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The researchers who found BRCA1, and the 'also-rans,' have many remaining avenues for ground-breaking studies When the public was informed that a team of scientists led by University of Utah geneticist Mark Skolnick had found a breast cancer susceptibility gene, it indeed appeared to be what Science called in a news report "a fitting finale to one of the most riveting of the fierce and grueling gene hunts that have come to epitomize life in the fast lane of genetics research" (R. Nowak, 265:1

Clinton's ban on funds for most studies using fertilized human eggs short-circuits NIH'spolicy-making process Many scientists studying human reproduction and embryology are angry and disappointed over a recent White House move to preclude federal funding for most research involving human embryos--new support that had been recommended by an expert panel. They see the move as an attempt to appease the new conservative ma-jority in Congress, which has threatened legislation against such studies

With plenty of hazardous sites still to be cleaned up,analysts call biological disposal of wastes afield with a bright future Amid the doom and gloom of the job outlook for United States researchers, employment analysts are pointing to the environmental services market as one bright spot for candidates with scientific training. A recent U.S. News & World Report employment guide lists "environmental manager" as one of the top-20 "hot job tracks." According to the magazine, government and indus

The name of Stephen Hawking is widely recognized both within and outside the scientific community as a premier scientist and best-selling author. But he is probably as famous for having overcome great physical odds as he is for his contributions to theoretical astrophysics and cosmology: Nearly all of his major work came after he was stricken in his early 20s with the debilitating neurological condition amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). While Hawking is certainly one of the most celebrated

The unexpected death last month of Cyril Ponnamperuma, founder and director of the newly established North-South Center for Sustainable Development (NSCSD) at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), has left the fledgling organization in a state of flux, according to center officials. These administrators note that Ponnamperuma's sudden passing has them scrambling to find a new director and keep the center afloat. Cyril Ponnamperuma, a professor of chemistry at the University of Mary

Table of Contents Appleaing Standards Farmer Dan Uncle Sam Wants You To Teach Alleged Vandal Free On Bond Hot Stuff Identity Crisis A federal appeals court's dismissal of a drug-liability lawsuit earlier this month may set a rigorous new standard for scientific evidence. In Daubert et al. v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc., two children, Jason Daubert and Eric Schuller, and their parents charged that an anti-nausea drug called Bendectin, taken by the mothers while pregnant, caused the chil

Industry observers maintain that capital is available for companies that have the right formula for success With almost-daily headlines chronicling funding and scientific setbacks to the biotechnology industry, the challenges for scientist- entrepreneurs contemplating making a go of their idea seem daunting, even insurmountable. Yet biotech analysts, officials, researchers, and other observers insist that, despite the depressed financial climate in the industry and investor wariness, capital

Land-grant college officials fear their institutions may be among hardest hit if proposed policy is enacted Agricultural scientists and research administrators, already beset by budget cuts and the effects of political turmoil in the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), warn of a much more formidable threat to their support looming on the horizon. Particularly affected, according to these observers, would be land-grant colleges. The "Contract with America," if enacted by the new, R

Many detect a new openness to finding a synergy between the realms of laboratory research and theology From the days of Galileo, the public perception that scientific tenets are antithetical to religious doctrine has been a strong one. Yet many researchers who hold strong religious beliefs maintain that science and religion are not incompatible. The view that most scientists are atheists, while perhaps closer to urban legend than demonstrable fact, remains a popular one. A Wall Street Journ

Among the growing number of collaborations being established between researchers from the United States and those of former communist countries, investigators from a variety of disciplines are calling a burgeoning relationship with one nation the scientific opportunity of a lifetime. They are referring to Mongolia, a country that until two years ago was virtually untrodden by Western scientists. After its peaceful, democratic "revolution" of 1992, Mongolia opened its borders and its economy to

The digital library--an eagerly anticipated but as yet ill- defined and largely unrealized concept--took an important step toward actualization this past fall with the launching of a new collaborative federal research effort, according to government officials, project investigators, and librarians. Institution: Carnegie Mellon University Funding: $4.8 million Research Focus: Digital video library incorporating math and science materials Major Partners: Bell Atlantic Network Services Digital

Table of Contents An Improbable Debut Strange Bedfellows SRO Silvery Science Those Cards And Letters Keep Coming The Annals of Improbable Research (AIR)--a new journal published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Museum and developed by the same brilliant, but twisted, minds who originated the Ig Nobel Prizes for dubious scientific achievements--issued its first volume on December 14. The debut was commemorated at a ceremony highlighted by (questionable) pomp (Marilyn Vos Savant,