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The Online Newsletter of the
Board on International Scientific Organizations
Issue #14, Summer/Fall 2005
Dear Readers:
Our board’s busy summer is rapidly turning into a busy fall. While some delegations and staff are recovering from union congresses and general assemblies, others are preparing to attend them. In particular, we are dedicating considerable time and attention to the ICSU’s 28th General Assembly, which will take place in Shanghai and Suzhou, China, from 16-22 October. Michael Clegg, Cynthia Bell, and Hassan Virji will be the U.S. representatives to this General Assembly. One of the most important items for discussion will be ICSU’s Strategic Plan for 2006-2012. We all look forward to meeting with delegations from the unions and from other countries at this important meeting.
While we have reported that the overall visa situation for foreign students, scholars, and scientists continues to improve, we remain diligent on this issue. Some in Congress and elsewhere are questioning whether authorities have adequate information about the activities and whereabouts of students from countries that sponsor terrorism – even though the federal government already has mechanisms (the SEVIS and US-Visit Programs, for example) to monitor when international students enter and leave the country, change majors, or move to new addresses. Others are concerned about economic or military espionage that may be conducted by visitors to the United States from other countries. BISO staff was pleased, therefore, that the National Academy of Engineering President Wm. A. Wulf was invited to provide testimony at a congressional hearing on "Sources and Methods of Foreign Nationals Engaged in Economic and Military Espionage.” Dr. Wulf urged members to remember "the important contributions foreign-born scholars, scientists, and engineers have made and continue to make” toward the success and security of the United States. Please see his full testimony at http://www.nationalacademies.org/morenews/20050915.html.
We hope you enjoy this issue of BISO News and look forward to receiving any comments or questions you might have.
Wendy D. White
Director, BISO
BISO Briefs
Leal Anne Mertes (1957-2005)
During the recent board meeting members and staff received the sad news that former board member, Leal Anne Mertes, had died. Leal had been involved with this board – in all of its many forms – since 1997. She served with distinction, enthusiasm, and intelligence and the board and staff will miss her timely and insightful interventions. We extend our deepest sympathy to her friends and colleagues and to her family.
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Foreign Students Displaced by Katrina
The International Visitors Office has updated its site to include a page with links to information for foreign students and scientists displaced by Hurricane Katrina. This listing includes links to government and association sites that have posted useful information about visa policies, lost travel documents, assistance for displaced students and professors, emergency housing, etc. Information for Students, Scholars, and Scientists Displaced by Hurricane Katrina
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In a recent congressional hearing on Sources and Methods of Foreign Nationals Engaged in Economic and Military Espionage, NAE President Wm. A. Wulf, urged members to remember "the important contributions foreign-born scholars, scientists, and engineers have made and continue to make" toward the success and security of the United States.
Dr. Wulf’s full testimony.
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Pakistan Digital Library Project Interview
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BISO news interviewed Kamran Naim, Project Coordinator at the Pakistan Higher Education Commission (HEC), during a recent visit to Washington, DC. Kamran is responsible for managing the Pakistan Digital Library Project and worked directly with BISO to negotiate discounted access to on-line journals and databases from American scientific societies for universities in Pakistan.
How did the Pakistan Digital Library Project get started?
In 2003 Pakistan signed a bilateral Science and Technology Cooperation Agreement with the United States through which both sides allocated funds to promote S&T capacity building projects through collaboration with U.S. agencies. In response to this opportunity, the Pakistan Higher Education Commission (HEC) interviewed members of the scientific research sector in Pakistan to determine the information needs of the scientific community. Based on this we decided which on-line scientific journals and databases were needed to enhance the scientific capacity of the science and engineering sectors. From there we proposed the Pakistan Digital Library project to the U.S. Department of State and were awarded the largest grant of the bilateral agreement to implement the project.
Why did you decide to work with the National Academies?
Through my affiliation with INASP [International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications] I learned that BISO already had established relationships with numerous scientific societies in the United States. Partnering with the National Academies was crucial to facilitating relationships which we were having difficulty to forge independently. INASP put me in touch with BISO Director, Wendy White and we formed a partnership to negotiate the agreements.
How did you find the response from the publishers?
All participating publishers were extremely supportive of the program and were able to offer their content at deep discounts. The preferential pricing accurately reflects the research capacity in Pakistan and most importantly is financially sustainable for the HEC to maintain for future years of subscription. We would like to express our gratitude to the American Chemical Society, the American Physical Society, the American Institute for Physics, the American Association of Physics Teachers, the Optical Society of America, the American Society for Microbiology, the American Society for Civil Engineering, the American Society for Mechanical Engineering, the American Society for Agricultural Engineers, the Association for Computing Machinery, the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science for their generous support.
What discounts were offered?
Typically discounts ranged from 90-98% of the list prices of the journals.
What has been the response from the Pakistan scientific community?
The response has been overwhelmingly positive. The project began in 2005 and in the first six months of the project we saw over 100,000 downloads. Prior to the project, HEC found in a survey of 44 public-sector universities that only 15 had subscriptions to CD-ROM databases and only four had access to online journal databases. Now we are in the process of partnering with publishers to educate end users on the systems and bring awareness of available resources so we expect the numbers to greatly increase.
What’s next?
Following the Pakistan Digital Library Project, I was asked to work with BISO and the Department of State to help with an initiative in Iraq. Similarly, the Iraqi Virtual Science Library Program will assist Iraq in building upon its scientific capacity through access to on-line journals and databases. We hope to have that in place in 2006.
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US Committee for IIASA member, Thomas Schelling, won the Nobel Prize in Economics for his application of game theory to issues ranging from global security to racial segregation. His work seeks to expand explanations for social, political, and economic phenomena by taking into account the way people interact with one another.
Simon Levin, chairman of the U.S. NMO for IIASA, has been selected to receive the Kyoto Prize in Basic Sciences for his work in environmental science from the Inamori Foundation. The award will be presented to Professor Levin "for the establishment of the field of spatial ecology and the proposition of the biosphere as a complex adaptive system." More information on the Kyoto Prize and on Professor Levin's work can be found on the Inamori Foundation and Princeton Web sites respectively.
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Survey on International Collaborations in Social and Behavioral Science
The national committee of Psychological Science is conducting a survey on international collaborative research in social and behavioral science. The committee will collect short structured narrative reports about the experiences of those who have participated in international collaborations as part of an effort to foster long-term effective scientific partnerships. The responses will be used to produce a synthesis of productive approaches. Based on the data collected, the committee will convene a workshop on international collaborative research, which will highlight case studies of successful collaborations, identify barriers to effective collaborations, and outline actions that can assist researchers in overcoming obstacles.
The committee is looking for volunteers to participate in the survey. Please contact Ms. Amy Franklin at afranklin@nas.edu for further information.
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Travel Grant Programs
Each year committees in the BISO network offer various travel grant programs in an effort to encourage participation by younger scientists to engage in international scientific partnerships with the global scientific community. This summer five distinctive travel grant programs were offered.
IUPAC Young Observers
Nine U.S. scientists (under the age of 45) participated in the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) Young Observer Program. The program funded through generous support of U.S. Company Associates enabled awardees to travel to the IUPAC Congress and General Assembly in Beijing, China in August. Recipients of the award were paired with experienced IUPAC members in a mentorship program, which enabled them to familiarize themselves with the inner workings of the IUPAC Divisions and Committees.
Most Young Observers also applied for supplementary funding from the USNC to travel to Chinese universities and institutions in an effort to foster international collaborations and relationships with their peers.The Young Observer program allows selected participants to experience the global efforts that impact the scientific community and to further their careers and international reputation by establishing contacts and participating in a network that leads the global chemistry enterprise.
IIASA YSSP
Nine graduate students from U.S. universities participated in the 2005 IIASA Young Scientists Summer Program (YSSP), which each year brings together fifty to sixty advanced graduate students from around the world to work on research projects in collaboration with senior IIASA researchers. The YSSP offers an unparalleled opportunity to graduate students to work in an international setting on a project that explicitly aims to bridge the gap between technical expertise and policy relevance. At the end of the summer, the students have a paper resulting from their IIASA work, frequently publishable, as well as a ready-made international network of colleagues and an experience that many attest has changed their careers. One returning student in 2005 began the requested YSSP evaluation with the comment “The Young Summer Scientist Program has been the absolute highlight of my graduate studies in the field of energy and environment.”
The U.S. Committee for IIASA is able to provide a travel grant to each YSSP fellow, sufficient to cover travel to Vienna and to offer a modest stipend thanks to a grant from the National Science Foundation. This year’s YSSP Fellows worked on seven of IIASA’s projects including energy, technology, land-use, international negotiation, forestry, air pollution, and ecology. The U.S. Committee for IIASA encourages former fellows to give talks about their experiences at IIASA, and anyone who would like to invite a YSSP alumnus to speak should contact Amy Franklin at BISO (afranklin@nas.edu).
Bioscience Travel Grants
Three USNCs in the biosciences received funding from NSF to support the participation of young scientists and speakers at international meetings this summer. The meetings were:
- The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Federation of European Biochemical Societies held a joint conference covering the broad theme of the “Protein World” in Budapest, Hungary, July 2-7. Ten U.S. students and young scientists received awards of $1,200 and 15 women and minority speakers received $800 each.
- The International Union of Microbiological Societies Congress and General Assembly took place July 23-28 in San Francisco. Fifteen U.S. students and young scientists received awards of $1,200.
- The International Union of Pure and Applied Biophysics Congress and General Assembly was held August 27-September 1 in Montpellier, France. Fifteen U.S. students and young scientists received awards of $1,500 funded by the USNC
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Information and Data
Strategies for Permanent Access to Scientific Information in Southern Africa: Focus on Health and Environmental Information for Sustainable Development
The U.S. National Committee for CODATA, in collaboration with the CODATA Task Group on Preservation and Archiving of Scientific and Technical Data in Developing Countries and the South African National Committee for CODATA, held an international workshop on access to scientific information in the Southern Africa Development Community. The workshop was hosted by the National Research Foundation in Pretoria, South Africa from 5-7 September. The meetings reviewed the current status of practices for sharing of and permanent access to scientific information resources; identified the relevant scientific, legal and policy, institutional and economic, and management and technical factors; identified follow-up activities; and provided a networking opportunity for workshop participants across discipline, institutional, and national boundaries.
The agenda for the core three-day workshop included: 1) plenary presentations and panel discussions by policy makers and foreign experts with particular focus on policy issues; 2) poster presentations and technical demonstrations highlighting local, regional, and international projects and initiatives that foster the sharing of scientific data and information resources to promote sustainable development; and 3) parallel thematic sessions focusing on health and biomedical data, earth and environmental science data, biodiversity data, and indigenous knowledge systems in the health and environment areas, and the related STM literature.
For more information, please see http://stardata.nrf.ac.za/html/workshopCodata1.html.
International Workshop on Creating the Information Commons for e-Science
On 1-2 September, CODATA—together with ICSU, ICSTI, INASP, UNESCO, TWAS, and OECD—co-organized a major workshop on the policies and practices that support open access to data and information in public science in both the developed and developing world. Nine case studies of successful models were presented. The workshop was co-chaired by Prof. Paul David, of Stanford and Oxford Universities, and Paul Uhlir, director of the BISO Office of International S&T Information Programs. The meeting resulted in the announcement of a proposed initiative that will be presented and discussed in Tunis just prior to the World Summit on the Information Society in mid-November. Additional information about the workshop and the initiative may be found at: http://www.codataweb.org/UNESCOmtg/.
CODATA-CENDI Forum on the National Science Board Report on Long-Lived Digital Data Collections
The U.S. National Committee for CODATA and the interagency CENDI Group co-organized a forum discussion at the National Academies on July 14. Representatives from government agencies, non profits, and academia discussed the recent National Science Board (NSB) report on Long-Lived Digital Data Collections: Enabling Research and Education in the 21st Century. The forum participants considered several of the report’s recommendations, both in the context of NSF and other institutions in general, in order to identify general approaches or universal strategies.
Scientific and Technological Issues
How Well Do We Know? Communicating Scientific Uncertainty to the Public
There is never true certainty in science, only varying degrees of uncertainty. This concept is difficult to convey to the public, and even scientists sometimes struggle with it. Yet whenever science and the public interest intersect, it is critical to communicate uncertainty to the public in an understandable way. This is especially important in cases of natural hazards such as earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, floods, and storm surges, as well as in cases of public policy such as assessing climate change and the human impact on climate. At the upcoming AGU meeting, USNC/IUGG members Jeff Freymueller, David Jackson, William Boicourt, Kevin Johnson, and Larry Brown will convene a session on communicating scientific uncertainty. This session will bring together scientists, emergency managers, educators, and other professionals at the interface of science and the public to promote better understanding of the power and limitations of the predictive natural sciences.
Frontiers in Soil Science Research
A workshop, conceived by the USNC for Soil Science, on Frontiers in Soil Science Research will be held at the National Academy of Sciences building, December 12-14, 2005. The workshop will convene experts in soil science and associated disciplines to identify emerging research opportunities and to address the integration of the biological, physical, geological, and chemical sciences within soil science. Speakers and participants will identify research priorities and potential breakthroughs within soil science, including interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary research and technological and computational needs to advance soil science. On the evening of December 12, the workshop will open with a keynote presentation by Brent Clothier of the Horticultural and Food Research Institute of New Zealand. The workshop will continue on December 13-14 with topic sessions headed by lead speakers, followed by comments from pre-selected discussants and then a general discussion among participants. Additional information about the workshop, including the agenda, list of speakers and registration will soon be available on the workshop website.
Synchroneity of Quaternary Events
Lisa Grant and Laurie Brown (members of the national committee for IUGG) in collaboration with Ken Verosub and Jim Beget (members of the national committee of INQUA) are organizing a session at the December American Geological Union (AGU) meeting in San Francisco. The session, Synchroneity of Quaternary Events, will focus on challenges and developments in addressing temporal uncertainty and significance of Quaternary events. The goal of this session is to foster cross-disciplinary discussion of challenges in dating and correlating Quaternary events in paleoseismology, archaeology, volcanology, climatic change, and related fields.
Union News
Several U.S. scientists were elected to leadership positions during the summer 2005 Union General Assemblies:
USNC member Wilma Olson was elected vice president of IUPAB at the August congress in Montpellier, France.
Elsa Reichmanis, former USNC/IUPAC member, was elected to the IUPAC Bureau during the August General Assembly in Beijing, China.
USNC participant Alexander Sawchuk was elected treasurer of ICO at the meeting in Chanchung, China held in August.
Keith Klugman a member of the USNC, was elected vice president of IUMS in San Francisco this summer.
International Association of Hydrological Sciences (IAHS)
Jim Shuttleworth, a delegate of the USNC for the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG), attended the IAHS General Assembly held in Brazil in April 2005. IAHS provides a forum for hydrological scientists in developing countries to have their work recognized, through symposia, workshops, and publication in the Hydrological Sciences Journal. A highlight of the assembly was the initiation by IAHS of a decade-long science program on Prediction in Ungauged Basins (PUB). PUB has stimulated a new generation of young international hydrologists to tackle practical problems through formulating and implementing appropriate science programs towards achieving major advances in the capacity to make predictions in ungauged basins.
IAHS is one of seven semi-autonomous associations that comprise IUGG. A representative of the USNC/IUGG attends the general assemblies of all seven IUGG associations. |
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USNC member Arnold Demain was presented with the IUMS Arima Award given to an individual deemed to have made outstanding contributions to applied microbiology. The award was announced during the 2005 IUMS congresses in San Francisco in July.
Philip Coppens, an ex officio member of the national committee from 1989 until 1999, received the Ewald Prize during the opening ceremony of the IUCr Congress. The prize, for outstanding contributions to the science of crystallography, consists of a medal, a certificate and an award of USD 30,000.
Issue of Full INQUA Membership in ICSU is on the General Assembly Agenda
Twenty ICSU member unions and countries have sent letters to the ICSU Secretariat in support of the application from INQUA for full Scientific Union Membership in ICSU. As such, the issue of full INQUA membership in ICSU will be on the agenda of the next ICSU General Assembly, which will take place October 17-21 in China. INQUA President John Clague will address the General Assembly on this matter followed by general discussion and a vote.
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Travel Grants
IUPAC Young Observers
Nine U.S. scientists (under the age of 45) participated in the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) Young Observer Program. The program funded through generous support of U.S. Company Associates enabled awardees to travel to the IUPAC Congress and General Assembly in Beijing, China in August. Recipients of the award were paired with experienced IUPAC members in a mentorship program, which enabled them to familiarize themselves with the inner workings of the IUPAC Divisions and Committees.
Most Young Observers also applied for supplementary funding from the USNC to travel to Chinese universities and institutions in an effort to foster international collaborations and relationships with their peers.The Young Observer program allows selected participants to experience the global efforts that impact the scientific community and to further their careers and international reputation by establishing contacts and participating in a network that leads the global chemistry enterprise.
IIASA YSSP
Nine graduate students from U.S. universities participated in the 2005 IIASA Young Scientists Summer Program (YSSP), which each year brings together fifty to sixty advanced graduate students from around the world to work on research projects in collaboration with senior IIASA researchers. The YSSP offers an unparalleled opportunity to graduate students to work in an international setting on a project that explicitly aims to bridge the gap between technical expertise and policy relevance. At the end of the summer, the students have a paper resulting from their IIASA work, frequently publishable, as well as a ready-made international network of colleagues and an experience that many attest has changed their careers. One returning student in 2005 began the requested YSSP evaluation with the comment “The Young Summer Scientist Program has been the absolute highlight of my graduate studies in the field of energy and environment.”
The U.S. Committee for IIASA is able to provide a travel grant to each YSSP fellow, sufficient to cover travel to Vienna and to offer a modest stipend thanks to a grant from the National Science Foundation. This year’s YSSP Fellows worked on seven of IIASA’s projects including energy, technology, land-use, international negotiation, forestry, air pollution, and ecology. The U.S. Committee for IIASA encourages former fellows to give talks about their experiences at IIASA, and anyone who would like to invite a YSSP alumnus to speak should contact Amy Franklin at BISO (afranklin@nas.edu).
Bioscience Travel Grants
Three USNCs in the biosciences received funding from NSF to support the participation of young scientists and speakers at international meetings this summer. The meetings were:
- The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the Federation of European Biochemical Societies held a joint conference covering the broad theme of the “Protein World” in Budapest, Hungary, July 2-7. Ten U.S. students and young scientists received awards of $1,200 and 15 women and minority speakers received $800 each.
- The International Union of Microbiological Societies Congress and General Assembly took place July 23-28 in San Francisco. Fifteen U.S. students and young scientists received awards of $1,200.
- The International Union of Pure and Applied Biophysics Congress and General Assembly was held August 27-September 1 in Montpellier, France. Fifteen U.S. students and young scientists received awards of $1,500 funded by the USNC
We would like to welcome the following members to the national committee network:
Oscar Barbarin, III, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USNC/IUPsyS
Sadie C. Bragg, City University of New York, USNC/MI
Guang Cao, Exxon Mobil Engineering Co., USNC/IUPAC
William Chameides, Environmental Defense, USNMO/IIASA
Luis Echegoyen, Clemson University, USNC/IUPAC
Samy El-Shall, Virginia Commonwealth University, USNC/IUPAC
Barbara Entwisle, University of North Carolina, USNMO/IIASA
Alfinio Flores, Arizona State University, USNC/MI
John Grosso, Bristol-Myers Squibb, USNC/IUPAC
Diane F. Halpern, Claremont McKenna College, USNC/IUPsyS
Roger Howe, Yale University, USNC/MI
James Jackson, University of Michigan, USNC/IUPsyS
Jody Kocsis, Lubrizol Corporation, USNC/IUPAC
Charles Kolstad ,University of California, Santa Barbara, USNMO/IIASA
Jerry Melillo , Marine Biological Laboratory, USNMO/IIASA
William Nordhaus, Yale University, USNMO/IIASA
Stephen W. Porges, University of Illinois, Chicago, USNC/IUPsyS
Howard Raiffa, Harvard University, USNMO/IIASA
Douglas C. Ravenel, University of Rochester, USNC/MI
Joseph G. Rosenstein, Rutgers University, USNC/MI
Thomas C. Schelling, University of Maryland, USNMO/IIASA
William H. Schlesinger, Duke University, USNMO/IIASA
Patrick (Rick) Scott, New Mexico State University, USNC/MI
Judith Torney-Purta, University of Maryland, USNC/IUPsyS
We would also like to thank those members who have recently completed their service:
Norman Abeles, Michigan State University, USNC/IUPsyS
C. Jacyn Baker, U.S. Department of Agriculture, USNC/IUMS
Judith Benham, Twin Cities Venture Capital Group, USNC/IUPAC
Kenneth Berns, University of Florida College of Medicine, USNC/IUMS
David Bonner, Ideation International, Inc., USNC/IUPAC
David Brautigan, University of Virginia, USNC/IUBMB
Kay Deaux, CUNY Graduate School & University Center, USNC/IUPsyS
Arnold Demain, Drew University, USNC/IUMS
Michael Donoghue, Yale University, USNC/IUBS
Carol Anne Fierke, University of Michigan, USNC/IUBMB
James Hamrick, University of Georgia, USNC/IUBS
Eva Harris, University of California-Berkeley, USNC/IUBMB
Brian Mahy, Center for Disease Control & Prevention, USNC/IUMS
Walter Moos, MitoKor, USNC/IUBMB
Donald Potts, University of California, Santa Cruz, USNC/IUBS
Doug Raber, GreenPoint Science, USNC/IUPAC
Carol Shearer, University of Illinois at Urbana, USNC/IUMS
Paul Slovic, Decision Research, USNC/IUPsyS
Karen Strier, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USNC/IUBS
John Swets, BBN Technologies, USNC/IUPsyS
Paul Weiss, Pennsylvania State University, USNC/IUPAC
We would like to announce the following change in committee leadership:
Mark Cesa, Innovene USA, LLC has been appointed chair of the USNC/IUPAC. Former chair, Mike Jaffe, New Jersey Institute of Technology will continue to serve as an ex-officio member of the committee. Francis (Skip) M. Fennell, McDaniel College, is the new chair of USNC/MI. Daniel Goroff, Harvard University will remain on the committee as an ex-officio member.
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