With all the obsession over who will take over the White House in 2009, it's easy to forget that November will see hundreds of other US national elections. These will concern Congress, and could have major impacts on science policy.

To that end, Scientists and Engineers for America and 15 other societies have sent ... Click to continue

The NIH has wrapped up its year-long effort to reform the way it reviews grant applications, releasing today (June 6) a report that focuses on changes such as shortening and redesigning applications, making it easier for good reviewers to serve, and encouraging innovative and "transformative" projects.

For instance, the agency plans to create a new investigator-initiated Transformative R01 Award program worth at least $250 million, and invest at least $750 million in innovative awards, such as... Click to continue

Some of you may remember Aleister Saunders, the Alzheimer's researcher at Drexel University in Philadelphia who was kind enough to open up about the difficult process he went through to apply for tenure. (You can read his story in our September, 2007 feature about tenure.)

Well, his hard work paid off. He emailed me to say he was awarded tenure last month.

And it looks like his R01 application will be funded, as... Click to continue