November 1996

SIDEBAR: For Further Information .. Academic Job Security FLEXIBILITY WANTED: University of Minnesota regent Patricia Spence cites budgetary uncertainty. Colleges and universities all over the United States are making changes-both major and minor-to the tenure system. Some have abolished it, opting for multiyear contracts with faculty, while others have adopted new codes that make it easier to fire tenured faculty members. Like other academic employees, scientists are feeling the constraints

The industry's supporters and critics both claim that surveys support their causes; meanwhile, its boosters ponder improvements to their educational efforts. POLL POSITION: Ronnie Cummins claims that the Pure Food Campaign's surveys reveal negative attitudes toward biotech. Biotechnology representatives paint a rosy picture of the industry's future, portraying it as a rising star gaining influence among commercial interests and policymakers. But surveys reveal a wide range of public reaction

LUCKY STARS: Harold Kroto was studying carbon clusters when he and coworkers discovered buckyballs. Like many of their predecessors, the winners of the 1996 Nobel Prizes in science have found that the media attention accompanying the honor provides an excellent opportunity to speak out on behalf of important causes. Last month, five of the eight newly named science laureates used their "bully pulpit" to voice concerns about research funding at a National Science Foundation news conference. Th

As scientists answer complex questions about how humans think, perceive the world, and behave, age-old divisions between the "hard" and "soft" sciences are beginning to crumble. Researchers in the life and physical sciences increasingly rely on fundamental principles from social, behavioral, and economic science to resolve complex problems and develop new technology. The National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health are further blurring the lines, funding initiatives that co

"Contemporary Problems in Science Jobs" by Arthur E. Sowers can be found at http://www.access.digex.net/~arthures/homepage.htm. The American Association for Higher Education (AAHE) is publishing a series of monographs called "New Pathways: Faculty Careers and Employment for the 21st Century," several of which are particularly relevant to the issue of tenure. To obtain any of these monographs, telephone AAHE Publications at (202) 293-6440, Ext. 11, or write to AAHE at One Dupont Circle, Suite

By Eric Albert Email: ealbert@world.std.com ACROSS 1 Up quark + up quark + down quark 4 Breast enlarger 10 Natural prefix? 11 Letter used for angles 12 Gram-positivity evidence 13 Bone-marrow tumor 14 Big toe 15 Median, for one 17 Mouthy? 19 Nevus 21 Clave starter 22 ATP, after conversion 23 Scottish chemist who discovered carbon dioxide 25 Some taxa 27 Gnawing aid 30 Atom, after gaining electrons 31 Clinical _____ 32 Blood group classification system 33 Diaphragm or iris, e.g. 34 Mamma protub

We are seeking participants for research on commuter marriages and commuter consensual relationships [see, for example, E. Culotta, The Scientist, Sept. 30, 1991, page 19]. We will examine decision-making, logistics, social life, and other issues in commuting relationships that are successful and that have failed. If you are now living, or have in the past lived, in a relationship in which you and your partner (of the opposite or same sex) lived apart in separate domiciles for at least three da

It was enlightening to read the story of the failure of Mobil Corp.'s appeal against the award to Myron Mehlman in his wrongful dismissal case [T.W. Durso, The Scientist, Sept. 2, 1996, page 1]. I would have no other source for such an important story. It seems that Mehlman was punished for speaking the truth. That he prevailed against the rich and powerful, while rare (as attested by your commentators), offers hope to those employees who, in similar circumstances, might feel intimidated. I hop

I found Dan L. Burk's Opinion article (The Scientist, Sept. 16, 1996, page 9) interesting and educational. Not being a lawyer, I did not appreciate how many of the terms in the report carry significant legal baggage. I agree with Burk that increasing the legalism of investigations of misconduct in science is unwise and undesirable. Unfortunately, the Commission on Research Integrity is hardly leading the way in such a move. As Burk notes, "more and more cases of scientific misconduct are being

Dan L. Burk, law professor at Seton Hall University, wrote ("Legal Process Presented In Ryan Report Requires Reconsideration," The Scientist, Sept. 16, 1996, page 9), "To that end, the major focus of misconduct inquiry by the scientific community will be to determine the empirical demonstrability of a researcher's claims, to purge the record of fabricated or incorrect data, and to discourage future conduct that would tend to corrupt the acquisition of certified knowledge" (emphasis added). The

Edited by: Steven Benowitz S.J. Silber, Z.P. Nagy, J. Liu, H. Godoy, P. Devroey, A.C. Van Steirteghem, "Conventional in vitro fertilization versus intracytoplasmic sperm injection for patients requiring microsurgical sperm injection," Human Reproduction, 9:1705-9, 1994. (Cited in more than 50 papers as of October 1996) Comments by Sherman J. Silber, St. Luke's Hospital, St. Louis For years, one of the most frustrating causes of male infertility was the congenital absence of the vas deferens,

Edited by: Steven Benowitz R.A. Shimkets, D.G. Warnock, C.M. Bositis, C. Nelson-Williams, J.H. Hansson, M. Schambelan, J.R. Gill, S. Ulick, R.V. Milora, J.W. Findling, C.M. Canessa, B.C. Rossier, R.P. Lifton, "Liddle's syndrome: Heritable human hypertension caused by mutations of the beta subunit of the epithelial sodium channel," Cell, 79:407-14, 1994. (Cited in more than 70 papers as of October 1996) Comments by Richard A. Shimkets, Department of Genetics and Howard Hughes Medical Institute,