Department of Energy Under Secretary for Science and Innovation Geri Richmond speaking at a Resources for the Future event in October 2022. She is appearing at a House Science Committee hearing this week alongside Kathleen Hogan, who is acting as DOE under secretary for infrastructure. (Image credit – Resources for the Future)
The House Science Committee is holding a hearing on Wednesday to examine the Department of Energy’s implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Inflation Reduction Act, and CHIPS and Science Act, which together are providing it with about $100 billion for R&D programs, facility upgrades, and energy technology demonstrations and deployment programs. Last year, DOE reorganized itself to help implement the laws, designating an under secretary of infrastructure position to oversee a new Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations and other efforts focused on technology deployment. The witnesses at this week’s hearing will be Kathleen Hogan, who has been acting as the infrastructure under secretary, and Geri Richmond, the under secretary for science and innovation.
Committee Chair Frank Lucas (R-OK) and Energy Subcommittee Chair Brandon Williams (R-NY) have raised concerns about DOE’s approach to standing up OCED, which is receiving $27 billion over five years through the laws. Last week they sent a letter to Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm stating, “This massive influx of funding for an entirely new office under an untested and siloed management structure raises serious concerns about DOE’s ability to administer and coordinate these projects appropriately.” As an example, the letter points to how activities such as the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program have been split between OCED and the department’s energy R&D offices, which are overseen by the under secretary for science and innovation.
National Institute of Standards and Technology Director Laurie Locascio is appearing before the House Science Committee on Wednesday for a hearing on the agency’s fiscal year 2024 budget request. The Biden administration is asking for $1.63 billion, which nearly matches the target set by the CHIPS and Science Act, with a strong focus on expanding manufacturing programs. NIST’s budget has become the focal point of a series of major policy issues that may come up for discussion. In particular, the agency is responsible for administering $50 billion the Commerce Department is receiving through the CHIPS and Science Act for semiconductor manufacturing and R&D initiatives. In addition, NIST is overseeing a portfolio of extramural construction projects funded through earmarks Congress has attached to its budget, which currently account for almost a quarter of the agency’s overall topline. At the same time, NIST is grappling with deteriorating facilities on its own campuses. A recent National Academies report endorsed annually spending between $420 million and $550 million on construction and maintenance over the next 12 years to resolve the situation and the administration has proposed to raise that part of NIST’s budget from $130 million to $262 million.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration head Rick Spinrad will testify before the House Science Committee on Thursday. The principal subject of the hearing will be NOAA’s fiscal year 2024 budget request, which calls for a 10% increase to over $6.8 billion, with much of the additional funding allocated to the agency’s weather satellite program. However, NOAA is also the subject of major legislative initiatives Committee Chair Frank Lucas (R-OK) is pushing, including an update to the Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017 and another bill that would remove the agency from the Commerce Department and make it independent. Three former heads of NOAA all testified strongly in favor of agency independence at a committee hearing last month, but the Biden administration has not yet offered a view on the matter.
This week, the House Armed Services Committee will start to assemble its draft of the National Defense Authorization Act, a sprawling defense policy update that Congress passes each year. The NDAA always includes a large number of provisions bearing on science and technology, with attention given perennially to matters such as the defense research and engineering workforce and the Defense Department’s ability to rapidly develop technologies and transition them into use. Subcommittees are advancing their respective portions of the bill on Thursday and Friday ahead of a marathon meeting of the full committee on May 23, at which the legislation’s more significant and controversial proposals are apt to be introduced and debated. The Senate Armed Services Committee has not released its schedule for drafting its counterpart bill, which will ultimately be reconciled with the House version. The most recent NDAA was signed into law in December. (Update: The committee has postponed its consideration of the NDAA to an unspecified later date.)
The National Science Board, which oversees the National Science Foundation, is holding its quarterly meeting this week. On Tuesday, the board will discuss the quadrennial science and technology review that was mandated by the CHIPS and Science Act and the first iteration of which is due by the end of this year. The board will also hear an update on NSF efforts related to sexual assault and harassment prevention. In addition, there will be a panel discussion with NSF prize recipients, including renowned physicist Dick Garwin, a longtime adviser to the government who is receiving the Vannevar Bush Award, which honors “exceptional lifelong leaders in science and technology.” A commission the board has appointed to examine NSF’s merit review criteria will discuss its plans on Wednesday. The commission held its first meeting last month and is meeting again on Monday morning.
On Monday, the National Academies is holding the first open meeting of a new study examining scientific opportunities afforded by current and future technologies for creating high magnetic fields. The only session will be a discussion of the study’s goals with its sponsor, the National Science Foundation, which funds the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, an organization that operates seven user facilities across three campuses. The study charge calls for a broad review of relevant research and technology as well as consideration of policy matters affecting access to high magnetic field capabilities. These include balances that must be struck between employing centralized versus decentralized facility models and between pushing toward higher field strengths versus maximizing scientific output at currently accessible fields. The chair of the study committee is Peter Littlewood, a physicist at the University of Chicago and a former director of Argonne National Lab.
The Special Competitive Studies Project, a subsidiary of the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Fund for Strategic Innovation, is hosting an event called the Ash Carter Exchange on Innovation and National Security on Tuesday in Washington, DC. The event is being held in honor of former defense secretary Ash Carter, who died unexpectedly last fall, and is co-organized by his wife Stephanie Carter. Highlighting the role of technology development in defense, which was a major focus for Carter, participants include former defense secretaries Leon Panetta and Robert Gates, former secretary of state Condoleezza Rice, and a number of prominent figures in the spheres of science, technology, and national security, including DARPA Director Stefanie Tompkins, new Defense Innovation Unit Director Doug Beck, Lawrence Livermore National Lab Director Kim Budil, physicist and former Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute president Shirley Ann Jackson, and geophysicist and MIT Vice President for Research Maria Zuber.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) announced a new legislative initiative on May 3 focused on the U.S. competition with China. Behind him, from the left, are: Sens. Patty Murray (D-WA), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Tom Carper (D-DE), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), and Chris Coons (D-DE). (Image credit – Office of Sen. Schumer)
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and other Senate Democratic leaders announced on May 3 they are starting to develop bipartisan legislation to reinforce U.S. competitiveness in its rivalry with China, with a strong focus on technology. The effort aims to resuscitate and expand on China-focused provisions that were dropped from the CHIPS and Science Act last year during the negotiations to push it across the finish line. Schumer remarked that he wants to tighten restrictions on international trade and finance, including by building on strict export controls the Biden administration has placed on trade in advanced semiconductors with China and by authorizing a new process for screening “outbound” investment in Chinese companies. He also expressed an interest in increasing funding for strategically important technologies, mentioning biotechnology and biomanufacturing specifically. To pass, any new legislation will need support from not only Senate Republicans but also House Republican leaders. Schumer and other Senate committee chairs indicated they are starting to work on provisions with their Republican counterparts, but a number of Senate Republicans told the media they would not support major spending increases.
Last week, Vice President Kamala Harris and other senior administration officials met with the CEOs of Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, and Anthropic to discuss the risks and benefits of advances in artificial intelligence, calling on the companies to model “responsible behavior” and ensure their products are safe and secure. In conjunction with the meeting, the administration announced new actions aimed at promoting “responsible AI innovation,” including plans to conduct public assessments of existing generative AI systems and to release policy guidance on the use of AI systems within the U.S. government. In addition, the National Science Foundation announced it is providing $140 million to set up seven new National AI Research Institutes, bringing the total number of institutes to 25. Meanwhile, Congress is scrambling to weigh in on the subject of AI and last month Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer unexpectedly released a broad proposal to develop a regulatory framework for it.
Last week, House Science Committee Chair Frank Lucas (R-OK) and Ranking Member Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) sent a letter to federal contractor Leidos stating its response to investigations of sexual assault and harassment at Antarctic facilities it operates has been inadequate. An independent report found last year that such incidents were apparently widespread, and Leidos Chief Operating Officer Kathleen Naeher testified at a Science Committee hearing on the subject in December. In a written response to further committee questions, Naeher stated that Leidos had received “five allegations of sexual harassment and zero allegations of sexual assault” since taking over the Antarctic facilities contract in 2016. However, Lucas and Lofgren’s letter alleges that documents obtained from the National Science Foundation, the lead agency for the U.S. Antarctic Program, contradict those numbers . The letter further states that NSF’s Office of Inspector General has faced difficulties attempting to interview Leidos employees. It directs Leidos to correct any inaccurate information it has provided to the committee and to inform its employees that cooperation with NSF is mandatory. Leidos’ contract with the U.S. Antarctic Program expires in 2025.
Astronet, a consortium of European funding agencies and research organizations, released a roadmap late last month that outlines research and facility priorities for space science through 2035. Immediate priorities the roadmap identifies for ground-based facilities largely align with ones previously set out in 2008 and include completion of the European Southern Observatory’s Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) and the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), and construction of the proposed Cherenkov Telescope Array, the European Solar Telescope, and a wide-field, high multiplex spectroscopic facility. Priorities for space-based missions are the launches in the mid-2030s of the Athena X-ray telescope and the LISA gravitational wave detector, as well as the launch of the Rosalind Franklin Mars rover, which has been threatened by the European Space Agency’s decision to withdraw from its partnership on the mission with Russian space agency Roscosmos. The new roadmap also identifies longer-term priorities for the post-2035 period, including adding a planetary camera and spectrograph to the ELT, upgrading SKA, and building the proposed Einstein Telescope gravitational wave detector and facilities for observing the cosmic microwave background.
All times are Eastern Standard Time, unless otherwise noted. Listings do not imply endorsement.
NIST: Earthquake Hazards Reduction Advisory Committee meeting
(continues Tuesday)
EPA: Science Advisory Board EJScreen Review Panel meeting
(continues through Wednesday)
National Academies: “Workshop on Regional Innovation and Economic Development”
9:00 am - 5:00 pm
NSF: NSB-NSF Commission on Merit Review teleconference
9:00 am - 12:00 pm
National Academies: “The Current Status and Future Direction of High Magnetic Field Science in the U.S., Phase II,” meeting two
12:00 - 1:00 pm
NSF: National Science Board meeting
(continues Wednesday)
Special Competitive Studies Project: “The Ash Carter Exchange on Innovation and National Security”
8:00 am - 7:30 pm
Senate: Missile defense policy hearing
4:45 pm, Armed Services Committee
NSPN: “Careers in Science Communication”
5:10 - 6:05 pm
National Academies: “Pathways to Doctoral Degrees in Computing,” meeting seven
6:00 - 8:00 pm
LPI/USRA: “Apophis T-6 Years: Knowledge Opportunities for the Science of Planetary Defense”
(continues through Friday)
National Academies: Committee on Radio Frequencies meeting
(continues Thursday)
NASA: Space Weather Council meeting
(continues Thursday)
DOD: Defense Science Board meeting
(continues Thursday)
National Academies: Army Science and Technology Roundtable kickoff meeting
8:00 am - 5:00 pm
Center For Global Development: “Within Our Orbit: The Promise of Space Capabilities in Global Economic Development”
9:00 - 10:15 am
House: “Modernizing U.S. Arms Exports and a Stronger AUKUS”
10:00 am, Foreign Affairs Committee
Carnegie Endowment: “Is it too Late to Save the Planet?”
10:00 am - 11:00 am
Senate: Legislative meeting to consider bills related to weather hazards, semiconductor manufacturing, and other matters
10:00 am, Commerce Committee
House: NIST budget request hearing
10:00 am, Science Committee
House: EPA budget request hearing
10:00 am, Energy and Commerce Committee
Senate: Closed hearing on the President’s Fiscal Year 2024 Budget, U.S. Competitiveness, and the U.S.-China Relationship
10:30 am, Appropriations Committee
Senate: Hearing to examine the nomination of Jeffery Baran to be a member of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
10:00 am, Environment and Public Works Committee
Senate: “Lessons Learned: Leadership Perspectives and Experience on the National Costs of Climate Change”
10:30 am, Budget Committee
NIST: “CHIPS for America Workforce Roundtable: Cross-Sector Partnerships”
11:00 am - 12:00 pm
House: “Return on Unprecedented Investment: An Analysis of DOE’s Implementation of the IIJA, the IRA, and the CHIPS and Science Act”
2:00 pm, Science Committee
House: “Examining China’s Coercive Economic Tactics”
2:00 pm, Rules Committee
CSIS: “A Contested Domain: From Space Theory to Practice”
2:00 - 4:00 pm
Senate: FBI budget request hearing
2:30 pm, Appropriations Committee
Belfer Center: “Climate Policy in Action: A Conversation with Nat Keohane”
4:00 - 5:00 pm
NSPN: “Science on the Ballot Info Session”
6:00 - 7:00 pm
National Academies: “NASA Mission Critical Workforce, Infrastructure, and Technology,” meeting three
(continues Friday)
House: Subcommittee markups of National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2024 9:00 am, Armed Services Committee
Senate: DOD budget request hearing
9:00 am, Appropriations Committee
NNSA: Nuclear Security Advisory Committee meeting
9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Senate: “Hearing to Examine Opportunities for Congress to Reform the Permitting Process for Energy and Mineral Projects”
10:00 am, Energy and Natural Resources Committee
BIS: Materials and Equipment Technical Advisory Committee meeting
10:00 am
USGS: Scientific Earthquake Studies Advisory Committee meeting
11:00 am - 5:00 pm
NIH: Council of Councils meeting
10:15 am - 2:00 pm
House: NOAA budget request hearing
10:00 am, Science Committee
NDIA: “Report Launch: Future Hypersonics Supply Chains”
1:00 - 3:00 pm
House: DOE budget request hearing
2:00 pm, Energy and Commerce Committee
House: “Reauthorizing the U.S. Fire Administration and Fire Grant Programs: Evaluating Effectiveness and Preparedness for Modern Challenges”
2:00 pm, Science Committee
House: “Reviewing the Bureau of Industry and Security, Part I: U.S. Export Controls in an Era of Strategic Competition”
2:00 pm, Foreign Affairs Committee
National Academies: “Bathymetry and Topography at the Land-Ocean Interface”
2:00 - 5:00 pm
National Academies: “Modeling Extreme Precipitation for Modernizing PMP in a Changing Climate”
2:00 - 5:00 pm
NSF: “Using the Science of Team Science to Advance Convergence Research”
4:00 - 5:00 pm
National Academies: Air Force Science and Technology Roundtable, meeting one
9:30 am - 5:00 pm
National Academies: “Connections between Postsecondary Education and Workforce Preparation”
11:00 am - 5:45 pm
NASA: Human Exploration and Operations Advisory Committee meeting
(continues Tuesday)
USGS: Scientific Earthquake Studies Advisory Committee meeting
12:00- 2:00 pm
The National Science Foundation is soliciting nominations for members of the National Science Board, who will replace the eight current members whose terms are expiring in 2024. The 24-member board is the governing body for NSF and members serve six-year terms that can be renewed once. Nominees must have a distinguished record in science or public service and the board is particularly seeking members with expertise in areas such as national security, private-sector research and partnerships, STEM workforce development, and advanced manufacturing. Nominations are due May 31.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology is soliciting nominations of members for its eleven federal advisory committees, including the Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology, National Artificial Intelligence Advisory Committee, and Earthquake Hazards Reduction Advisory Committee. Terms run for two to three years and generally may be renewed once.
NASA is hiring a director for the Science Mission Directorate’s Heliophysics Division, a position that entails overseeing spaceflight missions, technology development, research and data analysis programs, and related activities. Applicants must have experience developing budgets and strategies for heliophysics activities and managing research organizations responsible for planning or executing space-based missions. Applications are due June 30.
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 .
News and views currently in circulation. Links do not imply endorsement.
White House: Biden-Harris administration announces national standards strategy for critical and emerging technology
Reuters: US climate envoy Kerry says China has invited him for talks
White House: Readout of inaugural meeting of the US–Canada Energy Transformation Taskforce
Issues in Science and Technology: A next-generation strategy for American science (perspective by Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK))
Research Professional: Republican plan to limit spending alarms US science groups
Roll Call: NASA’s GOP fans make their case to shield it from cuts
China Talk: Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) on the RESTRICT Act, AI, bipartisanship on China, and a new era of intelligence (audio interview)
FedScoop: Commerce secretary signals department will launch CHIPS and Science Act tech hub program this summer
Brookings Institution: The CHIPS and Science Act won’t build inclusive innovation ecosystems on its own (report)
New York Times: Google promised to defund climate lies, but the ads keep coming
Washington Post: As ‘anti-woke’ movement rattles BlackRock chief Larry Fink, a Wall Street effort key to avoiding climate chaos falters
Issues in Science and Technology: Enhancing trust in science and democracy (perspective by Marcia McNutt and Michael Crow)
Chronicle of Higher Education: Statehouses’ targeting of diversity and tenure is starting to scare away faculty job candidates
E&E News: Lawmakers work to reduce sexual harassment at NOAA
Harvard Crimson: Top Harvard climate scientist Dan Schrag faces allegations of bullying and toxicity spanning two decades
Wall Street Journal: Women in science aren’t doing ‘all right’ (perspective by Shulamit Kahn)
USRA: New HBCU Science and Technology Council established at Universities Space Research Association
Florida Politics: Florida legislature approves bill banning higher ed dealings with ‘foreign countries of concern’
Times Higher Education: What next for US-China research ties post-Lieber case?
Chronicle of Higher Education: Big oil helped shape Stanford’s latest climate-research focus
(perspective by David Guston)
Nature: Strengthen scientific review of research protocols (perspective by John Powers, et al.)
Physics Today: Hybrid scientific conferences: An ongoing experiment
Research Professional: EU ready to back immediate open access without author fees
Science|Business: Spain adopts national open access strategy
Scholarly Kitchen: Intended audience and actual distribution: A growing mismatch? (perspective by Roger Schonfeld and Dylan Ruediger)
Physics Today: Physics Today turns 75 (editorial)
Nature: ‘Einstein’ telescope high on Europe’s astronomy wish list
ScienceInsider: A farewell to the X-ray-generating particle accelerator that was my father’s baby (perspective by Adrian Cho)
Undark: Keeping the lights on at Ukraine’s research nuclear reactor
Financial Times: Quantum computing could break the internet. This is how
Physics World: The dream of a ‘quantum internet’ is closer than you might think
Physics World: Why the US needs a ‘quantum Oppenheimer’ to beat China in the quantum race (perspective by Duncan Earl)
Semiconductor Industry Association: The 2023 SIA factbook: Your source for semiconductor industry data
South China Morning Post: China gave 190 chip firms $1.75 billion in subsidies in 2022 as it seeks semiconductor self-sufficiency
Financial Times: Washington signals support for South Korean chipmakers in US battle with China
Science|Business: ‘Out of the box thinking’ seals deal between world leading semiconductor company ASML and Eindhoven University
New York Times: We must regulate AI. Here’s how (perspective by Lina Khan)
SpaceNews: Dragonfly mission studying effects of potential budget cut
Washington Post: At the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, two big missions got snagged on workforce issues
SpaceNews: Debate rages about future of New Horizons
SpaceNews: Rocket Lab launches NASA TROPICS cubesats
SpaceNews: NASA awards contracts for NOAA coronagraph studies
Space Review: The Moon is harsh on missteps
Space Review: Building telescopes on the Moon could transform astronomy, and it’s becoming an achievable goal (perspective by Ian Crawford)
SpaceNews: Plutonium availability constrains plans for future planetary missions
Ars Technica: Elon Musk provides detailed review of Starship’s first launch — and what’s next
Reuters: Environmental groups sue US over SpaceX launch license for Texas
SpaceNews: Czech Republic signs Artemis Accords
FedScoop: NOAA upgrades storm surge forecasting model ahead of hurricane season
Washington Post: In reversal, Twitter to allow free automated weather, transit tweets
Weather Geeks: Interview with NOAA Oceanic and Atmospheric Research head Steven Thur (audio)
Nature: Mexico is seeding clouds to make rain — scientists aren’t sure it works
Research Professional: Britain’s role in EU Earth-observation projects ‘won’t go back to how it was’
ScienceInsider: ‘We are cut off.’ Tensions with Russia are hobbling Arctic research
E&E News: Carbon removal features filters, fans — and ivory towers
Inside Climate News: Carbon removal projects leap forward with new offset deal. Will they actually help the climate?
Roll Call: As EPA readies climate rule, Obama and Trump eras linger
E&E News: Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) demands DOE end battery loan to China-linked firm
Time: Jigar Shah has a $400 billion checkbook to grow clean tech (interview)
Washington Post: New hydrogen power plant in Texas offers glimpse of the future
Power: Fusion energy reaches prime time
Physics Today: Russian strikes on Ukrainian nuclear plants stir talk but little action in Western nations
DOD: DOD announces fiscal year 2023 research awards to minority-serving institutions
Defense News: Pentagon seeks to ease China’s green-tech chokehold amid GOP criticism
SpaceNews: Lockheed Martin announces reorganization of its space business
Breaking Defense: Pentagon chief AI officer ‘scared to death’ of potential for AI in disinformation
Exchange Monitor: In New Mexico, NNSA stems tide of employee attrition, administrator says
Washington Post: CDC Director Rochelle Walenksy to step down June 30
Stat: Biden’s pick to lead NIH stares down an increasingly political litany of questions
Stat: Senator pushes NIH for ‘formal’ review of COVID response
Nature: WHO declares end to COVID-19’s emergency phase
New York Times: WHO dismisses COVID origins investigator for sexual misconduct
New York Times: Why does bad science on COVID’s origin get hyped? (perspective by David Wallace-Wells)
Washington Post: Biden’s vaccine project needs to be more like Operation Warp Speed (perspective by Alec Stapp and Arielle D’Souza)
Nature: GISAID in crisis: Can the controversial COVID genome database survive?
GAO: Better data will improve understanding of federal contributions to drug development (report)
Financial Times: Russian spy network smuggles sensitive EU tech despite sanctions
Physics Today: Science in Ukraine and in Iraq: Two sides of the same coin (perspective by Muthana Al-Ghazi)
South China Morning Post: Award-winning Chinese mathematician Sun Xin returns from US to work at Peking University
Toronto Star: University of Waterloo ends research partnerships with Huawei, amid security concerns over China
Science|Business: Commission in fresh bid to bolster coordination between national R&D policies and EU research programs
Nature: UK scientists are right to say no to ‘Plan B’ for post-Brexit research (editorial)
Research Professional: Japan and South Korea to start formal talks on joining Horizon
Research Professional: New EU–Africa R&D cooperation plans drawn up
Research Professional: UN hosts African science, innovation day in New York
Research Professional: Pandemic had ‘dire’ effect on East African faculty
Nature: Saudi universities entice top scientists to switch affiliations — sometimes with cash
ScienceInsider: In frenzied vote, Mexico’s lawmakers pass controversial science reform bill
Research Professional: R&D spending hits record high in New Zealand
Nature: Every nation needs a space agency (perspective by Carissa Bryce Christensen)
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