The Scientist - Home

Being a company president-a job that entails handling day-to- day operations-or a chief executive officer (CEO)-who manages all aspects of a business-involves a unique combination of managerial skills. These roles are especially challenging for women, who are rare at corporate helms, particularly in the two-decade-old biotechnology industry. As biotech matures, the percentage of women at the top is growing. "Biotech is a relatively young industry. People are still working their way up. But we a

Grade-school girls ask fewer questions of their science teachers than their boy classmates do. Young women in high school tend to favor social acceptability over scientific proficiency-even though they have the ability for both. Undergraduate women question whether they can balance a career in science with a family. Female graduate students in the hard sciences consider themselves fortunate if they have one woman in their department to serve as a role model or mentor. And postgraduate women sci

Researchers fearing that the agreement between Congress and President Clinton to balance the federal budget by 2002 would decimate science funding can rest a little easier. Each of the eight major federal departments funding research will at least keep pace with or slightly exceed the 2.6 percent inflation rate in FY1998-with the exception of the Department of Agriculture, which will receive 2 percent less research funding in real dollars. As expected, Congress met or exceeded the president's b

A National Institutes of Health panel on November 5 issued a consensus statement declaring there is clear evidence that acupuncture helps alleviate nausea from chemotherapy and anesthesia. The statement indicated the need for more and better research into how acupuncture works and acknowledged that some studies show the practice helps alleviate pain, while other studies show no conclusive effects. "There is a paucity of high-quality research assessing efficacy of acupuncture compared with place

TIME TO RETHINK: The old discussions about reporting HIV infection must be reviewed in light of a changing epidemic, says CDC's John Ward. As the AIDS epidemic enters a new phase of changing demographics and combination drug therapy, support is mounting for a national system of HIV case reporting. Even some civil rights activists who previously opposed HIV reporting now are admitting the need for it to help contain the elusive disease. However, the long-debated question of whether HIV-positive

SCIENCE PRIORITY: Sen. Phil Gramm (R-Texas) is sponsoring legislation to double all nondefense research funding in 10 years. Congress has been discussing proposals to double biomedical research funding over five years, double nondefense research funding over 10 years, and raise additional funds to benefit science. So should scientists start celebrating a renaissance in research funding? INFLATION EROSION: AAAS's Al Teich notes that science funding in many categories has declined over the pas

The start of a clinical trial with an AIDS vaccine developed by French company Pasteur-Mérieux Connaught made front-page news in several major papers in September. The vaccine, composed of three HIV genes inserted into a canarypox vector, was administered to 420 human volunteers in a Phase II trial that tested the vaccine's safety and ability to provoke an immune response. Some researchers view the undertaking as one more trial of a technology that is unlikely to result in a useful compo

Distributed by Vanguard International, the Proline is available in five separate models that cover a total volume range of 0.5 µl to 5 ml. Volume is adjusted by turning the piston knob; each incremental change is accompanied by an audible "click" that sets the volume. The digital display window is located on the side of the barrel and is visible during right-handed use. Tip ejection is achieved by depressing a thumb-controlled button on the back of the handle, and a balancing hook on the fr

Putting the Freeze on Menopause In Defense of Pesticides Pushing Drug Discovery Race and Health Tumor Stopper Jewel of a Specimen Birth of a Journal Conservation Wins GOLDEN EGG: Michael Tucker caused a media stir when he facilitated the birth of twins using frozen eggs. The birth of twins rarely makes national headlines. But this pair, whose birth was announced on the front page of the New York Times on October 17, sparked a flurry of media attention. A team of researchers at Reproductive Bi

A proposal to elevate the National Institutes of Health's Office of Alternative Medicine (OAM) into an institute fell short during the appropriations process, but a 60 percent increase in funding represents a victory of sorts for the office. The $8-million boost proposed by a conference committee would raise OAM's current $12-million budget to $20 million for FY1998. The conference committee's decision was a surprise considering earlier requests. The House and the Clinton administration both so

Since January of this year, graduate students at Virginia Tech have faced an experience unlike any encountered by their peers in other universities. They must submit their master's degree theses or doctoral dissertations in formats capable of being posted on the World Wide Web. "What we're doing is putting theses and dissertations in our library in an electronic format so that they can be found in a search," explains John Eaton, associate vice provost for graduate studies at Virginia Tech. "We'

The Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation honored three medical researchers at an awards luncheon on September 26 in New York. According to a foundation official, the 1997 award winners represent the distinct approaches and scientific perspectives that must combine in the fight against disease. Victor A. McKusick, a professor of genetics at Johns Hopkins University, was given the Special Achievement in Medical Science Award; Mark S. Ptashne, the Ludwig Professor of Molecular Biology at the Mem