Harnessing the Power of Big Data in Biological Research
From the dawn of civilization to 2003, humankind generated five exabytes [5 billion gigabytes] of data. Now we produce five exabytes every two days ... and the pace is accelerating.
—Eric Schmidt, executive chairman at Google, quoted in R. Smolan and J. Erwitt, eds. 2012. The Human Face of Big Data. Against All Odds Productions.
A data revolution is changing the face of science. Scientists are confronting research challenges that require the analysis of large amounts of information on topics ranging from global climate patterns to genetic blueprints. These big data challenges are often summarized in four words: ...
Source: Washington Watch - January 23, 2019 Category: Biology Authors: Eve S. McCulloch Source Type: news
Life Science Graduates Face Daunting Labor Market
In my position as CEO of a firm employing over 80,000 engineers, I can testify that most were excellent engineers. But the factor that most distinguished those who advanced in the organization was the ability to think broadly and read and write clearly.(Norman Augustine, former chairman and CEO of Lockheed Martin)
Biology graduate students have a dizzying array of options after completing their degree, including settling on an initial career path. Although many young biologists hope to make these decisions on the basis of personal preference, changing labor market conditions are likely to influence the decision.
The empl...
Source: Washington Watch - January 23, 2019 Category: Biology Authors: Julie Palakovich Carr Source Type: news
It's That Time Again: Congress Considers NSF Legislation
Beyond making appropriations to fund federal research programs, Congress is responsible for authorizing the activities and funding levels for federal agencies such as the National Science Foundation (NSF). Last renewed by the America COMPETES Act reauthorization of 2010, the agency's authorization is set to expire in 2015. In anticipation, Congress has started work on NSF reauthorization legislation.
Amid a sluggish national economy and concomitant contentious political debate about federal budget priorities, some in Congress have questioned in recent years what types of research the government should fund and, periodical...
Source: Washington Watch - January 23, 2019 Category: Biology Authors: Robert E. Gropp Source Type: news
White House Takes Steps on Climate Adaptation, but Path Forward is Unclear
At the start of the Obama presidency, many climate change advocates felt that they had an opportunity to achieve meaningful government action on global warming. Although the House of Representatives passed a cap-and-trade bill in 2009, there was little White House action on this issue during President Obama's first term. Instead, mitigation of and adaptation to climate change largely took a back seat as the president pursued health-care reform. In his second inaugural address, Obama signaled a shift in focus, stating, "We will respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that failure to do so would betray our children ...
Source: Washington Watch - January 23, 2019 Category: Biology Authors: Kevin Todd Source Type: news
Lawmakers, Scientists Divided on COMPETES
Legislation that would create a 2-year roadmap for basic research and science education is progressing through Congress, to the dismay of most of the research community. Hailed by supporters as a plan to advance innovation while cutting wasteful spending and denounced by opponents as political meddling in research, HR 1806, the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2015, has embedded science in populist politics.
"Legislation that is supposed to maintain the nation's leadership on science and energy research is now being reauthorized in a manner that actively undermines our ability to do just that," wrote Andrew A. Rose...
Source: Washington Watch - January 23, 2019 Category: Biology Authors: Julie Palakovich Carr Source Type: news
The Challenge of Making Data Publicly Accessible
The push for open science has been gathering momentum since a 2013 White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) memorandum directed agencies to make the results of federally funded research, including scientific data, publicly accessible. Federal agencies have since released individual plans to guide the process of making data available to the public.
Read the full article for free.
(Source: Washington Watch)
Source: Washington Watch - January 23, 2019 Category: Biology Authors: Jyotsna Pandey Source Type: news
NSF: Time for Big Ideas
It is common for a federal agency to periodically review its mission and put forth new "strategic roadmaps" to guide priorities and champion new initiatives. This often happens at the start of a new presidential administration, in response to a congressional directive, or on the heels of a catastrophic organizational failure. This year, however, the US National Science Foundation (NSF) has employed a somewhat less common tactic--preemptively identifying and publicly announcing the priorities it intends to use to engage the new administration and to build future organizational budgets. Earlier this year, the NSF released ...
Source: Washington Watch - January 23, 2019 Category: Biology Authors: Robert E. Gropp Source Type: news
President Obama's Scientific Legacy
Nearly 8 years ago, Barack Obama was sworn into office. During his inaugural address, he pledged to "restore science to its rightful place." As President Obama concludes his second term, it seems appropriate to consider whether his administration has met this ambitious--and ambiguous--goal.
"President Obama has put science in the center of decisionmaking with stellar appointments--for example John Holdren, Steven Chu, Ernest Moniz--and by ensuring that science is involved at the highest levels of decisionmaking," said Thomas Lovejoy, university professor of environmental science and policy at George Mason University. "Thi...
Source: Washington Watch - January 23, 2019 Category: Biology Authors: Julie Palakovich Carr Source Type: news
Evolution Education and State Politics
Julie Palakovich Carr
A new school year is starting, and if some state legislators have their way, evolution education will be marginalized in the curriculum. In spite of multiple court rulings prohibiting the teaching of creationism in public schools, some lawmakers continue to pursue legislative measures that would challenge the teaching of evolution and other "controversial" scientific subjects.
In statehouses around the country, the 2017 legislative session saw a flurry of attacks on science education. Eleven measures that would undermine evolution education were introduced in legislatures in eight states. This was "...
Source: Washington Watch - January 23, 2019 Category: Biology Authors: Julie Palakovich Carr Source Type: news
President Obama's Scientific Legacy
Nearly 8 years ago, Barack Obama was sworn into office. During his inaugural address, he pledged to "restore science to its rightful place." As President Obama concludes his second term, it seems appropriate to consider whether his administration has met this ambitious--and ambiguous--goal.
"President Obama has put science in the center of decisionmaking with stellar appointments--for example John Holdren, Steven Chu, Ernest Moniz--and by ensuring that science is involved at the highest levels of decisionmaking," said Thomas Lovejoy, university professor of environmental science and policy at George Mason University. "Thi...
Source: Washington Watch - December 21, 2016 Category: Biology Source Type: news
NSF: Time for Big Ideas
It is common for a federal agency to periodically review its mission and put forth new "strategic roadmaps" to guide priorities and champion new initiatives. This often happens at the start of a new presidential administration, in response to a congressional directive, or on the heels of a catastrophic organizational failure. This year, however, the US National Science Foundation (NSF) has employed a somewhat less common tactic--preemptively identifying and publicly announcing the priorities it intends to use to engage the new administration and to build future organizational budgets. Earlier this year, the NSF released ...
Source: Washington Watch - December 10, 2016 Category: Biology Source Type: news
It's That Time Again: Congress Considers NSF Legislation
Beyond making appropriations to fund federal research programs, Congress is responsible for authorizing the activities and funding levels for federal agencies such as the National Science Foundation (NSF). Last renewed by the America COMPETES Act reauthorization of 2010, the agency's authorization is set to expire in 2015. In anticipation, Congress has started work on NSF reauthorization legislation.
Amid a sluggish national economy and concomitant contentious political debate about federal budget priorities, some in Congress have questioned in recent years what types of research the government should fund and, periodical...
Source: Washington Watch - July 21, 2016 Category: Biology Authors: Robert E. Gropp Source Type: news
The Challenge of Making Data Publicly Accessible
The push for open science has been gathering momentum since a 2013 White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) memorandum directed agencies to make the results of federally funded research, including scientific data, publicly accessible. Federal agencies have since released individual plans to guide the process of making data available to the public.
Read the full article for free.
(Source: Washington Watch)
Source: Washington Watch - July 12, 2016 Category: Biology Source Type: news
Balancing Privacy and Progress: Biobanks and Genome Sequencing
Genome sequencing coupled with medical and personal data holds enormous promise for unraveling the mysteries of the human body and advancing disease treatment. Increasingly, research projects are collecting data on large numbers of people to determine links among diseases, lifestyle, environment, and genes. The biobanks being created with these data raise questions about protecting the privacy of individuals whose DNA and medical records fuel research.
Repositories of human genetic material emerged more than a decade ago in Iceland with the company deCODE genetics. The United Kingdom has created a biobank with 500,000 enr...
Source: Washington Watch - January 21, 2016 Category: Biology Authors: Eve S. McCulloch Source Type: news
