What’s Ahead
Science Committee to Examine DOE R&D Reorganization
The Department of Energy Under Secretary for Science Paul Dabbar and Under Secretary of Energy Mark Menezes will appear before the House Science Committee on Tuesday. The purpose of the hearing will be to examine DOE’s reorganization of their respective responsibilities and to gauge its potential impact on the department’s civilian research, development, demonstration, and commercial application programs. A previous reorganization in 2013 had placed a single under secretary in charge of both the DOE Office of Science and the department’s applied energy offices in order to facilitate coordination among DOE’s various R&D programs. The new reorganization splits those responsibilities between Dabbar and Menezes. The two under secretaries previously testified as part of a four-person panel at a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing on Jan. 9.
Senators to Give Major Research Law One Year Anniversary Checkup
On Tuesday, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee is holding a hearing on the American Innovation and Competitiveness Act (AICA). Enacted in the waning weeks of the Obama administration, AICA made a number of changes to policies pertaining to the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. NSF Director France Córdova and NIST Director Walter Copan will testify about their agencies’ progress in implementing the legislation. Among steps the agencies have taken to date, NSF has created a new chief facilities officer position , begun spinning up a Facilities Governance Board , solicited input for a strategy to meet mid-scale research infrastructure needs , and commissioned a National Academies study on research reproducibility and replicability across disciplines, while NIST has been developing a long-term strategic plan for laboratory programs .
Senate Committee to Review USGS Role in Natural Hazards Preparedness
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee is convening on Tuesday to review the U.S. Geological Survey and U.S. Forest Service’s roles in preparing for and responding to natural hazard events as well as “the current status of mapping and monitoring systems.” David Applegate, associate director for natural hazards at USGS, will be testifying alongside Colorado’s and Washington’s state geologists and Alaska’s state seismologist, among other witnesses. It is also anticipated that the committee will vote on whether to advance several Energy and Interior Department nominations to the full Senate. A number of natural hazards bills relevant to USGS are currently pending in Congress, including ones to establish a National Volcano Early Warning and Monitoring System, to establish a National Landslide Hazards Reduction Program, and to reauthorize the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program. For details, consult FYI’s Federal Science Bill Tracker .
EPA Administrator Pruitt Returns to the Hill
The Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works will convene to hear testimony from Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt on Tuesday. The hearing will likely cover the gamut of EPA activities, potentially including issues related to science policy such as Pruitt’s restriction of the agency’s current grantees from serving on its science advisory boards — an action now subject to two lawsuits . At Pruitt’s last appearance on Capitol Hill, before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Dec. 8, he criticized how EPA employed scientific assessments in developing its 2009 “endangerment finding,” which justified the agency’s decision to regulate greenhouse gases. It remains to be seen whether Pruitt will move against the endangerment finding as part of his effort to roll back and replace the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan.
ITER on Fusion Energy Advisory Committee Agenda
The Department of Energy’s Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee is meeting this Thursday and Friday. Among other presentations, the committee will hear from the co-chairs of the National Academies panel charged with informing the U.S.’s long term strategy for burning plasma research, including scenarios in which the U.S. remains in or withdraws from ITER, an international fusion project. The panel’s interim report, issued last December, warned that withdrawing could threaten U.S. progress in developing commercially viable fusion energy technology. That same day, panel members are visiting the ITER site in Caradarche, France.
A number of other advisory panels are also meeting this week, including NASA’s Applied Sciences Advisory Committee, DOE’s Defense Programs Advisory Committee, and NSF’s Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering. See the event calendar below for details.
US–EU Research Collaboration Workshop Convening
The Wilson Center is hosting a workshop on Wednesday focused on identifying topics and best practices for collaboration on future U.S.-European Union joint calls for research. Officials from several federal science agencies will be attending, along with representatives from each of the ten European Joint Programming Initiatives (JPIs), to participate on panels discussing emerging issues in health, water, oceans, agriculture, climate, and antimicrobial resistance. The event follows a meeting between the two parties in 2016 where they expressed interest in establishing joint initiatives to address global challenges.
In Case You Missed It
Shutdown Resolved, Next Funding Deadline Arrives Feb. 8
Following a three-day lapse in government spending that briefly shut down the federal science agencies, Congress reached a deal on Jan. 22 to end the impasse and keep the government open through Feb. 8. As a part of the agreement, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said he will bring immigration legislation to the Senate floor that would address the status of immigrants who had been protected by the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program before President Trump ended it last year. It is not clear that the necessary support exists in either the House or Senate to approve such immigration legislation. The stalemate on this issue remains a major roadblock to a deal to set the year’s discretionary spending levels and finalize fiscal year 2018 appropriations.
FY19 Budget, Workforce Reduction Plans Could Arrive Feb. 12
The White House Office of Management and Budget announced it will release the president’s fiscal year 2019 budget request, along with agency reform and workforce reduction plans, as soon as Feb. 12. Based on OMB guidance issued to agencies last summer, it is expected that the budget request will propose nondefense cuts comparable to those sought for fiscal year 2018. Scientific community leaders will be watching closely to see if the administration has changed its stance toward cutting research programs, and if the request includes proposed reductions to the federal scientific workforce.
Trump Picks James Reilly for USGS Director
On Jan. 26, President Trump announced his intention to nominate geologist and former astronaut James Reilly to be director of the U.S. Geological Survey. Reilly received a bachelor’s degree in geosciences from the University of Texas at Dallas in 1977, and then worked as an exploration geologist for mineral, oil, and gas companies, ultimately becoming chief geologist of the Offshore Region for Enserch Exploration, Inc. He received a doctorate in geosciences from the University of Texas at Dallas in 1995, and joined NASA’s astronaut program the same year. Between 1995 and his retirement from NASA in 2008, Reilly flew on three shuttle missions, logging over 853 hours in space and conducting five spacewalks. Since 2008, Reilly has worked principally in consulting, lecturing, and continuing education. From 2009 and 2014, he was dean of the School of Science and Technology for American Public University System, a private company that operates the online education providers American Military University and American Public University.
DOD R&D Head Nomination Proceeds to Floor
On Jan. 23, the Senate Armed Services Committee approved by voice vote former NASA Administrator Mike Griffin’s nomination to be under secretary of defense for research and engineering (USD(R&E)), sending it to the Senate floor. The committee’s approval followed five days after a confirmation hearing at which Griffin discussed at length the need to better integrate the Department of Defense’s technology development programs with its acquisition activities. DOD is due to implement the USD(R&E) position, a new addition to the department’s top-level organization, by Thursday. The committee also approved by voice vote DOD Strategic Capabilities Office Director Will Roper to be assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition.
DOE, FERC to Study Grid Resiliency, Consider Extreme Weather
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee convened on Jan. 23 to discuss electric grid performance in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions during recent extreme winter weather events. Top grid officials noted at the hearing that the system held up well during the recent bomb cyclone event, but said challenges remain for reliability and resilience as more coal and nuclear power plants retire and the share of renewables and natural gas on the grid continues to grow. Bruce Walker, assistant secretary for electricity delivery and energy reliability at the Department of Energy, stressed to committee members that building a single resiliency model “should be a top priority” for his office, and proposed a new “detailed analysis” on grid resilience at the local, state, and regional levels as part of efforts to build a “single North American energy infrastructure model.” This new study, he said, would incorporate information collected by Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on the resiliency of regional transmission grids, an effort launched earlier this month after the agency rejected Energy Secretary Rick Perry’s proposal to subsidize coal and nuclear power plants.
Events This Week
Monday, January 29 CSIS: “Russia’s Electronic Warfare Capabilities to 2025”
1:00 - 2:30 pm, CSIS headquarters (1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW, DC)
Webcast available
Tuesday, January 30 House: “Department of Energy: Management and Priorities”
10:00 am, Science Committee (2318 Rayburn Office Building)
Senate: Hearing to examine the role of the U.S. Geological Survey and Forest Service in preparing and responding to natural hazard events
10:00 am, Energy and Natural Resources (366 Dirksen Office Building)
Senate: Oversight hearing to receive testimony from EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt
10:00 am, Environment and Public Works Committee (406 Dirksen Office Building)
Senate: “Reauthorizing the Higher Education Act: Accountability and Risk to Taxpayers”
10:00 am, Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee (430 Dirksen Office Building)
Coalition for National Security Research: Science, Technology, & Information Exchange congressional briefing
11:30 am - 2:30 pm, Capitol Visitor Center (SVC 212-10)
Senate: “One Year Later: The American Innovation and Competitiveness Act”
2:30 pm, Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee (253 Russell Office Building)
National Academies: “Science Investigations and Engineering Design for Grades 6-12,” meeting four
(continues Wednesday)
Beckman Center (Irvine, CA)
Closed in its entirety
State of the Union Address
9:00 pm
Wednesday, January 31 National Academies: “A Celebration of the Explorer I Mission and the Discovery of Earth’s Radiation Belts”
12:30 - 5:30 pm, National Academy of Sciences (2101 Constitution Ave. NW, DC)
Webcast available
Wilson Center: “European Joint Programming Initiatives - Opportunities for U.S.-EU Research Collaboration on Societal Challenges”
1:30 - 7:00 pm, Wilson Center (1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, DC)
Thursday, February 1 DOE: Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee meeting
(continues Friday)
8:30 am - 5:00 pm, Thu; 8:30 am - 12:00 pm, Fri
Gaithersburg Marriott Washington Center (Gaithersburg, MD)
Webcast available
National Academies: “A Strategic Plan for U.S. Burning Plasma Research,” meeting six
ITER Site (Caradarche, France)
NASA: Applied Sciences Advisory Committee meeting
(continues Friday)
9:00 am - 5:00 pm, Thu; 9:00 am - 5:00 pm, Fri
NASA headquarters (300 E St. SW, DC)
Webcast available
National Science Board: Congressional briefing on “The State of U.S. Science”
10:00 - 11:00 am, House (2325 Rayburn Office Building)
2:00 - 3:00 pm, Senate (253 Russell Office Building)
NSF: Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering meeting
(continues Friday)
1:00 - 5:30 pm, Thu; 8:30 am - 3:30 pm, Fri
NSF headquarters (Alexandria, VA)
Engaging Scientists & Engineers in Policy: DC Science Policy Happy Hour
5:30 - 7:30 pm, Elephant and Castle (900 19th St. NW, DC)
Friday, February 2 DOE: Defense Programs Advisory Committee meeting
8:30 am - 5:30 pm, DOE headquarters (1000 Independence Ave. SW, DC)
Closed to the public
Science for the People: National Convention
(continues through Sunday)
University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI)
Opportunities
AIP/AAPT Seeking Applicants for New Teacher Policy Fellowship
The American Association of Physics Teachers and AIP are seeking applicants for the new Master Teacher Policy Fellowship program. Fellows will participate in a 13-month program that trains teachers to become advocates at the state and district level for policies that support the teaching and learning of physics. Interested K-12 educators with at least five years of physical sciences teaching experience should apply by Feb. 28.
USGCRP Accepting Comments on IPCC Report
The U.S. Global Change Research Program is seeking feedback from the scientific community on the current draft of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C and the accompanying summary that is written for policymakers. The report analyzes “the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emission pathways, in the context of strengthening the global response to the threat of climate change, sustainable development, and efforts to eradicate poverty.” Comments will be accepted through Feb. 8.
AAAS S&T Policy Fellowship Program Seeking Associate Director
The American Association for the Advancement of Science is accepting applications for the associate director of its Science and Technology Policy Fellowships Program. The position is responsible for overseeing its day-to-day operations and using knowledge of the scientific enterprise to drive new program development, among other responsibilities. Individuals with a master’s or higher degree in a STEM-related field and at least three years of experience in project or business management should apply by Feb. 23.
Washington Post Seeking Science Research & Policy Writer
The Washington Post is accepting applications for a science writer position on their Health, Science, and Environment team. The position will help expand the Post’s coverage of research and science policy and contribute to investigative and accountability projects. Interested individuals with a deep knowledge of science, science policy, and the impact of science on society are encouraged to apply.
For additional opportunities, please visit www.aip.org/fyi/opportunities. Know of an upcoming science policy opportunity? Email us at fyi@aip.org.Know of an upcoming science policy event? Email us at fyi@aip.org.
Around the Web
News and views currently in circulation. Links do not imply endorsement.
White House
- Trump wanted to know how US stacks up to Russia on science (E&E News)
- House Science Committee members say President Trump’s lack of science advisers leaves us vulnerable to disaster (Popular Science)
- Trump appears to misunderstand basic facts of climate change in Piers Morgan interview (The Independent)
- The lasting impacts of Trump’s first year for STEM (Wired)
- Trump administration’s approach to innovation and tech policy (CES, video interview with Michael Kratsios)
- Trump could reveal long-promised infrastructure plan within two weeks (Politico)
Congress
- A good move from Chairman Smith and the House Science Committee: Tackling sexual harassment in science (Union of Concerned Scientists, perspective by Gretchen Goldman)
- Technology advances civilization. Bureaucrats do not. (Daily Caller, perspective by Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX))
- Smith appoints Abraham chairman of oversight subcommittee, appoints new vice chairs (House Science Committee)
- Bring in the nerds: Reviving the Office of Technology Assessment (R Street Institute, report)
- Republicans on House science panel suggest top environmental health scientist broke anti-lobbying law (ScienceInsider)
- House Appropriations Committee chair will not seek relection (Politico)
Political Engagement
- APS advocacy in 2017: Working together to be a voice for physics (APS News)
- Anna Quider elected president of D.C.-based Science Coalition (NIU Today)
- Why a radical 1970s science group is more relevant than ever (Atlas Obscura)
Science and the Nation
- NSF director: Federal funds are key to scientific discovery (US News, interview with France Córdova)
- Falling short on science (New York Times, perspective by Maria Zuber)
- The US drops out of the top 10 in innovation ranking (Bloomberg)
- If Trump gets his way, America won’t be No. 1 in science much longer (Bloomberg)
- The ‘Ice Road Truckers of science’ and why we need them (The Hill, perspective by Rebecca Blank and Brad Schwartz)
- China is closing the tech gap, says US agency … as federal shutdown forces it to partially close (South China Morning Post)
Science, Society, and the Economy
- AAAS and Sigma Xi forge alliance to promote and advance science (AAAS)
- A tale of two cultures (Science, perspective by Rush Holt)
- Be skeptical of those who treat science as an ideology (Wall Street Journal, perspective by Sue Desmond-Hellmann)
- Just because it’s ‘science’ doesn’t mean it’s good (Slate, perspective by Chanda Prescod-Weinstein)
- A model of the way opinions spread reveals how propagandists use the scientific process against itself to secretly influence policy makers (MIT Tech Review)
Education and Workforce
- Legislative update on STEM education (National Science Teachers Association)
- Meet the 2018 US News STEM Leadership Hall of Fame (US News)
- Senate bill would allow up to 195,000 H-1B workers per year (Axios)
- A leading organization has said that sexual harassment is scientific misconduct. Where are the others? (Scientific American, editorial)
- Study finds a given discipline’s perceived gender bias, not STEM orientation, plays biggest role in whether women choose to major in it (Inside Higher Education)
- The Royal Society’s first woman physicist (Physics Today)
Research Management
- Why scientists accused of sexual misconduct can still get government grants (New Republic)
- Gender bias goes away when grant reviewers focus on the science (Nature)
- Three decades of peer review congresses (JAMA, editorial)
- Online tool calculates reproducibility scores of PubMed papers (ScienceInsider)
- Robust research needs many lines of evidence. Replication is not enough. (Nature, perspective by Marcus Munafò and George Smith)
- In defense of the replication movement (Slate, perspective by Daniel Engber)
- Frequently asked questions about public access (NSF)
- Ohio State finding new forms of research funding as federal falls flat (The Lantern)
- Machine evolution: Planning the next big science machine requires consideration of both the current landscape and the distant future (Symmetry)
Labs and Facilities
- Under Secretary for Science Paul Dabbar visits Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (DOE)
- Superconducting x-ray laser takes shape in Silicon Valley (SLAC)
- Bill to ensure tax levies for labs clears state committee (Albuquerque Journal)
- UC regent praises ‘clever’ bid for LANL (Exchange Monitor)
Energy
- Energy 202: Trump nominates USGS head. It took him more than a year. (Washington Post)
- National Energy Technology Laboratory is in step with Trump, its leaders say (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
- Auto show hearing highlights US innovation, emerging technologies (Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee)
Space
- NASA has gone a year without a formal leader — with no end in sight (ArsTechnica)
- State of the Union: Bill Nye the Science Guy is standing up for NASA nominee Jim Bridenstine (Quartz)
- Trump administration wants to end NASA funding for the International Space Station by 2025 (The Verge)
- Sen. Nelson warns administration against terminating ISS in 2025 (SpacePolicyOnline)
- Potential end of the ISS raises concerns, presents opportunities (SpaceNews)
- Satellites placed into incorrect orbit by Ariane 5 can be recovered, owners say (SpaceNews)
- SpaceX’s big rocket, the Falcon Heavy, finally reaches the launchpad (New York Times)
- Heavy-lift rocket poised to boost space science (Science)
- Amateur astronomer discovers a revived NASA satellite (ScienceInsider)
- A changing of the guard in NASA’s hunt for exoplanets (SpaceNews)
- Looking to the future of exoplanet science (Eos)
- X Prize teams plan to keep shooting for the moon (SpaceNews)
Weather, Climate, and Environment
- Scientists sue EPA over advisory board cuts (CNN)
- Prestigious climate-related fellowships rescinded (Eos)
- The greenhouse gas Pruitt worries about (E&E News)
- Republicans love NASA. But why do they doubt its climate science? (Washington Post)
- Scientists rebel over a Trump ally at the Natural History Museum (New York Times)
- Trump donor gave $2 million to groups questioning climate science (E&E News)
- Weather Channel website completes series on climate change (Axios)
- New report shows weather disasters in 2017 cost more than $300 billion (NPR)
- Chemical sunshade to slow warming may not be feasible: UN draft (Reuters)
- How smallsats could make a big difference for NASA and NOAA (Wired)
Defense
- As Trump seeks new nuke options, weapons agency head warns of capacity overload (DefenseNews, interview with Frank Klotz)
- North Korea could set off global nuclear arms race, CIA says (Politico)
- The case for tactical US nukes (Wall Street Journal, perspective by Matthew Kroenig)
- How to limit presidential authority to order the use of nuclear weapons (Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, perspective by Lisbeth Gonlund, David Wright, and Steve Fetter)
- May 2017 missile defense test was not held under real-world conditions, new analysis concludes (Union of Concerned Scientists, report)
- Doomsday clock advances to 11:58 pm, closest since 1950s (New York Times)
- The making of the Doomsday Clock: Art, science and the atomic apocalypse (Washington Post)
- ‘Charlottesville': A government-commissioned story about nuclear war (The Atlantic)
- Unpredictable Pentagon spending causing vendors to leave marketplace; R&D stagnant (USNI News)
- The new-age Manhattan Project: How do we protect today’s secrets from tomorrow’s quantum computers? (Fedscoop)
Biomedical
- NIH’s new clinical trial policy kicks in despite concerns from basic behavioral researchers (ScienceInsider)
- Scientists hate the NIH’s new rules for experimenting on humans (Wired)
- Thought leaders reveal the technologies and topics likely to transform life-science research in the year ahead (Nature)
International Affairs
- Missed government targets bring research intensity metric into disrepute (*Research, perspective by Adão Carvalho)
- The physicist who took on Putin (Physics Today)
- NASA scientist accused of terrorism awaits verdict in Turkish trial (ScienceInsider)
- Climate researchers press Trudeau to renew Canadian Arctic research program (ScienceInsider)
- Special pleading is bad for Canadian science (Times Higher Education, perspective by Jim Woodgett)
- Asia reclaims position as epicenter of global innovation (Clarivate Analytics, report)
- China, unhampered by rules, races ahead in gene-editing trials (Wall Street Journal)
- China publishes Arctic policy, eyeing vision of ‘Polar Silk Road’ (Xinhua)
- Asia reclaims top spot in innovation ranking (*Research)
- German scientists hope for windfall from incoming government (Nature)
- Peers call for separate Euratom transition period from Brexit (*Research)