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Foundation Author: Peter Gwynne Just over three years ago, Hungarian-born financier George Soros established the International Science Foundation (ISF) with a grant of $100 million to support basic science and scientists in the countries that used to constitute the Soviet Union. Now, pointing out that he always regarded the effort as a stop-gap measure designed to lead to more permanent support from other donors, Soros is significantly reducing ISF's scope. Soros, who made his billions throug

Robert Walker (R-Pa.) surprised many of his colleagues both in and out of Congress with his December 15 announcement of plans to resign his seat when his term ends later this year. Walker, known as a staunch supporter of government-funded basic research, has headed the committee since 1995. He has also been a controversial figure, advocating merging federal science committees into a single cabinet-level agency. Many contend that Walker's departure will leave a void that will be difficult to fil

For more information on Pugwash activities, contact The Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, Flat A, 63 A Great Russell St., London, U.K. WC1B 3BJ; (44) 171-405-6661 (44) 171-831-5651 E-mail: pugwash@qmw.ac.uk World Wide Web home page: http://www.qmw.ac.uk/pugwash/html For information on the Student Pugwash movement, contact Sandra Ionno, executive director, Student Pugwash USA, 815 15th St., N.W., Suite 814, Washington, D.C. 20005; (800) WOW-APUG Fax: (202) 393-6550 E-mail: sp

One July day in 1984, Barry Marshall, a medical resident at the Fremantle Hospital in Perth, Western Australia, walked over to his lab bench, pulled down a beaker, and mixed a cocktail. The key ingredient: about a billion Helicobacter pylori bacteria. Marshall hoped to show that the microorganism causes ulcers. He gulped the concoction, describing it as "swamp water." PHYSICIAN, STUDY THYSELF: Barry Marshall's daring experiment eventually garnered him awards. One hundred years earlier, Max vo

Sidebar: The People End: Fluidity and Flexibility Are Key Recent megamergers and acquisitions in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry have drastically altered the corporate landscape, and perhaps nowhere have the effects been felt more than in drug company research departments. However big pharmaceutical firms are, they are finding they can't -- or shouldn't -- do everything. And biotechnology firms, which are generally much smaller, are discovering the difficulties of conducting basi

Decision Author: Robert L. Brent Many publications, including The Scientist, and reports by individual authors have commented on the implications of the recent United States Supreme Court decision on the proper standard for admissibility of scientific evidence in the courtroom (F. Hoke, The Scientist, June 13, 1994, page 1; June 27, 1994, page 1). The decision of the court involved the evaluation of expert scientific and medical testimony provided in a product liability lawsuit involving the d

Society for Research on Biological Rhythms University of Virginia Department of Biology Gilmer Hall Charlottesville, VA 22903 (804)-982-4500 E-mail: djh2t@faraday.clas.virginia.edu 400 members President: Irving Zucker Executive secretary: David Hudson Journal: Journal of Biological Rhythms Society for Light Treatment and Biological Rhythms 10200 W. 44th Ave., Suite 304 Wheat Ridge, Colo. 80033-2840 (303) 424-3697 - Fax: (303) 422-8894 E-mail: 5686814@mcimail.com 400 members President: Christi

This year, the Bower Award and Prize in Science -- the richest American science prize -- as well as the Bower Award for Business will honor the development of computer technology. The awards are presented annually by Philadelphia's Franklin Institute Science Museum. PIONEER: Frederick Brooks, Jr. was cited for his "major contribution to making the computer useful. Frederick P. Brooks, Jr., who defined computer architecture in such a way that computer hardware and software developed independen

The Board of Directors of City Trusts of the city of Philadelphia honored three researchers last month for inventions that have contributed to the "comfort, welfare, and happiness" of mankind. The three were given John Scott Awards, consisting of a copper medal and a $10,000 prize. An unshared award went to Barry J. Marshall, a 1995 Lasker laureate and a clinical associate professor of internal medicine at the University of Virginia, for discovering the bacterium Helicobacter pylori and its rol

The growth of the CRO industry has led to a plethora of new employment opportunities, both within CROs and pharmaceutical and biotechnology firms managing their relationships with CROs or other contract-service providers. BOOMING: Charles and Cathy Lineberry left positions at Glaxo Wellcome to form their own CRO. Pharmacologist/pathologist John S. Noble, president of Innapharma Inc., a small CRO in Suffern, N.Y., worked initially as a bench scientist, and eventually became director of worldw

Sidebar: A Checklist for Evaluating Forecasts With the year 2000 approaching, scientific, environmental, technology, and health organizations have been making predictions about the state of science and technology in the next five years and beyond, as have some individuals. Many such agencies and associations are also using the approaching turn of the century to set goals for themselves. Should the predictions come true and the goals be met by the start of the next century, forecasters anticipa

Andy Hines, staff futurist at the research firm of Coates and Jarratt Inc. in Washington, D.C., lists several criteria for judging the many predictions that have been and will be made for or around the year 2000 (The Futurist, 29:20-24, November- December 1995): Author: What are the credentials or reputation of the author or institution? Do they have a bias? Are they advocates, enthusiasts, or opponents? Method: Is a formal method such as a Delphi survey -- a polling of experts-used? Assumpt