Author: jlolds

Native Angeleno, professor of Neuroscience and Public Policy at George Mason University

Beyond the NIH Payline….

Many loyal readers know that as an NIH alum, I’m always interested in the latest from my former agency. Here’s a very interesting report on grants that are funded in spite not quite making the mark at peer-review.

Money quote:

The bottom line–at least 19% of NIH’s basic research portfolio is funded for reasons that go beyond quality–may stoke simmering concerns about the agency’s policy that favors young investigators.

Back from Berlin


I’m back from a very exciting Decade of the Mind meeting in Berlin Germany. The overall quality of the talks was really excellent and I believe we have the beginnings of a real significant European effort to compliment the Projects here in the US and the nascent one in Asia (more on Asia soon).

In the meantime, I’m getting ready to give the introduction to the first seminar of the Institute’s 19th year and preparing for my own seminar on the state of the Institute next week.
Jim

Where’s the Change We Can Believe In?

ScienceInsider slams the Obama Administration here for not releasing science policy reviews such as the NASA manned space flight review headed by Norman Augustine.

Money quote:

The so-called Augustine report is the latest in a series of analyses of pressing issues affecting the research community—scientific integrity and biosecurity being the others—that the Obama Administration has chosen to keep under wraps. The pattern of asking experts to study an issue and then not disclosing their recommendations seems at odds with the repeated promises of President Barack Obama to maintain a culture of openness in government.

Academic Blogs

I’m pleased to report that Advanced Studies has made a list of 100 Best Blogs and Websites for Innovative Academics. We try!

In the meantime, the academic year has started. I’m teaching later today and the weather here in Washington is almost October-like! Ah the wonders of Fall!
Jim

The joys of corporate IT culture

Slate has a great piece about the crippling stasis of corporate IT culture here. One of the things that I really value about George Mason University, is my freedom to use a Mac, to use Firefox, and to use Google Calendar. The contrast with the State department under Secretary Clinton as described in the Slate piece couldn’t be starker:

During a town hall meeting for State Department workers last month, an employee named Jim Finkle asked Hillary Clinton a very important question: “Can you please let the staff use an alternative Web browser called Firefox?” The room erupted in cheers. Finkle explained that he’d previously worked at the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, where everyone enjoyed Firefox. “So I don’t understand why State can’t use it,” he said. “It’s a much safer program.”

Francis Collins takes the controls

Science Insider has the story. Money quote:

Asked about NIH’s intramural program, he is “resistant to the idea that [the program] is in need of some sort of dramatic redo” but is pondering whether to create a pool of intramural money that, like NIH’s Common Fund, could be used to fund crosscutting research quickly.

This is really interesting. We periodically hear the meme that somehow the intramural program is in trouble. I’ve always suspected it’s partly driven by envy (intramural scientists don’t have to apply for grants like those of us in the extramural community). But Collins standing up for the intramural program is refreshing and the idea of a rapidly deployable intramural pool is great.

Jim

science reporting, science publishing and the public: Revere’s take

It’s no secret to loyal readers that I’m an avid reader of the blog Effect Measure which generally deals with public health issues such as swine flu. But today’s blog entry over there really nails an important issue about how science is published and what “good scientific taste” is really all about. As an editor of a 100+ year old journal myself, I take umbrage at the notion that the only good science is that published in the likes of Science or Nature.

Read today’s Effect Measure blog entry and enjoy!

Jim