June 1992

Experts say opportunity is richest in areas where diverse fields of study intersect and where new tools thrive Given today's dismal economic climate, new science graduates aiming to gain a foothold on a professional career in research can expect to face a tougher challenge than did their counterparts in previous years. For a lot of them, according to working scientists and others interviewed for this article, the problems will be twofold: They must contend, of course, with the limited job poo

A recent document from the NRC is seen as a boost for entrepreneurs whose ventures center on the controversial technique A recently released National Research Council report on DNA fingerprinting not only puts the stamp of approval on the widely used technique, but also, according to one forensic scientist, should effectively mandate accreditation for labs preforming the test. And in the private sector, many in the business of providing DNA fingerprinting services and supplying reagents for D

In his home state and here, they cite the presidential candidate's inclination and aptitude for nurturing science The prospect of Bill Clinton as president--should scientists be concerned? Robert Wright, an environmental scientist who has worked in the Arkansas state university system under Clinton's governorship, says no. "Bill Clinton is a strong friend of the applied sciences," claims Wright, a professor of biology at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway. "He is acutely aware of w

Voters in Maryland strongly favor higher federal spending for health care and medical research, according to a recent poll commissioned by Research!America. The Alexandria, Va.- based nonprofit advocacy group sponsoring the study promotes the benefits of medical research. Seventy-six percent of those polled would increase federal spending on health care, while perennial favorites such as education and the environment fared slightly less well, with 72 percent and 68 percent, respectively, of re

For 32 years, Richard Aulerich, a professor of animal science at Michigan State University, has dedicated his work to one area, mink research. An attack in late February by the Animal Liberation Front (ALF), however, destroyed his lab and most of his current data. Aulerich now finds himself in the center of what has become an archetypal struggle between those who favor animal rights and those who say they are engineering progress through the use of live animals. Mink research at MSU began in t

The current recession has not spared professionals, and 1991-92 has been a difficult year for young scientists attempting to leave university campuses for permanent positions, whether in industry or academia. As career advisers to young scientists for a combined total of 15 years, we have never seen a year in which so many scientists have expressed doubts about continuing in research as it has traditonally been conducted. On the other hand, we have also spoken with employers offering opportunit

Your recent article on the proper employment mix for today's growing biotechnology industry (The Scientist, April 13, 1992, page 1) offers ample testimony for the importance of the scientist-to-manager transition. But it neglects the importance of the science professional who is an expert in business and management. Many of these individuals are just as capable of learning the nuances of the science behind a company's technology as are the scientists who choose to learn finance, operations, and

As an American epidemiologist working in France, I have a unique perspective on the Robert Gallo-Luc Montagnier controversy, diametrically opposed to that expressed by Edward Ahrens (The Scientist, April 13, 1992, page 3). There is an apparent evolution in many professions toward the belief that professionals are chosen, existing within a supercivilization of their peers, not capable of being understood, much less judged, by society as a whole. Ahrens seems to dismiss much of the Gallo affair

As scientists working at the Wistar Institute of Anatomy and Biology, we were surprised to read in The Scientist (March 2, 1992, page 1) that poor morale, "turmoil," and "bitter divisions" permeate the institute owing to a recent change in leadership. While recognizing the difficulties involved in any transition, we want to stress that this characterization does not reflect the attitudes of scientists who are actively engaged in perpetuating Wistar's success as an independent research institut

As we know from astronomy and physics, the deeper into space we look, the further back in time we see. The Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) satellite launched by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in 1989 is so sophisticated that it is able to peer billions of years into the past. Now, with COBE findings made public in April, it seems we have sound evidence in support of the so-called Big Bang theory of creation--a theory suggesting that all components of the material universe,

Scientists studying the genetic switches that turn cancer on and off are producing some of the most widely cited papers in medical research today. In a January report, the Philadelphia-based Institute for Scientific Information found that six of the 10 most cited papers in medicine in 1991 examined oncogenes or tumor suppressor genes. Researchers in this burgeoning field are excited because the recent advances in oncogene studies--such as identification of tumor suppressor genes and the potent

J. Buchner, M. Schmidt, M. Fuchs, R. Jaenicke, R. Rudolph, F.X. Schmid, T. Kiefhaber, "GroE facilitates refolding of citrate synthase by suppressing aggregation," Biochemistry, 30:1591-94, 1991. Johannes Buchner (Institut fr Biophysik und Physikalische Biochemie, Universitat Regensburg, Germany) and Thomas Kiefhaber (Stanford University, California): "Folding and unfolding reactions in the cell are assisted by a set of helper proteins called molecular chaperones. Of these chaperones, two protei

S. Akira, T. Hirano, T. Taga, T. Kishimoto, "Biology of multifunctional cytokines: IL 6 and related molecules (IL 1 and TNF)," FASEB Journal, 4:2860-67, 1990. Shizuo Akira (Institute for Molecular and Cellular Biology, Osaka University, Japan): "Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a pleiotropic cytokine that plays a central role in defense mechanisms, including the immune response, acute phase reaction, and hematopoiesis. Since our success in the cloning of the IL-6 cDNA in 1985, our group has been study

A.M. Kini, U. Geiser, H.H. Wang, K.D. Carlson, J.M. Williams, et al., "A new ambient-pressure organic superconductor, k-(ET)2Cu[N(CN)2]Br, with the highest transition temperature yet observed (inductive onset Tc = 11.6 K, resistive onset = 12.5 K)," Inorganic Chemistry, 29:2555-57, 1990. Aravinda M. Kini (Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Ill.): "This paper reported the discovery of an organic superconductor with the highest Tc at ambient pressure reported to date. The compound is k-(ET)2C

Using a personal computer to control laboratory instruments and automate data collection is like many things in life-- there are trade-offs. On the positive side, computerized data acquisition is usually more accurate, more consistent, and less consuming of technicians' time than are manual methods. On the other hand, someone has to set up the system. In the past, this often meant hiring a person with computer experience--a trade-off too costly for many labs. Vendors of data-acquisition softw

Doctorate or no doctorate? Newly printed bachelor's and master's diplomas in hand, many young scientists face that question every spring. Should they seek a research job right after graduation, or sign up for at least four more years of student life? Conventional wisdom is that everyone interested in research should have a Ph.D. But a few scientists have managed to excel in research without a doctorate. Their stories offer inspiration to those for whom a Ph.D. is impossible for financial or pe

New science graduates who have not yet completed their job searches may get an idea of their employment prospects by taking a look at the offers that were made to graduates of the California Institute of Technology last year. The annual Caltech student employment survey, conducted by the school's career development center, found that the mean salary offers made to June 1991 graduates were higher than those made to the previous year's class. The rise occurred despite the recession and its dampe

JOB OFFERS MADE TO CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY GRADUATES, 1991 Degree Year Number Mean Salary % Increase B.S. 1987 106 $31,450 1.5 1988 80 32,510 3.4 1989 130 33,785 3.9 1990 73 36,295 7.4 1991 67 36,450 0.4 M.S. 1987 47 35,220 3.5 1988 27 38,365 8.9 1989 54 38,900 1.4 1990 39 39,215 0.8 1991 27 41,990 7.1 Ph.D. 1987 122 42,635 3.3 1988 116 45,230 6.1 1989 73 49,800 10.1 1990 96 49,935 0.3 1991 56 54,330 8.8 Source: California Institute of Technology

Out of more than 200 nominees, Perry L. McCarty, Silas H. Palmer Professor of Civil Engineering at Stanford University, and Robert M. White, president of the National Academy of Engineering, have been awarded the Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement. The 19-year-old prize, awarded May 1, honors individuals or institutions displaying a reverence for the protection, maintenance, and improvement of the world's ecological and environmental conditions. The University of Southern California admi

Peace Dividend Slimy Characters Split Personality Move Over, Mickey Hair-Raising Possibilities Hormonal Edge Science, politics, and law intersected in a speech by Harvard Law School professor Alan Dershowitz at a recent Philadelphia fund-raiser for Israel's Weizmann Institute of Science. Dershowitz, whose keynote address followed a talk by Hadassa Degani, head of Weizmann's nuclear magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy unit, said Israel's scientific prestige could exceed its curr