The Scientist - Home

The inventor of the whole-body CT scanner, who also pioneered the development of automated chromosome analysis for prenatal diagnosis, is among the five recipients of the 1997 National Medal of Technology. The award, according to a statement by the United States Department of Commerce, "recognizes individuals and corporations whose leadership and innovation have made significant contributions to the nation by creating jobs, strengthening its competitive position, and advanced our standard of li

A recent legal flap that may force the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to open the proceedings of its advisory committees to public scrutiny has focused the attention of researchers and government officials on how advisory panels produce reports. NAS-through its operating arm, the National Research Council (NRC)-is frequently called on to give status reports on various scientific and medical issues and policies, as are advisory panels convened by other agencies. The resulting reports frequen

EVOLVING PARADIGM: Allison Rosenberg of the Government-University-Industry Roundtable feels the insider-trading case reflects changes in drug research funding. The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has sent waves of concern through the scientific community by bringing what it calls its first insider-trading case against drug researchers. It is illegal to trade stocks while in possession of information not available to the general public or to inform other traders of such i

ALL-CONSUMING: Exonerated researcher Herbert Needleman reports having had "no original ideas" while his case was pending. Those eventually cleared of misconduct charges say the system is too eager to presume them guilty. Approximately 70 percent of cases of alleged scientific misconduct that come to the attention of the Office of Research Integrity (ORI), an arm of the Department of Health and Human Services, end up with the accused being cleared. But what happens to these re- spondents-as OR

Sidebar: NAS's New Foreign Associates Sidebar: New NAS Members, 1997 This year's group of 60 newly elected members to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) includes five people from industry, the first time in several years that so many scientists and engineers from corporate America became new inductees. Even so, the actual percentage of members from United States corporations is still minuscule-less than 5 percent. The academy accepted only one or two people from companies in each of the pas

'BAD NEWS': APS’s Robert Park believes there is still time to salvage greater science funding from Congress. WORTH FIGHTING FOR: Mary Woolley of Research!America points to surveys indicating the popularity of biomedical research. Science observers were not cheered by the balanced-budget agreement forged by the White House and Congress last month, but they're preaching optimism nonetheless. As of press time, the House and Senate still needed to iron out some minor differences, but it app

Joining the 60 new National Academy of Sciences (NAS) members are 15 newly elected foreign associates. These nonvoting members with citizenship outside the United States hail from 11 different countries. Their induction brings the total number of NAS foreign associates to 309. The foreign associates, along with their affiliations at the time of election and their country of citizenship, are: Grigory I. Barenblatt, visiting professor, department of mathematics, University of California, Berkele

Michael Aizenman, professor of mathematics and physics, Princeton University James P. Allison, professor of immunology and director, Cancer Research Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley Neil W. Ashcroft, associate director, Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source; Horace B. White Professor of Physics, Cornell University Charles H. Bennett, IBM Fellow, IBM T.J. Watson Research Center, Yorktown Heights, N.Y. Webster K. Cavenee, director, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research;

The recent success of Imitrex-the antimigraine drug made by Glaxo Wellcome Inc. of Research Triangle Park, N.C.-has ignited a fury of pharmaceutical research. Imitrex (generic: sumatriptan) is the first serotonin (5-HT) agonist, or mimic, made to fight migraines. In 1996, Imitrex tablets reaped $840 million in worldwide sales. Now, a half-dozen companies are creating new brands of migraine relief-and opening the door to neuroscientists and molecular biologists in the process. A TRAILBLAZER: Th

GOOD NEWS: NSF's Paul Herer found the positive reaction to his agency's new review criteria somewhat surprising. Scientists who review National Science Foundation grant applications soon will have a new system by which to judge them. Beginning October 1, the current four merit-review criteria will be eliminated, and reviewers will be asked to assess research proposals based on the proposals' "intellectual merit and property" and their "broader impacts," such as potential effect on societal nee

The job is a juggling act, with administrative duties that sometimes lead to opposition from scientists. CONFLICTS OF INTEREST? John Vandenbergh contends the IACUC veterinarians should "be an integral part of the committee, but not as in a chair role. Research with laboratory animals involves a great deal more bureaucracy than it used to, and veterinarians frequently find themselves in the position of administrators of that bureaucracy. Under the 1985 revision to the Animal Welfare Act, every

Sidebar: Ethics Journals The rise in bioethics centers, courses, and degree programs within the last decade has spawned an expansion in the literature devoted to the subject. According to scientists and ethicists, this is exemplified by an upswing in the number of periodicals and, particularly, individual articles in peer-reviewed publications. This new literature genre covers such areas as scientific fraud and integrity; patients' rights; informed consent; genetic screening; and the disseminat