July 1991

In Their Push To Improve Science Education AUTHOR: JEFFREY MERVIS, pg. 1 Thousands of scientists may participate in the $75 million effort toward lasting improvements in the way kids are taught WASHINGTON--This month the National Science Foundation kicks off a $75 million program to improve the way that science and mathematics are taught in United States public schools. Thousands of scientists and engineers throughout the nation, from both academia and industry, are expected to play an imp

AUTHOR: MARCIA CLEMMITT, pg. 1, 6-7. After a decade of toiling in the business world, Nobelist Melvin Schwartz once again tries to make things happen in the lab Melvin Schwartz remembers his first physics experiment. "I was seven," he says, "and I'd read that you could make a magnet by putting [electrical] current around iron." Wrapping a light cord around a pair of scissors didn't work, he recalls, but "there was a light socket, and I thought I'd try putting the current through the scissors.

Stanford, Drexel Physicists Recognized For Contributions To Laser Science MIT Honors Nobel Winner Jerome Friedman With Special Title, `Institute Professor Obituaries ~ Mary Hewitt Loveless and Irvine H. Page Contributions To Laser Science AUTHOR: Rebecca Andrews, p.21-22 Lorenzo M. Narducci, Francis K. Davis Professor of Physics and Atmospheric Science at Philadelphia's Drexel University, and Stephen E. Harris, Kenneth and Barbara Oshman Professor of Electrical Engineering and professo

Author: RENEE TWOMBLY, p. 1, 8-9. Since 1965, entrepreneurs have struggled to find a way to capitalize on the enzyme's anti-inflammatory properties Immunologist Mark Saifer was sure, even before it had a name, that the peculiar emerald-green protein could reduce inflammation. But Saifer and the other scientists who have acted on that conviction to build up DDI Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Mountain View, Calif., couldn't say why the protein, derived from bovine testicles, worked, much less how it c

AUTHOR: JEFFREY MERVIS, pg. 3. WASHINGTON--While any conceptual link between modern scientific investigation and Christopher Columbus's landing in the New World back in 1492 is tenuous, the National Institutes of Health nevertheless plans to mark the 500th anniversary of the Italian explorer's first visit to the Western hemisphere by giving awards named after him to leaders in biomedical research. This fall NIH will bestow Christopher Columbus Discovery Awards in Biomedical Research upon a doze

AUTHOR: ROBIN EISNER, pg. 5,17,25. A poll of 166 biotech firms cites frustration with FDA and U.S. Patent Office as major concerns of companies The typical biotechnology company regards the Food and Drug Administration's lengthy approval process for new drugs as the greatest barrier to success, according to a recent survey of 166 United States biotech firms. And if FDA isn't enough of a thorn in the side of the companies, U.S. Patent Office delays and a lack of management expertise are two o

July 8, 1991 PG: 9 TY: NEWS On page 19 of the June 10, 1991, issue of The Scientist, an incorrect affiliation was given for Eric Lander, listed as a "scientist to watch" because of his effective appearances on television. Lander is a member of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research and an associate professor of biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In the story on honorary degrees that appeared on page 1 of the June 24, 1991, issue of The Scientist, the name of Charles

p.4 Federal Workplace Study Faulted House Science Panel Has Doubts On SSC . . . . . . But Some Remain Bullish On The Project Bridgen Leaves Biotech Trade Group Climate Modelers To Get Own Supercomputer In 1988 the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) began a pilot project, affecting 3,000 scientists and engineers, to try to improve personnel practices. The goal was to remove some of the administrative barriers that prevent many federal agencies from hiring and retainin

Projects, Anyway? AUTHOR: Jeffrey Mervis, p.11,13. Twice in a recent eight-day span, the United States House of Representatives debated the proper balance between "big" and "little" science. In both cases, big science won. The debates preceded separate votes on appropriations bills for fiscal year 1992. Although the bills include proposed funding for such items as low-income housing and federal water projects, most of the more than 10 hours spent discussing them centered on the value of two meg

Era Of Megaprojects? AUTHOR: Peter H. Duesberg, p.12 Scientific megaprojects costing taxpayers billions of dollars are, in some instances, the only means of reaching achievable goals. But if a megaproject becomes an undertaking that prejudicially focuses on a flawed theory promoted by a special-interest group, the project is counterproductive. The multibillion-dollar wars on AIDS and cancer are a case in point. AIDS research is now based on the hypothesis that the disease is caused by human

Cost Versus Benefits Author: Philip Perotti, p.12 I'd like to comment on the article entitled "Chemists Anxious About Discipline's Fate" in your publication dated April 1, 1991 [page 1]. As a somewhat recent university graduate (1986) with degrees in both microbiology and biochemistry, I think I have a fresh perspective on why the sciences in general, and chemistry in particular, are failing to attract young minds. We all know that the study of science is not an easy endeavor. As comparative c

AUTHOR: Donald J. Barnes,p.12 Assuming the existence of a research funding crisis, and assuming such crisis cannot be solved by quality-based reallocation of funds, Eugene Garfield's commentary of April 29, 1991 [page 14] suggests meaningful action for scientists at the grass-roots level. Even so, there seems to be a misleading theme running through his editorial--that is, additional funds are required, according to Garfield, to combat animal rights zealots, rather than to fund research directl

AUTHOR: James W. Flesher, p.12 The Forrest Mims-Arthur Caplan debate discussed in The Scientist [Feb. 18, 1991, page 11; April 29, 1991, page 12; May 13, 1991, page 14] appears to be a classic case of conflict of religious and hedonist-libertarian ethics. The one was expressed by Mims [February 18 and May 13]; by letters from Mark Hartwig, Kevin Flynn, Walter Hearn, and James Stambaugh [April 29]; and, historically, by Newton and Einstein. The other was expressed by Caplan [February 18 and May

Biomimetics: Creating Materials From Nature's Blueprints AUTHOR: ROBIN EISNER, P.14 In order to design a 21st-century, impact-resistant substance, materials scientist Mehmet Sarikaya of the University of Washington in Seattle finds inspiration in a 500-million-year-old feat of evolution--the shell of a present-day mollusk, the abalone. Following blueprints drawn from analysis of the microarchitecture of the shell, Sarikaya and colleague Ilhan Aksay have manufactured a prototype material tha

D.W. Yandell, T.A. Campbell, S.H. Dayton, R. Petersen, et al., "Oncogenic point mutations in the human retinoblastoma gene: their application to genetic counseling," New England Journal of Medicine, 321:1689-95, 1989. David W. Yandell (Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Boston): "Interest in our paper has come from diverse areas because it touches on cancer predisposition, tumor suppressor genes, and DNA-based diagnosis of hereditary disease. "Retinoblastoma is a r

P. Gregor, I. Mano, I. Maoz, M. McKeown, V.I. Teichberg, "Molecular structure of the chick cerebellar kainate-binding subunit of a putative glutamate receptor," Nature, 342:689-92, 1989. Vivian Teichberg (Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel): "In the last decade, there has been an explosive interest in brain glutamate receptors. This comes from the recognition that this set of membranous proteins plays crucial roles in brain physiology and pathology. "In contrast to the great strides being m

S.E. Barrett, D.J. Durand, C.H. Pennington, C.P. Slichter, et al., "63Cu Knight shifts in the superconducting state of YBa2Cu3O7-d (Tc=90 K)," Physical Review B, 41:6283-96, 1990. Sean Barrett, C.P. Slichter, J.P. Rice, D.M. Ginsberg (University of Illinois, Urbana): "The nature of the superconducting state in the high-temperature superconductors is currently the focus of much research in condensed-matter physics. A basic question is whether or not these new materials can be described by some

Subspecialty AUTHOR: SCOTT HULER, P.18-19 Wander by the Richards Medical Research Laboratory at the University of Pennsylvania, designed by architectural superstar Louis Kahn, and you may see aluminum foil taped to the windows. Applied to keep out the sun glare that makes working in some of the building's labs the scientific equivalent of driving through the Arizona desert, the foil is only the most visible sign of Richards' unusual reputation. The unique aesthetic design makes the Richards c

Fellowships For AIDS Researchers AUTHOR: BILLY GOODMAN, pg. 20, 25. During the mid-1980s, Irene Diamond, the widow of wealthy New York real estate executive Aaron Diamond, had been reading about AIDS. "I came to the conclusion that it was a terrible plague," she recalls, "and I wanted to get involved." Thus, the New York-based Aaron Diamond Foundation, established by her husband in 1955 to fund educational and cultural programs as well as some medical research, branched out to include AIDS fun

Support For Biomed Postdocs The Helen Hay Whitney Foundation offers three-year fellowship support, totaling $69,000, to young, M.D.- and Ph.D.-holding scientists to begin their postdoctoral training in any area of biomedicine. Designed to broaden a young researcher's base of knowledge and experience, the award may be used at any academic institution, in the United States or abroad, at which the scientist has not already studied or pursued research. Eligible candidates must be residents of Nor

Scientific Labs AUTHOR: REBECCA ANDREWS, p.23-24. Scientific laboratories have never been singled out as especially pleasant places to work. For generations, many scientists have had to put up with poor lighting, ugly furniture, and the pervasive odors of solvents and solutions. But this picture of the typical lab is changing. Facilities being built or renovated today show a strong emphasis on workers' health and safety, as well as environmental concerns, making these labs safer and more pleas