What’s Ahead
NSF Expansion Proposals up for Debate in Congress
A series of hearings this week will offer key congressional committees their first opportunity to publicly weigh in on proposals to dramatically expand the National Science Foundation. NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan will testify before Senate and House appropriators on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively, to discuss President Biden’s request to increase NSF’s budget by 20% to just over $10 billion for the next fiscal year and create a directorate focused on translating research advances into new technologies. Biden has also proposed Congress provide the agency $50 billion over several years through infrastructure legislation, in large part to jumpstart the new directorate. Separately on Wednesday, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee is holding a hearing to review the Endless Frontier Act, which similarly envisions creating a massive technology-focused NSF directorate. Among the six witnesses is Kelvin Droegemeier, who led the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy during the Trump administration and briefly doubled as acting NSF director before Panchanathan’s confirmation.
The Endless Frontier Act is championed by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Sen. Todd Young (R-IN), who are expected to introduce an updated version imminently. A draft version in circulation proposes that Congress provide $100 billion over five years to NSF as a whole, rather than specifically to the new directorate as in the original bill, and also drops the idea of making the directorate head a Senate-confirmed position. The draft also adds provisions specific to the Commerce Department, proposing to greatly expand the Manufacturing USA institute network and create a new program focused on increasing the resiliency of supply chains for critical technologies. While Senate committee leaders have yet to comment on the Endless Frontier Act, the House Science Committee has advanced a competing bill that proposes creating a more modestly sized directorate that would address “societal challenges” rather than focus exclusively on technology.
House and Senate Panels Taking Broad Look at US Innovation
The House Science Committee is holding a hearing on Thursday titled, “Reimagining Our Innovation Future.” The witness panel includes former Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz, President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology Co-Chair Frances Arnold, Carnegie Mellon University President Farnam Jahanian, and former Lockheed Martin CEO Norm Augustine, who has long been an influential voice in science and technology policy. Simultaneously on Thursday, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee is holding a hearing on how the Department of Energy’s R&D programs support U.S. economic competitiveness. The witness panel includes Los Alamos National Lab Director Thom Mason and former DOE Under Secretary for Science Paul Dabbar, as well as representatives from RMI and Actuate, nonprofit organizations that aim to catalyze technology development. Actuate is led by former Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Director Arati Prabhakar.
House Appropriators Examining NOAA Climate Services
The House Appropriations Committee is holding a subcommittee hearing on Thursday to examine the role of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in providing “climate services,” such as data and forecast products that inform climate change adaptation planning. The witnesses are Stephen Volz, head of NOAA’s National Environmental Satellite Data and Information Service, and Nicole LeBoeuf, the acting head of NOAA’s National Ocean Service. Early in the Obama administration, NOAA proposed to establish a dedicated National Climate Service analogous to the National Weather Service. Congress rejected the proposal, which was advocated by then-NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenco, who is now deputy director for climate and environment in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. The Biden administration has not indicated if it will revisit the idea, but it has proposed expanding funding for climate research and resilience activities at NOAA by $800 million for fiscal year 2022, in part to “support regional and local decision-making with climate data and tools.”
New Defense R&D Officials Testifying Before Appropriators
On Tuesday, the Senate Appropriations Committee is holding a subcommittee hearing on defense innovation and research, with two recent hires to the Department of Defense scheduled to testify. Barbara McQuiston, who joined DOD late last month, is temporarily performing the duties of under secretary of defense for research and engineering and will offer the Biden administration’s first public remarks to Congress on its policy for defense science and technology. The new administration is expected to maintain the focus the previous two placed on hastening the development of cutting-edge capabilities, though it could make changes on matters such as technology priorities or how it handles research security. Also appearing is Stefanie Tompkins, who was named director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency last month. Tompkins previously served in a series of positions at DARPA from 2007 to 2018, including as its acting deputy director and director of its Defense Sciences Office.
Intelligence Community Updating Congress on Technology Threats
The Senate and House Intelligence Committees are holding hearings with top intelligence agency officials on Wednesday and Thursday , respectively, to review threats facing the U.S. from around the world. Although these hearings are typically held annually, with a session open to the public and a classified closed session, last year the Trump administration refused to allow open sessions. Technology is likely to be among the subjects explored this year. At the last open hearing, in January 2019, intelligence officials spotlighted stiffening international competition in certain emerging technologies as a key issue. Last week, the National Intelligence Council released its quadrennial Global Trends report , which sets out scenarios for strategic situations the U.S. could face through the year 2040. In its opening sentences, the report underscores how the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the “fragility” of global interdependency, and argues that governance systems worldwide will become increasingly contested as they are subjected to “more intense and cascading global challenges ranging from disease to climate change to the disruptions from new technologies and financial crises.”
Physicists Gather Virtually for APS April Meeting
The American Physical Society is holding its annual April Meeting online starting Friday. The program includes a special session on the first results from Fermilab’s Muon g-2 Experiment as well as plenary sessions titled, “Advancing an Inclusive Community in Science” and “Science on a Global Scale.” A Friday workshop will highlight strategies for managing threats faced by physics departments identified by APS’ Effective Practices for Physics Programs project. Other policy-focused events include sessions on nuclear security , the intersection of race and nuclear testing , ethics in science , and a panel discussion on “deconstructing racism” in physics. FYI’s Will Thomas is speaking at a session on Saturday about the connections between science policy and the history of science.
NASA Discussing Climate and Agency Workforce With Science Panel
The Science Committee of NASA’s Advisory Council is holding a two-day meeting this week. On Wednesday, NASA Earth Science Division Director Karen St. Germain will speak for an hour on President Biden’s climate agenda. Details of the Biden administration’s plans for climate science remain sparse, but its initial budget request proposes adding $250 million to the division’s budget to “initiate the next generation of Earth-observing satellites.” On Thursday, the committee will hear presentations on an internal study of NASA’s scientific workforce that was completed in February and on the agency’s Internal Scientist Funding Model , which guides how budget is allocated for research conducted by scientists employed at NASA centers.
Mars Helicopter Aims to Conduct First Extraterrestrial Flight
The Ingenuity helicopter that accompanied NASA’s Perseverance rover to Mars could take flight as early as Wednesday, marking the first-ever aeronautical venture on another planetary body. The flight had been scheduled for April 11, but was delayed after the helicopter’s safety system tripped during a rotor test late last week. When it does take off, Ingenuity will aim to remain aloft for about 30 seconds and reach a height of three meters. It carries no science instruments and, as a technology demonstration, has the sole goal of performing challenging autonomous flights in an atmosphere only 1% as thick as that of Earth at sea level. NASA will attempt to capture imagery of Ingenuity in flight using cameras on Perseverance, and, if it lands safely, the helicopter will make up to four subsequent flights of increasing ambition in the next few weeks. (Update: The Ingenuity team has identified the cause of safety system trip and is implementing a software fix. It anticipates setting a new date for the helicopter’s first flight next week.)
In Case You Missed It
Biden Seeks R&D Spending Surge Across Civilian Agencies
In a summary released last week of his first budget request to Congress, President Biden proposes significantly increasing funding for non-defense science agencies in fiscal year 2022:
- Within the Department of Energy, the request states it “invests more than $8 billion, an increase of at least 27% over 2021 funding, in technology such as advanced nuclear energy technologies, electric vehicles, green hydrogen, and even innovative approaches to air conditioning and refrigeration.” It does not identify how the increase would be distributed across DOE’s applied energy offices, but it states the Office of Science budget would increase 5% to $7.4 billion.
- The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration budget would increase around 25% to $6.9 billion, largely in support of expanding climate research and Earth observations.
- The National Science Foundation budget would increase 20% to $10.2 billion, with $500 million directed to climate and clean energy research and an unspecified amount to a new “directorate for technology, innovation, and partnerships.”
- The National Institutes of Health budget would increase about 20% to $51 billion, with $6.5 billion toward launching an Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) that would have an initial focus on cancer, among other diseases.
- The National Institute of Standards and Technology’s research budget would increase 16% to $916 million and the agency’s contribution to the Manufacturing USA institute network would increase from $17 million to $167 million to create two new institutes, with one focused on semiconductors.
- NASA’s budget would increase 6% to $24.7 billion, with much of the increase spread across the Artemis lunar exploration program, the Space Technology Mission Directorate, and the Earth Science Division.
The request kicks off the annual appropriations cycle and is separate from the more than $200 billion in R&D spending that Biden recently proposed as part of a special, eight-year infrastructure initiative. The request justifies the increases as necessary to revitalize agencies following a decade of budgets constrained by statutory spending caps. However, with the filibuster still in place in the Senate, annual appropriations will require the support of Republicans, who have already criticized Biden’s request for prioritizing civilian programs over military spending.
Senators Seek to Extend Foreign Investment Reviews to Universities
Leaders of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee introduced bipartisan legislation last week aimed at better positioning the U.S. to compete with China. Among other major provisions, the bill would enable the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to review and potentially block any gift or contract that transfers at least $1 million from a foreign institution to a U.S. university for work that “relates to research, development, or production of critical technologies and provides the foreign person potential access to any material nonpublic technical information.” The authority would also apply to any “restricted or conditional” foreign gift or contract valued above $1 million. CFIUS currently has the power to block or unwind foreign investments in certain types of U.S. companies and real estate if the transactions are deemed detrimental to national security. The bill also incorporates elements of the Democracy Technology Partnership Act , proposing to establish a State Department office that would coordinate research and technology governance initiatives with countries that are committed to certain democratic norms and to the “responsible development and use of new and emerging technologies.” The office would also coordinate joint projects in selected areas, including artificial intelligence, 5G telecommunications, semiconductor chip manufacturing, biotechnology, quantum computing, surveillance equipment, and fiber optic cables. The committee plans to advance the bill on April 21, and it is a candidate for inclusion in a broader legislative package focused on China.
Victoria Coleman Takes Over as Air Force Chief Scientist
On April 6, computer scientist and technology executive Victoria Coleman was sworn in as the Department of the Air Force’s new chief scientist, succeeding physicist and defense consultant Richard Joseph. The chief scientist is responsible for advising the department’s civilian and military leadership on all matters of science and technology. Coleman was most recently director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency for the final four months of the Trump administration, and before that was CEO at data-analytics startup Atlas AI. Previously, she held senior executive roles at a number of technology companies, including SRI International, Intel, Samsung Electronics, Nokia, and the Wikimedia Foundation. She was also a member of the Defense Science Board from 2015 to 2020 and the founding chair of DARPA’s Microsystems Exploratory Council.
NSF Outlines Efforts to Blunt Workforce Impacts of Pandemic
Last week, the Mathematical and Physical Sciences Directorate of the National Science Foundation spotlighted new funding opportunities that aim to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on students and researchers. Among them is a new postdoctoral fellowship program that is designed to increase the participation of groups that are historically underrepresented in fields the directorate funds. The directorate also highlighted a new call for proposals through a program that will provide grants to pre-tenure faculty at minority-serving institutions, predominantly undergraduate institutions, and universities in the Carnegie Research 2 category. Commenting on the new funding opportunities, MPS Directorate head Sean Jones wrote, “As the pandemic has persisted and has particularly affected early career researchers and those at historically underserved institutions, we must find additional innovative ways to maintain the strength of the scientific enterprise.”
NASA Advances Studies for Future Science Projects
NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate announced last week that it is providing $2 million for the third phase of a study on a potential space-based neutrino detector led by Wichita State University, which will now aim to develop a prototype detector for studying solar neutrinos that could be tested using a CubeSat. The directorate also announced it is providing $500,000 awards for the second phase of six other technology concept studies, including for a radiotelescope to be built in a lunar crater , a small-spacecraft “swarm” approach to studying Venus’ atmosphere, and a space-based telescope constellation designed to more quickly detect small asteroids than current methods.
Fermilab Reports Data Testing Limits of Known Physics
Fermilab’s Muon g-2 Experiment announced its first results last week, unveiling a newly precise measurement that corroborates a deviation between predicted and experimental values for the magnetic moment of the muon, a subatomic particle related to the electron. The predicted values are based on the Standard Model, which summarizes physicists’ current understanding of fundamental particle interactions, and the anomalous measurement, though minute, could prove to be a window into physics beyond its reach. Hints of the discrepancy were first observed in an experiment performed two decades ago at Brookhaven National Lab. Muon g-2 reuses the main component from the Brookhaven experiment, a 50-foot superconducting magnetic storage ring that was transported by land and sea from New York to Illinois in 2013. Construction was completed in 2018 with a total project cost of $46 million, and the new measurement is based on data collected during the experiment’s first run, which was completed later that year. The experiment is currently in its fourth round of data collection and at least one more run is anticipated.
Events This Week
Monday, April 12
Northwell Health: “Driving Responsible Conduct of Research During a Pandemic”
(continues through Friday)
NEHRP: Earthquake Hazards Reduction Advisory Committee meeting
(continues Tuesday)
Brookings: “Do US-China Educational Exchanges Serve American Interests?”
9:00 - 10:30 am
Wilson Center: “Beyond Exigency: Insights on Supply Chain Vulnerabilities and Building Global Resilience”
1:00 - 2:00 pm
Atlantic Council: “The Future of U.S. Security in Space: A Thirty-Year U.S. Strategy”
1:30 - 3:30 pm
Texas A&M University: “Science and Technology in the Biden Administration”
3:00 - 4:30 pm, CDT
Atlantic Council: “Reimagining Appalachia: The Role of Climate Infrastructure in Modernizing a Regional Economy”
4:00 pm
Duke University: “What China’s S&T Modernization Means for the U.S.: A Strategic Perspective”
7:00 - 8:00 pm
Harvard Law School: “Racial Profiling Against Chinese-American Scientists”
8:00 pm
Tuesday, April 13
Bloomberg: New Energy Finance Summit (continues Wednesday)
Cornell/University of Minnesota: “Workshop on Quantum Engineering Infrastructure”
(
continues through Thursday)
National Academies: “Assessment of Partnership Options for a Small Satellite System for Collecting Scientific Quality Oceanic and Coastal Data”
(continues Wednesday)
National Academies: “DOD Engagement with Its Manufacturing USA Institutes Phase 2 Study,” meeting 23
9:00 - 10:00 am
House: “DOD Innovation and Research”
10:00 am, Appropriations Committee (192 Dirksen Office Building)
Wilson Center: “The Nexus of Climate Change, Fragility, and Peacebuilding”
10:00 - 11:30 am
Senate: Hearing on NSF’s budget request for fiscal year 2022 2:00 pm, Appropriations Committee (106 Dirksen Office Building)
ASU: “Do Inventors Bear Responsibility for the Effects of Their Inventions”
4:00 pm
Wednesday, April 14
NSF: Geosciences Advisory Committee meeting
(continues Thursday)
NASA: Science Advisory Committee meeting
(continues Thursday)
Argonne National Lab: “America Resilient: Projecting and Preparing for the Effects of Climate Change”
8:00 am - 2:00 pm Senate: “Legislative Hearing on the Endless Frontier Act”
10:00 am, Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee (253 Russell Office Building)
Senate: “Preparedness for COVID-19: The Initial Pandemic Response and Lessons Learned”
10:00 am, Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee
Senate: “Worldwide Threats”
10:00 am, Intelligence Committee (216 Hart Office Building)
House: Hearing on NSF’s budget request for fiscal year 2022
10:00 am, Appropriations Committee
SIA: “Decadal Plan for Semiconductors: New Compute Trajectories for Energy Efficiency”
11:00 am - 12:30 pm
National Academies: “Workshop on Sources of Indoor Fine Particulate Matter”
11:00 am - 3:00 pm
National Academies: “Planetary Science Decadal Survey Steering Group,” meeting 12
11:00 am - 5:50 pm
National Academies: “Assessment of Strategies for Managing Cancer Risks Associated with Radiation Exposure During Crewed Space Missions Public Webinar”
1:00 - 2:30 pm
House/Senate: “Vaccinations and the Economic Recovery”
2:30 pm, Joint Economic Committee
CSET: “Blueprints for Action on AI: The NSCAI’s Final Recommendations”
4:00 pm
Thursday, April 15
NSF: Biological Sciences Advisory Committee meeting
(continues Friday)
House: “Worldwide Threats”
9:00 am - 12:00 pm, Intelligence Committee (1324 Longworth Office Building)
US-China Commission: “An Assessment of the CCP’s Economic Ambitions, Plans, and Metrics of Success”
9:30 am - 4:30 pm
National Academies: “Defense Research at Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Other Minority Institutions,” meeting four
10:00 am - 5:00 pm
Senate: “Hearing to Examine the Role of the DOE and Energy Innovation in American Economic Competitiveness”
10:00 am, Energy and Natural Resources Committee (366 Dirksen Office Building)
House: “Reimagining our Innovation Future”
10:00 am, Science Committee
House: “Increasing Risks of Climate Change and NOAA’s Role in Providing Climate Services”
10:00 am, Appropriations Committee
Senate: “Shot of Truth: Communicating Trusted Vaccine Information”
10:00 am, Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee (253 Russell Office Building)
House: “Reaching the Light at the End of the Tunnel: A Science-Driven Approach to Swiftly and Safely Ending the Pandemic”
10:30 am, Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus (2154 Rayburn Office Building)
House: “The CLEAN Future Act and Environmental Justice: Protecting Frontline Communities”
10:30 am, Energy and Commerce Committee
Senate: “The Cost of Inaction on Climate Change”
11:00 am, Budget Committee (216 Hart Office Building)
House: “Practical Steps Toward a Carbon-Free Maritime Industry: Updates on Fuels, Ports, and Technology”
11:00 am, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee (2167 Rayburn Office Building)
House: “Making the Case for Climate Action: The Growing Risks and Costs of Inaction”
12:00 pm, Climate Crisis Committee
Resources for the Future: “U.S. Climate Ambition in 2030: Insights from Recent Modeling”
12:00 - 1:30 pm
CSIS: “Defense Against the Dark Arts in Space”
1:00 - 2:00 pm
National Academies: “DOD Engagement with Its Manufacturing USA Institutes Phase 2 Study,” meeting 19
1:00 - 2:00 pm
National Academies: “Climate Conversations: The Cost of Carbon”
3:00 - 4:00 pm
uOttawa / GWU: “Building an Inclusive Science and Engineering Community,” speech by NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan
4:30 - 6:00 pm
Friday, April 16
APS: April meeting
(continues through Tuesday)
National Academies: “Planetary Science Decadal Survey: Panel on Giant Planet Systems,” meeting eight
9:00 am - 12:00 pm
National Academies: “Education and Workforce for Earth Systems Science Workshop, Part 2”
11:00 am - 2:00 pm
Pew: “Science Matters: A Virtual Event With Top Health, Science, and Policy Experts”
12:00 - 1:00 pm
RAND: “COVID-19 Vaccine Liability and Compensation in the U.S.”
1:00 - 2:30 pm
AAAS: “Communicating Science and Public Engagement Fundamentals Workshop”
1:00 - 4:00 pm
Sunday, April 18
NIST: “Securing the 5G Supply Chain Workshop”
(continues Monday)
Monday, April 19
NSF: Cyberinfrastructure Advisory Committee meeting
(continues Tuesday)
ITIF: “Does the U.S. Need China to Fight Climate Change?”
10:00 - 11:00 am
Wilson Center: “The Ocean: Turning a Climate Change Problem Into a Solution”
10:00 - 11:00 am
National Academies: “Leveraging the Future R&D Landscape for the Intelligence Community,” workshop one
12:30 - 5:00 pm
National Academies: “Nuclear Proliferation and Arms Control Monitoring, Detection, and Verification: A National Security Priority,” interim report release webinar
1:00 - 3:00 pm
National Academies: “Revisiting Immigration in the U.S.”
2:00 - 3:00 pm
AFL-CIO: “Accelerating the Energy Transition: Infrastructure, Jobs and Equity”
2:00 - 4:00 pm
National Academies: “Planetary Protection Committee: Mars Mission Bioburden Requirements,” meeting three
2:00 - 6:00 pm
Opportunities
NASA Planetary Science Advisory Panel Seeking Members
NASA is accepting nominations and self-nominations for members to join the advisory committee for its Planetary Science Division. Nominees should have at least five years of postgraduate research experience. Submissions are due April 30.
USDA Seeking Input on Climate Mitigation Strategies
The Department of Agriculture is accepting public comment on ways to augment its programs to support President Biden’s January executive order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad . Particular areas of interest include data and tools for climate-smart agriculture and forestry, approaches to encouraging voluntary adoption of agricultural practices that sequester carbon and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, ways to promote biofuel production, reduce wildfire risks, and increase attention to environmental justice. Comments are due April 29.
National Academies Hiring Director for Workforce Studies Unit
The National Academies is seeking a director to manage its portfolio of studies on workforce and training in the sciences, engineering, and medicine (SEM). Recent focus areas have included “mentoring, sexual harassment, graduate STEM education, the biomedical workforce, minority serving institutions, increasing participation of women and people of color in SEM, and the skilled technical workforce.” Individuals with a doctorate in a related field and at least 12 years of relevant experience are encouraged to apply.
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 .
Around the Web
News and views currently in circulation. Links do not imply endorsement.
White House
- White House considering nearly doubling Obama’s climate vow (Bloomberg)
- White House claims climate credibility before summit (Axios)
- White House to hold another semiconductor summit with industry leaders as chip shortage worsens (Washington Post)
Congress
- Second filibuster-proof maneuver OK’d by Senate parliamentarian (Roll Call)
- I will not vote to weaken or eliminate the filibuster (Washington Post, perspective by Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV))
- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) backs two-bill infrastructure strategy amid progressives’ push for one (Roll Call)
- The National Science Foundation: An overview (CRS, report)
Science, Society, and the Economy
- Everything you need to know about the great semiconductor shortage (Vice)
- US faces uphill climb to rival China’s rare-earth magnet industry (Wall Street Journal)
- Decline in trust in the CDC during the COVID-19 pandemic (RAND, report)
- Scientists need to get better at talking to the public. Why doesn’t training seem to help? (Nieman Lab)
- A new guide to the first amendment for scientists (Climate Science Legal Defense Fund)
- The Science Coalition releases report detailing economic impact of federal investment in fundamental research (The Science Coalition)
- Research funding led to COVID breakthroughs — we need more to prevent the next pandemic (The Hill, perspective by Peter Schiffer and Jay Walsh)
- Engineering Research Visioning Alliance to help the engineering community to identify research challenges that address societal needs (NSF)
Education and Workforce
- Nature Physics: Selective prosecution of scientists must stop (editorial)
- Lieber prepares for impending trial on federal charges as he battles incurable cancer (Harvard Crimson)
- Chinese scientists caught in a cycle of mistrust with the world (Science|Business)
- The impact on US men and women in STEM fields of increases in international students (National Foundation for American Policy, report)
- Physics Division supplements: Growing a strong, diverse workforce (NSF)
- Concrete steps to diversify the scientific workforce (Science, perspective by Shirley Tilghman, et al)
- Requiring (or urging) COVID-19 vaccinations at colleges and universities for fall 2021 (American Council on Education)
Research Management
- A guide to Plan S, the open-access initiative shaking up science publishing (Nature)
- UC signs transformative open-access agreement with Elsevier (University of California)
- Civil engineering journal incentivizes authors to provide reproducible results (SPARC)
- Open hardware: An opportunity to build better science (Wilson Center, report)
- Publishers care about the version of record, do researchers? (Scholarly Kitchen, perspective by Lisa Janicke Hinchliffe)
- The replication crisis devastated psychology. This group is looking to rebuild it (Vox)
- The science detective on a mission to stamp out shoddy research (Times Higher Education)
- WTF happened to John Ioannidis? (Respectful Insolence)
- Quantum computing’s reproducibility crisis: Majorana fermions (Nature, perspective by Sergey Frolov)
- Are you confused by scientific jargon? So are scientists (New York Times)
- Physicists gathered virtually for APS March Meeting (Physics Today)
- Higher ed groups comment on proposed regulation for university patents (AAMC)
- China on a mission to turn ‘junk’ patents into treasure (South China Morning Post)
Labs and Facilities
- Glenn Decker brings a historical perspective to the Advanced Photon Source upgrade (Argonne National Lab)
- What does it take to envision and build a seemingly impossible particle accelerator? (Symmetry)
- New entrepreneurship program provides financial support and access to LANL’s resources and expertise (Los Alamos National Lab)
- A vital resource supporting Antarctic research (Eos, perspective by Suzanne Carbotte, et al.)
Emerging Technologies
- Quantum technology emerges from the lab to spark a mini start-up boom (Washington Post)
- University of Chicago launches nation’s first quantum startup accelerator (Chicago Quantum Exchange)
- Highlighting the NSF Center for Quantum Networks (Quantum.gov)
- DARPA to develop ‘yardsticks’ for measuring value of future quantum information systems (DARPA)
- US AI workforce: Labor market dynamics (CSET, report)
- AI hubs in Europe and the CANZUK countries (CSET, report)
- The perils of overhyping AI (Foreign Affairs, perspective by Julia Ciocca, et al.)
- Bipartisan senators urge funding for secure 5G networks (Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA))
Space
- Democrats and Republicans find common ground — on Mars (Politico)
- How much did it cost to create the space shuttle? (Planetary Society)
- OSIRIS-REx completes final tour of asteroid Bennu (NASA)
- Webb Telescope packs its sunshield for a million mile trip (NASA)
- Odyssey orbiter marks 20 historic years of mapping Mars (NASA)
- NASA revises its low Earth orbit commercialization plans (Space Review)
- Former NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine advising acquisition-hungry Voyager Space Holdings (SpaceNews)
- Bill Nelson isn’t the best choice for NASA administrator (Scientific American, perspective by Lori Garver)
Weather, Climate, and Environment
- Biden weaves climate crisis throughout his budget outline (Roll Call)
- Biden administration proposes record $6.9 billion budget for NOAA (Washington Post)
- EU climate action and implications for the US (CRS)
- Natasha Gardiner on science for policy in Antarctica (Science for Policy Podcast, audio)
- Commercial space vehicle emissions modeling (National Academies, report)
- The chip industry has a problem with its giant carbon footprint (Bloomberg)
Energy
- ESC requests at least $7.7 billion for DOE Office of Science in FY22 (Energy Sciences Coalition)
- Biden announces intent to nominate Ali Nouri to be assistant secretary for congressional and intergovernmental affairs at DOE (White House)
- General Atomics wins DARPA contract to develop nuclear reactor to power missions to the moon (SpaceNews)
- Retaining knowledge of nuclear waste management (Sandia National Labs)
- With ‘smoke ring’ technology, fusion startup TAE makes steady progress (ScienceInsider)
- Navy labs to reopen the once taboo case on nuclear cold fusion (The Drive)
- A carbon-sucking startup has been paralyzed by its CEO (Bloomberg)
- New concepts for hydrogen fueling stations take form (Physics Today)
- National Energy Technology Lab and USGS sign agreement to bolster rare earth element research (NETL)
Defense
- Technology race against China a key concern for Pentagon acquisition nominee (SpaceNews)
- Linking national security and innovation: Part one (CSIS, report)
- Space Force to establish a new command to oversee technology development and acquisition (SpaceNews)
- Apes on a treadmill in space (Arms Control Association, perspective by David Koplow)
- China builds advanced weapons systems using American chip technology (Washington Post)
- Microchip security continues to confound Pentagon (Roll Call)
- Studies shed light on Chinese directed energy efforts (National Defense)
- After COVID, are billions in biodefense funds needed to deter US adversaries? (Defense News)
- A next-gen Army COVID vaccine you’ve never heard of has just begun human trials (ABC News)
Biomedical
- The story behind COVID-19 vaccines (Science, perspective by Anthony Fauci)
- Collaborating with devoted colleagues, Kati Kariko laid the groundwork for mRNA vaccines (New York Times)
- Thank private risk-taking, not public funding, for COVID-19 vaccines, therapies (STAT, perspective by John Stanford)
- Fellow Democrats pressure Biden to weaken vaccine patents (Roll Call)
- Why US coronavirus tracking can’t keep up with concerning variants (Nature)
- The CDC’s $1.75 billion sequencing boom may be throwing money at the wrong problem (MIT Technology Review)
- Trump officials celebrated efforts to change CDC reports on coronavirus, emails show (Washington Post)
- R&D in the pharmaceutical industry (CBO, report)
- ‘As good a model as I’ve seen’: MIT biologist on new initiative to address gender inequities in biotech (STAT, interview with Nancy Hopkins)
International Affairs
- State Department reviews plans for new tech bureau (Arms Control Association)
- The world must learn from COVID before diving into a pandemic treaty (Nature)
- With virus origins still obscure, WHO and critics look to next step (New York Times)
- Blackout hits Iran nuclear site in what appears to be Israeli sabotage (New York Times)
- Biden administration slaps export controls on Chinese firms for aiding PLA weapons development (Washington Post)
- The US places seven additional Chinese supercomputing entities on blacklist (HPCwire)
- ‘A hostile environment.’ Brazilian scientists face rising attacks from Bolsonaro’s regime (ScienceInsider)
- European Innovation Council opens €1B funding round for start-ups (Science|Business)
- Research commissioner backs rural innovation manifesto (Science|Business)
- Top Polish academic sees threat in plan for new state body (AP)
- Why are there still so few Black scientists in the UK? (The Guardian)
- UAE looks to increase demand for science among industry (Times Higher Education)