October 1995

Candidates For Nobel Author: NEERAJA SANKARAN Sidebar: Highly Referenced Scientists As one of the oldest and richest awards for intellectual achievement, the Nobel Prize is also perhaps the most coveted prize in the world. With nearly $1 million allocated to winners in the categories of physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and economics, and a long selection process shrouded in secrecy, it is also one of the most prestigious. It's only natural then, in the weeks of tense

Sidebar: The Rule of Law The past few decades have seen the ascendancy of a new class of science gadfly-the professional bioethicist. During this time, researchers have sometimes found themselves in a warring stance with these largely unbidden critics of biomedicine-and skirmishes between them are not unheard of, even yet. Today, however, the two professions are working hard to build a constructive relationship within which to address the important issues being raised by research advances in

American Society of Plant Physiologists 15501 Monona Dr., Rockville, Md. 20855-2768 (301) 251-0560 Fax: (301) 279-2996 E-mail: skelly@aspp.org 5,400 members Executive director: Kenneth M. Beam Journal: Plant Physiology Agriculture Network Information Center: http://www.agnic.org BioTechnology Permits Home Page: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/BBEP/BP/ General Agbiotech Information Library: http://www.lights.com/gaba/library.html National Agricultural Library

Location Author: PETER GWYNNE Having survived a spring and summer of discontent, two manifestations of science humor have emerged in a new location. Their efforts to laugh at-and with-science, scientists, and everything associated with them proceed unabated, to the general relief of some Nobel laureates and others who like their science spiced with satire. STAR-STUDDED SPINOFF: AIR board member Karen Hopkin's "Studmuffins of Science" calendar features researcher models like Brian Scottolini o

Commitment To Discovery Author: MYRNA E. WATANABE Junk bonds were the financial cause célèbre in the 1980s, but in the mid-'90s, the mega-merger-in media, banking, or pharmaceuticals-has taken center stage. Although it may be argued that all such deals revolve around the bottom line, profits, and increased stock prices, for drug companies, the directions they follow as a result of these monster corporate pairings take on an added dimension: Lives depend upon the drugs they manufacture.

Efforts Author: KAREN YOUNG KREEGER Sidebar: Sequence of Events A $20 million federal civil suit filed by a biotechnology startup charges that a Columbia University researcher associated with the company breached his duties as a corporate official by helping to place complementary DNA (cDNA) libraries he developed into the public domain rather than with the firm. The case, which at press time had been scheduled for trial November 17, adds another chapter to the often-tumultuous saga of these

The following time line, detailing events relating to Genome Technologies' suit against Bento Soares and cDNA sequencing efforts in general, was culled from interviews conducted by The Scientist as well as information contained in court pleadings, statements, and media reports. The Integrated Molecular Analysis of Genome Expression (IMAGE) Consortium forms as an informal, ad hoc collaboration among colleagues to freely share complementary DNA (cDNA) libraries. The consortium is started by Greg

While scientists and bioethicists work out their relative contributions to ethical debates, both say that many of the most important issues will eventually be resolved by yet another professional group-lawyers. The regulations and policy guidelines produced by various federal panels and commissions are often largely written by lawyer members. In addition, researchers and ethicists say that, given the social and economic realities of present-day society, new laws will be needed to fully guarante

Following is a list of a dozen life scientists whose papers published during the period 1981-94 were the most cited during that period, according to the Philadelphia-based Institute for Scientific Information. Previous Nobelists have been excluded. (For a list of the most-cited scientists for the period 1981-90, see E. Garfield, A.W. Dorof, Theoretical Medicine, 13:117-35,1992.) Will any of them be honored with the Nobel this year? 1981-94 NAME ARTICLES CITATIONS Robert G. Gallo 808 52,489 Ber

Competition Author: HENRY I. MILLER America learned long ago that what's good for General Motors isn't necessarily good for the country. This axiom applies to the biotechnology industry, as well. The biotech industry's major trade group-the monolithic, Washington, D.C.-based Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO)-has been part of the problem, rather than the solution, on a variety of regulatory issues during the past decade. They were at it again in a big way in July. In fact, the organiz

Beckman Instruments Inc. Bio-Rad Laboratories Boehringer Mannheim Biochemicals Inc. New England BioLabs Inc. Peninsula Laboratories Inc. Perkin-Elmer Corp. Applied Biosystems Division PerSeptive Diagnostics Inc. Pierce Chemical Co. R&D Systems Inc. Stratagene Cloning Systems Tropix Inc. (The Scientist, Vol:9, #19, pg.19 , October 2, 1995) (Copyright © The Scientist, Inc.)

BRIAN DULING, Robert M. Berne Professor of Molecular Physiology and Biological Physics and director, Cardiovascular Research Center, University of Virginia, Charlottesville "The Scientist discusses the spectrum of political and social events in a way that keeps members of the scientific community ." Brian Duling, past president of the American Physiological Society, studies the regulation of vascular transport of oxygen to tissue. His ground-breaking work identified oxygen-diffusion patterns

I appreciated your article on physics dissidents (B. Goodman, The Scientist, May 15, 1995, page 3). It was good, balanced coverage. The "dissidents" are mainly in the wrong, but, as Lewis Epstein was quoted in the article, "they have their heart in the right place," and seem to be very energetic. In such a case, they deserve more expression rather than censorship. Generally, too much control over ideas tends to legitimize even bad ideas. After all, why is it necessary to squelch weak ideas? C

In your May 15, 1995 article entitled "Veteran Whistleblowers Advise Other Would-Be 'Ethical Resisters' to Carefully Weigh Personal Consequences Before Taking Action" [F. Hoke, page 1], you indicate that some have said that the National Academy of Sciences' advice in its guidance document, On Being a Scientist: Responsible Conduct in Research, regarding reporting instances of misconduct, was "facile, even irresponsible." In summarizing the advice, you indicate that the academy advises beginnin

This pressure may result in "author inflation"-giving byline credit to individuals who have made only trivial contributions to published studies. For example, it is not unheard of for laboratory or department heads to routinely add their names to the publications of their staff. Also, some individuals who provide access to essential experimental samples, research facilities, or patient populations expect authorship as a quid pro quo. Furthermore, less well-known authors may invite prominent rese

Purpose Author: KATHRYN S. BROWN SIDEBAR: Plant Science Resource Plant biologists are more than just highly educated green thumbs. Armed with new technology, researchers are engineering plants to tackle some of society's nettlesome problems. And plant biologists point out that transgenic studies today could yield vegetation able to deliver vaccines, clean the environment, or manufacture chemicals tomorrow. MAKING HAY: Wisconsin plan physiologist Robert Goodman notes that industry funds the

M. Muller, J. Briscoe, C. Laxton, D. Guschin, A. Ziemiecki, O. Silvennoinen, A.G. Harpur, G. Barblerl, B.A. Witthuhn, C. Schindler, S. Pellegrini, A.F. Wilks, J.N. Ihle, G. Stark, I.M. Kerr, "The protein tyrosine kinase JAK1 complements defects in interferon-a/b and g signal transduction," Nature, 366:129-35, 1993. (Cited in more than 150 publications through September 1995) Z. Zhong, Z.L. Wen, J.E. Darnell, Jr., "STAT3-a STAT family member activated by tyrosine phosphorylation in response to

How To Ask The Right Questions In Assessing An Academic Job Offer Author: KARL W. LANKS Editor's Note: In the recently published second edition of Academic Environment: A Handbook for Evaluating Employment Opportunities in Science (Washington, D.C., Taylor & Francis, 1995), author Karl W. Lanks provides a detailed system for assessing the atmosphere, working conditions, and productivity of various types of research environments. In the following sometimes acerbic excerpt, Lanks-head of the dep

California Biotech Firm Author: KAREN YOUNG KREEGER Igor Gonda, 47, assumed the newly created position of vice president of research and development at Aradigm Corp., a privately held biotech firm in Hayward, Calif., on September 25. Gonda is leaving his post as senior scientist and group leader of pharmaceutics at South San Francisco, Calif., biotech giant Genentech Inc. in order to develop new drug-delivery systems at the company. Aradigm currently employs about 25 scientists. Gonda will be

New Position As President Of Entire UC System Author: NEERAJA SANKARAN Psychologist Richard C. Atkinson, former chancellor of the University of California, San Diego, and director of the National Science Foundation, assumed his new duties as president of the University of California (UC) system on October 1, at UC headquarters in Oakland. Atkinson, 66, succeeds Jack W. Peltason, who held the post for the past three years. Atkinson is the 17th president in the university's 127-year history. I

ACROSS 1 Contracting organ 4 Chemist's container 9 Natural sunscreen 10 Substance used to convert one substance into another 11 Chest protection 12 Vena ____ 13 Type of brain wave 15 Blood pigment 16 Early scientist 18 Unnatural 20 Ph.D. exam, often 23 Being 32 degrees, say 24 ____ Test (carcinogen detector) 25 Blood vessel 27 Unexpressed, recessive trait possessor 28 Modified base present in some tRNAs 29 Possible cause of pallor and weakness 30 Long terminal ____ 1 Brain function 2 Like ma

SIDEBAR: Selected Suppliers of Immunoassays and Assay Systems Immunoassays combine principles of immunology and chemistry into tests that are used by scientists in practically every discipline, including fields as diverse as molecular biology and environmental science. In research applications, immunoassays such as immunoblotting (detecting membrane-bound proteins), immunohistochemistry (cell or tissue staining), and enzyme immunoassays provide a sensitive and specific means of detecting targe

By the end of next year, United States Department of Energy researchers hope to build a new computer powerful enough to engage in virtual nuclear explosions so realistic that real-world bomb tests could become obsolete. The computer-development project responds to President Bill Clinton's call for a "science-based stockpile stewardship program" to maintain a safe, secure, and reliable nuclear deterrent without underground testing. Key to the proposed simulation approach to testing will be crea