Measuring science investments

Think piece describes new approach to documenting results of scientific research

2011-02-14

(Press-News.org) Measuring the results of scientific research has seen little federal focus until now.

A 2010 administrative memorandum calls on U.S. federal agencies and executive departments to develop tools to "better assess the impact of [...] science and technology investments."

Translation: There is increasing pressure to document the results of [...] research investments in a scientific manner, writes Julia Lane, Science of Science and Innovation Policy program director at the National Science Foundation (NSF) and her co-author Stefano Bertuzzi, Office of Science Policy at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

They make the observation in, "Measuring the Results of Science Investments," a Policy Forum paper appearing in this week's edition of the journal Science.

Lane and Bertuzzi examine critical questions for measuring the effects of scientific research. Is it possible to create such a system? What would be the inputs, outputs and structure of the system? What scientific disciplines should inform the formulation of such a model?

"It is important that the scientific community, together with the federal government, engage in describing the results," said Lane of the special burdens placed on measuring the fundamental and exploratory research that NSF is responsible for funding, but does not always show immediate results.

"Fundamental research is a long way from the market place, so there are long lags before any results are seen," she said emphasizing the need to be diligent and sensitive to the exploratory nature of basic research.

The coauthors note other countries already have begun developing systematic ways to describe the results of science investments.

The Higher Education Funding Councils in England has been conducting Research Assessment Exercises to gauge the quality and impact of funded research since 1986. In addition, last year, the Japanese government began creating a program to advance the science of science and innovation.

In the United States, STAR METRICS attempts to address some of these same challenges. The Science and Technology for America's Reinvestment: Measuring the Effects of Research on Innovation, Competitiveness, and Science program is being developed by NIH and NSF with the backing of the White House Office of Science Technology and Policy.

The Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency are joining the consortium.

"This is a collaborative approach," said Lane. "The goal is to work together with research institutions to build a scientific data infrastructure that gathers inputs, outputs and outcomes from a variety of sources in an open a fashion as possible."

Another major aim of STAR METRICS is to reduce, as much as possible, manual reporting by research institutions and principal investigators.

"Researchers currently spend as much as 42 percent of their time in administrative reporting," said Lane. "That's not a good use of their time."

Lane and Bertuzzi say they hope the active engagement of the federal science policy community through STAR METRICS will help ensure scientific advances in science measurement.

INFORMATION:

[Attachments] See images for this press release:

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Mr Test Equipment to Offer IP and VoIP Test and Measurement Tools

2011-02-14

An Internet Protocol address (IP address) is a numerical label assigned to a device (computer, printer) participating in a computer network that uses the Internet Protocol for communication. Voice over Internet Protocol (Voice over IP, VoIP) is an internet technology, communication protocols, and transmission technology for delivery of voice communications and multimedia over Internet Protocol (IP) networks, such as the Internet. The test sets available are capable of Internet protocol and voice-over-IP (VoIP) performance trouble shooting and signal protocol technologies ...

Cowboys & Indians Magazine Reports 2010 Circulation Growth

2011-02-14

Once again defying industry trends, Cowboys & Indians, The Premier Magazine of the West, has announced another circulation increase. According to the magazine's ABC Publisher's Statement, for the six months ending December 31, 2010, C&I posted an all-time-high average total circulation of 161,722. When compared to the same period in 2009, this is a 4.4 percent increase in average total circulation. Using the formula of 5.2 readers per copy as determined by the Magazine Publishers of America, Cowboys & Indians now has an average of 840,954 readers for each issue. "As ...

Preliminary new blood test to detect Alzheimer's disease uncovered

2011-02-14

DALLAS – Feb. 14, 2011 – UT Southwestern Medical Center scientists have helped develop a novel technology to diagnose Alzheimer's disease from blood samples long before symptoms appear. This preliminary technology, which uses synthetic molecules to seek out and identify disease-specific antibodies, also could be used eventually in the development of specific biomarkers for a range of other hard-to-diagnose diseases and conditions, including Parkinson's disease and immune system-related diseases like multiple sclerosis and lupus, the researchers predict. "One of the ...

Scripps Research compound blocks brain cell destruction in Parkinson's disease

2011-02-14

JUPITER, FL, February 11, 2011 – Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have produced the first known compound to show significant effectiveness in protecting brain cells directly affected by Parkinson's disease, a progressive and fatal neurodegenerative disorder. Although the findings were in animal models of the disease, the effectiveness of the compound, combined with its potential to be taken orally, offers the tantalizing possibility of a potentially useful future therapy for Parkinson's disease patients. The results were published ...

Nanoparticles may enhance circulating tumor cell detection

2011-02-14

Tiny gold particles can help doctors detect tumor cells circulating in the blood of patients with head and neck cancer, researchers at Emory and Georgia Tech have found. The detection of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) is an emerging technique that can allow oncologists to monitor patients with cancer for metastasis or to evaluate the progress of their treatment. The gold particles, which are embedded with dyes allowing their detection by laser spectroscopy, could enhance this technique's specificity by reducing the number of false positives. The results are published ...

Study looks at getting stroke patients back on their feet

2011-02-14

LOS ANGELES, CALIF. – Home-based physical therapy to improve the strength and balance of stroke survivors works about as well to get them walking again as treadmill training done in a physical therapy lab, according to the results of a study presented today by a Duke researcher at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference. "We have been working for years in rehabilitation to develop the most effective interventions for walking recovery," said Pamela Woods Duncan, Ph.D., PT, professor in the Doctor of Physical Therapy Division at Duke University ...

Franchise Note Buyers Introduces Innovative "Non-Bank" Financial Solutions for the Sale of New and Existing Franchised Businesses.

2011-02-14

Frozen credit markets are adversely impacting the multi-billion dollar franchising industry. The lack of bank loans for franchised businesses is the major factor preventing the sale of new franchises. Further, this national credit crunch is stopping the re-sale of existing franchises, from franchisee to franchisee. "Transfers (re-sales) are a healthy part of every franchise system. But the nation's lack of bank lending to buyers of existing franchises threatens the ability of franchise systems to rejuvenate their networks through new franchisees. This reduction in transfers ...

Firefly glow: Berkeley Lab scientists develop a hydrogen peroxide probe based on firefly luciferin

2011-02-14

A unique new probe based on luciferase, the enzyme that gives fireflies their glow, enables researchers to monitor hydrogen peroxide levels in mice and thereby track the progression of infectious diseases or cancerous tumors without harming the animals or even having to shave their fur. Developed by researchers with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the University of California (UC) Berkeley, this new bioluminescent probe has already provided the first direct experimental evidence that hydrogen peroxide is continuously made even in a healthy ...

Rhode Island Web Design Company Relocates To Downtown Providence

2011-02-14

Konnessi LLC, a Rhode Island web design and marketing strategies company, has relocated its Providence offices into the Churchill and Banks building at 10 Greene Street. The move, which took effect on January 1, 2011, marks not only a major upgrade in office facilities and capabilities for the company, but also a migration deeper into the downtown Providence district. Founded recently in 2010, the RI web design firm Konnessi (which in Maltese means, "connected") has seen exponential growth both in employees and in clientele, all in just under a year of existence. With ...

Kids with ADHD much more likely to develop substance abuse problems as they age

2011-02-14

Children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder are two to three times more likely than children without the disorder to develop serious substance abuse problems in adolescence and adulthood, according to a study by UCLA psychologists and colleagues at the University of South Carolina. "This greater risk for children with ADHD applies to boys and girls, it applies across race and ethnicity — the findings were very consistent," said Steve S. Lee, a UCLA assistant professor of psychology and lead author of the study. "The greater risk for developing significant ...

Measuring science investments

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES: