Science Education & Policy

Overall, student achievement in mathematics and reading in the United States is on the rise, according to results from The 2007 Nation's Report Card(TM), with some of the larger gains made by the nation's minority students. Two reports released today, The Nation's Report Card(TM): Mathematics 2007 and The Nation's Report Card(TM): Reading 2007, detail the achievement of 4th- and 8th-graders on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), administered by the U.S. Department of Education earlier this year. The reports compare national and state data in 2007 with each prior year the…

Modern conservation techniques have brought us the resurgence of American bald eagles, sustainable forest harvests and the rescue of prized lobster fisheries. So how can modern conservation strategies also have wrought such failures, from the catastrophic loss of Guatemalan forests to the economy-crippling Klamath River salmon kill in 2006? Indiana University political scientist Elinor Ostrom and colleagues argue that while many basic conservation strategies are sound, their use is often flawed. The strategies are applied too generally, they say, as an inflexible, regulatory "blueprint" that…

The University of Navarra has installed a thermal gradient greenhouse in order to study the impact of climate change on plants. This is a pioneering methodology for studying the simultaneous effect of increased CO2 and ambient temperature. The research project, which will be undertaken by researchers from the area of Plant Biology of the University, could become a reference for later scientific studies in this area. These studies, financed by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science, the University Foundation of Navarra and the Foundation Caja Navarra, have already obtained their first…

Wind turbines are one of the most environmentally sound technologies for producing electricity. However, the removal and recycling phase of wind turbines has been identified as a blind spot in assessing their overall environmental impact. Most studies have ignored this phase and focused entirely on their operation and in some cases the production and installation of wind turbines. Danish researchers now suggest that in order to assess the overall environmental impact of wind power, however, the finite lifespan of wind turbines and the need to replace and recycle them must be taken into…

I haven't been screwing off. Here is my report from the third conference for Strategically Engineered Negligable Senescence, the brainchild of cell biologist Aubrey DeGrey, as it appeared in the Times of London: This summer two Cambridge undergraduates approached Aubrey de Grey, an outspoken expert on ageing, in his favourite pub, hoping for an informal chat. “Er, sorry, Dr de Grey?” one of them said. “I just wanted to say that I heard your lecture about antiageing medicine and that I thought it was brill . . .” “Then what are you doing about it?” de Grey replied. “What?” his student…

  There were three reported news stories last week that taken together point to clear trend lines.  In a court ruling, the state of Vermont won the right to set auto emissions and MPG standards that are stricter than those of the Federal government.  The dollar reached an all time low against the Euro and oil crossed over the $80 a barrel price barrier.    Vermont is one of twelve states where the state government is going to court to gain the right to institute lower emission standards.  Most of these initiatives are patterned after a policy already signed in…

Everyone knows that how you say something can be as important as what you say. "Framing" is the science buzzword for 2007 and, as discussed in Do scientists need to 'frame' the debate for non-scientists? framing can be used for good or evil. Both sides of the global warming debate accuse each other of framing and even some science sites persistently use framing to advance whatever agenda they are promoting. This has led to a great deal of discussion and research. It's been recognized that most scientists are quite ethical in their research but discussions with non-experts is more of a grey…

The Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University have received a $1.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation to establish "The Origins Project," a center for integrated research, education and public outreach focused on the chemistry that may have led to the origin of life. The center also includes the participation of Spelman College in Atlanta and Jackson State University in Mississippi. The NSF is supporting The Origins Project as part of an effort to address "big picture" questions in chemistry through the formation of Chemical Bonding Centers (CBC). "Our ultimate goal…

Nearly 2 million children, or approximately 3 percent to 5 percent of young children in the United States, are considered to have ADHD. This disorder affects a child’s ability to focus, concentrate and control impulsive behavior. This disorder is so common that most school classrooms have at least one child with clinically-diagnosed ADHD. In an 18-year-study on attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Mayo Clinic researchers found that treatment with prescription stimulants is associated with improved long-term academic success of children with ADHD. The Mayo Clinic results are the…

A groundbreaking environmental study to be published in a prestigious American science journal proves that mercury atmospheric emissions will end up in fish in as little as three years. Biologists from the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada, played a key role in designing and carrying out the experiment. The study concludes that if mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants and other industrial activities were to be cut immediately, the amount showing up in fish would begin to go down within a decade. This breakthrough study (called METAALICUS – Mercury Experiment to Assess…