force on the Rule of Law and Democracy, an eight-person group chaired by former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara and Christine Todd Whitman, a former Republican governor of New Jersey and EPA administrator under President George W. Bush.

Democrats Introduce Bill to Shield Science Advisory Panels

Reps. Sean Casten (D-IL), Paul Tonko (D-NY), and Mike Quigley (D-IL) introduced a bill on Sept. 27 that would restrict the ability of the president or any federal government official to terminate federal advisory committees. Titled the Preserve Science in Policymaking Act, it responds to the executive order that President Trump signed in June requiring most federal agencies to disband one-third of their committees that were not established through statute or presidential directive. The deadline for implementing the order was Sept. 30, but it is unclear if any agencies have followed through. The new bill would require either statutory authorization or the unanimous consent of the relevant federal agency’s chief data officer, chief evaluation officer, and chief information officer to terminate an advisory committee. Even if enacted, though, the bill would not restore any committees that had already been terminated.

Science Committee Chair Presses FCC for 5G Interference Studies

With electromagnetic spectrum regulators from around the world meeting at the end of the month to hash out rules for 5G telecommunications technologies, House Science Committee Chair Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chair Ajit Pai on Sept. 30 arguing it is “imperative” that U.S. agencies resolve disagreements over acceptable interference levels before then. NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have warned that FCC’s proposed emissions limits could lead to a severe degradation of weather forecasts as terrestrial 5G signals interfere with satellite measurements of water vapor. Johnson requests that FCC provide any internal or external analyses it used to conclude its proposed limit would have “no impact on weather data.” In conjunction with the letter, Johnson made public two technical studies produced by NASA and NOAA that dispute FCC’s proposed guidelines.

STEM Diversity Bills Reintroduced in Senate

Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI) reintroduced two bills last week that aim to boost the participation of underrepresented groups in STEM fields. One is a companion to the STEM Opportunities Act, which House Science Committee Chair Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) introduced in May and the House passed by voice vote last month. Though the House bill is cosponsored by Science Committee Ranking Member Frank Lucas (R-OK), the Senate version does not currently have a Republican cosponsor. Hirono’s second bill is the Women and Minorities in STEM Booster Act, which would direct the National Science Foundation to issue grants that support outreach and mentorship opportunities for students and the retention of faculty from underrepresented groups. The House version was reintroduced on the same day by Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY).

Keep STEM Talent Act Introduced in House

On Oct. 4, House Science Committee Chair Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) and Rep. Bill Foster (D-IL) introduced a companion bill to the Keep STEM Talent Act, which was introduced by five Democratic senators in June. The bill aims to make it easier for international students to remain in the U.S. after receiving advanced degrees in STEM fields by waiving green card caps in certain cases and by enabling new students to declare they intend to seek permanent residence in the U.S. upon graduation. Several scientific societies have endorsed the bill, including the American Physical Society and The Optical Society. (APS and OSA are AIP Member Societies).

NSF Issues First Grants From New Midscale Infrastructure Program

The National Science Foundation has announced the first ten grant awards from its new agency-wide midscale research infrastructure program, which funds projects costing between $6 million and $20 million as well as design studies for future projects. Three of the awards will support design studies for the Cosmic Microwave Background-S4 experiment, the Next Generation Event Horizon Telescope, and a room-sized Compact X-ray Free Electron Laser. The rest will support a variety of instrument acquisition and upgrade projects, such as the development of a 3 petawatt laser at the University of Michigan and a neutron spin echo spectrometer to be installed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The awards total $121 million, of which $90 million was from the midscale research infrastructure program. An NSF official told FYI the agency anticipates issuing awards through the program every other year and that it received $2.6 billion in project proposals through the first competition.

NSF Forms National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Lab

The National Science Foundation announced last week that it has consolidated the management of five ground-based telescope programs under a single organization called the National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory. The new organization will oversee the Gemini Observatory and the in-construction Large Synoptic Survey Telescope and will subsume the National Optical Astronomy Observatory, which operates the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, Kitt Peak National Observatory, and the Community Science and Data Center. The move was motivated by a desire to increase synergies among the facilities, with the new organizational structure resembling that of the European Southern Observatory, which manages a set of optical and infrared telescopes in Chile. The organization will be directed by astronomer Pat McCarthy, who was most recently vice president of the Giant Magellan Telescope project.

Ocean-Monitoring Satellite Concludes Mission

NASA announced on Oct. 4 that it has ended the Jason-2 Ocean Surface Topography Mission after 11 years in orbit. The satellite, which monitored global sea levels, had an original design life of three years and the decision to finally retire it stemmed from deterioration of the spacecraft’s power system, necessitating its transfer to a safe long-term orbit. Its measurements will be continued by a successor satellite, Jason-3, which launched in 2016. The Jason satellite series is a joint project of NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the French national space agency, and the European Organization for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites.

Events This Week

All times are Eastern Daylight Time and all congressional hearings are webcast, unless otherwise noted. Listings do not imply endorsement.

Monday, October 7

STS Forum: Science and Technology in Society Forum (continues Tuesday) Kyoto, Japan Indiana University: Indiana National Lab Day 8:00 am - 5:00 pm, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (Indianapolis, IN) CSIS: “A Vision for the Future of Missile Defense” 9:30 - 12:00 am, CSIS headquarters (1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW, DC) Webcast available New America: “Community Colleges as Engines of Opportunity” 1:00 - 3:30 pm, New America headquarters (740 15th St. NW, DC) Webcast available

Tuesday, October 8

CSIS: “How Climate Change is Upending our View of Maritime Sustainability, Sovereignty, and Security” 8:45 am - 12:00 pm, CSIS headquarters (1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW, DC) Webcast available House: “Silicon Prairie: Tech, Innovation, and a High-Skilled Workforce in the Heartland,” field hearing 10:00 am, Small Business Committee Kansas City Community College (Kansas City, KS) CSIS: “Oil and Gas Industry Engagement on Climate Change” 1:00 - 2:30 pm, CSIS headquarters (1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW, DC) Webcast available AAAS: “Live Chat: Ask a Fellow Anything” 2:00 - 3:00 pm, Webinar

Wednesday, October 9

NNI: National Nanotechnology Day

Thursday, October 10

University of Toledo: National Lab Day (continues Friday) Toledo, OH

Friday, October 11

No events start today

Monday, October 14

Georgia Tech: Atlanta Conference on Science and Innovation Policy (continues through Wednesday) Atlanta, GA

Opportunities

Scientific Societies Sponsoring Congressional Science Fellows

Several scientific societies are now accepting applications for their 2020-2021 Congressional Science Fellowships programs, including the American Institute of Physics, American Meteorological Society, American Physical Society, The Optical Society, American Geophysical Union, and American Geosciences Institute, among others. Fellows will spend a year working in a congressional office in Washington, D.C., gaining experience in the policymaking process. Application deadlines vary by society.

STPI Hiring S&T Policy Fellows

The Science and Technology Policy Institute is seeking candidates for its two-year fellowship program. Fellows will gain experience in policy research and writing for the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and other federal science agencies. Individuals who have received a bachelor’s degree in a STEM field between May 2018 and July 2020 are eligible to apply. Applications are due Jan. 11, 2020.

Science Coalition Holding Student Video Challenge

The Science Coalition, a nonprofit advocacy group sponsored by U.S. research universities, is holding a “Fund it Forward” video challenge for students to share 60-90 second stories about the importance of science. Applicants must be a currently enrolled undergraduate and graduate student at one of the coalition’s member institutions to participate. Submissions are due Oct. 21.

For additional opportunities, please visit www.aip.org/fyi/opportunities. Know of an opportunity for scientists to engage in science policy? Email us at fyi@aip.org.

Know of an upcoming science policy event either inside or outside the Beltway? Email us at fyi@aip.org.