COSEPUP Meetings Schedule

2009

September 3-4 COSEPUP Meeting, Washington, DC

December 3-4 COSEPUP Meeting, Washington, DC

June 2009

NEWS FROM THE PROJECTS

[1] The NAS/NAE/IOM welcome a new director to oversee the work of the Committee. William “Bill” Ostendorff arrived on board with the May 2009 meeting to bring a new generation of staff leadership to this important committee.  He comes to us from serving as Principal Deputy Administrator of DOE/NNSA.  He is trained as an engineer and a lawyer, has served as a senior Congressional committee staff member and as a presidential appointee, and his Navy career encompassed not only commanding a submarine fleet, but also chairing a department at the Naval Academy. He can be reached at the main COSEPUP number, 202-334-2424.

[2] The new report on “Science and Technology for America’s Progress: Ensuring the Best Presidential Appointments in the New Administration” was released in September and the published report became available the week of the November election. Chair John Edward Porter, former member of Congress, immediately began briefings, and the transition team for President-Elect Obama moved quickly to name a new presidential science adviser and senior science appointments in DOE and NOAA.

[3] COSEPUP’s ad hoc committee on “Ensuring the Utility and Integrity of Research Data in a Digital Age” is moving forward with its study, chaired by Phillip Sharp (NAS/IOM) and Daniel Kleppner (NAS). The draft report encompasses issues that have arisen from the evolution of practices in the collection, processing, oversight, publishing, ownership, accessing and archiving of research data. The data gathering work of the committee has been extensive, having heard the perspectives of researchers, government agencies, academia, journals, industry and scholars, and has brought together its findings and recommendations in a draft for report review. The committee’s report should be released in summer 2009.

[4] The revision of “On Being a Scientist: A Guide to Responsible Conduct in Research” was released in March. The report authored by an ad hoc committee, chaired by Professor Carolyn Bertozzi (NAS) of the University of California, has been met by very positive reactions and indications of widespread adoption in graduate schools and laboratories. It is available in free PDF format by virtue of a generous subsidy from the NAS, NAE, and IOM.

[5] Two COSEPUP studies focus on the issue of diversity. One is in response to a Senate request to assess the value of programs fostering underrepresented groups in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics workforce and the value of diversity in keeping America innovative and competitive. The ad hoc committee, chaired by Freeman Hrabowski, President of the University of Maryland at Baltimore County, which is a follow-up to COSEPUP’s Rising Above the Gathering Storm report, is analyzing the rate of change and the challenges the nation currently faces in developing a strong and diverse workforce. The second, co-chaired by Ann Lee (NAE) of Genentech and Nicholas Donofrio (NAE) of IBM will develop a report focused on women and underrepresented groups in industry – a parallel report to Beyond Bias and Barriers which focused on women in academia.