(Press-News.org) WASHINGTON, D.C. – The American Physical Society (APS), the nation's largest organization of physicists, commends President Obama's exhortation in his State of the Union Speech that, "Now is the time to reach a level of research and development not seen since the height of the Space Race."
During the Space Race, the nation made huge investments in scientific research, which led to new discoveries, accelerated technological advancements and generated new innovations and businesses.
The President also noted that sequestration -- automatic spending cuts scheduled to occur on March 1 -- would devastate American priorities that include energy, education and research. He added those cuts would hurt the struggling economy and increase job losses. A balanced approach, recommended by the Simpson-Bowles Commission, is needed to address deficit reduction in a responsible way.
The APS understands the importance of America reaching its debt reduction goal for achieving long-term economic stability and ensuring a high standard of living for future generations. However, the APS notes that predictable and sustained federal investments in scientific research and education are needed to grow the economy and promote deficit reduction through increased federal revenues. They are also essential for keeping the U.S. competitive in the face of increased global competition.
For more than half a century, federal investments in science and technology have enabled technologies that have provided Americans with a higher standard of living, a stronger defense and better medical diagnostic and treatment tools. The Internet, the GPS, MRI and the laser are but four prominent examples.
As sequestration looms, APS strongly encourages bipartisan support for avoiding counterproductive across-the board cuts that would damage America's scientific enterprise and undercut long-term economic growth.
### END
APS applauds President Obama's support of R&D in SOTU
2013-02-15
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
A dual look at photosystem II using the world's most powerful X-ray laser
2013-02-15
From providing living cells with energy, to nitrogen fixation, to the splitting of water molecules, the catalytic activities of metalloenzymes – proteins that contain a metal ion – are vital to life on Earth. A better understanding of the chemistry behind these catalytic activities could pave the way for exciting new technologies, most prominently artificial photosynthesis systems that would provide clean, green and renewable energy. Now, researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the SLAC National Accelerator ...
Noncoding RNAs offer huge therapeutic and diagnostic potential
2013-02-15
New Rochelle, NY, February 14, 2013—As scientists continue to unravel the complexity of the human genome and to uncover vital elements that play a role in both normal physiology and disease, one particular class of elements called noncoding RNAs is gaining a lot of attention. Guest Editor Tom Cech, PhD and Executive Editor Fintan Steele, PhD explore the enormous potential value of this rapidly advancing research area in their Editorial " The (Noncoding) RNA World." The authors introduce a special research section on noncoding RNAs published in the current issue of Nucleic ...
Building healthy bones takes guts
2013-02-15
EAST LANSING, Mich. — In what could be an early step toward new treatments for people with osteoporosis, scientists at Michigan State University report that a natural probiotic supplement can help male mice produce healthier bones.
Interestingly, the same can't be said for female mice, the researchers report in the Journal of Cellular Physiology.
"We know that inflammation in the gut can cause bone loss, though it's unclear exactly why," said lead author Laura McCabe, a professor in MSU's departments of Physiology and Radiology. "The neat thing we found is that a probiotic ...
New methodology to predict pandemics
2013-02-15
NEW YORK – February 13, 2013 – EcoHealth Alliance, the nonprofit organization that focuses on local conservation and global health issues, announced new research focused on the rapid identification of disease outbreaks in the peer reviewed publication, Journal of the Royal Society Interface. The article, authored by leading scientists in the fields of emerging disease ecology, biomathematics, computational biology and bioinformatics, shows how network theory can be used to identify outbreaks of unidentified diseases. The strategy builds on the wealth of online surveillance ...
Quantum cryptography put to work for electric grid security
2013-02-15
LOS ALAMOS, N.M., Feb. 14, 2013—A Los Alamos National Laboratory quantum cryptography (QC) team has successfully completed the first-ever demonstration of securing control data for electric grids using quantum cryptography.
The demonstration was performed in the electric grid test bed that is part of the Trustworthy Cyber Infrastructure for the Power Grid (TCIPG) project at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) that was set up under the Department of Energy's Cyber Security for Energy Delivery Systems program in the Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy ...
A microbial biorefinery provides new insight into how bacteria regulate genes
2013-02-15
PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Microorganisms that can break down plant biomass into the precursors of biodiesel or other commodity chemicals might one day be used to produce alternatives to petroleum. But the potential of this "biorefinery" technology is limited by the fact that most microorganisms cannot break down lignin, a highly stable polymer that makes up as much as a third of plant biomass.
Streptomyces bacteria are among few microorganisms known to degrade and consume lignin. Now a group of researchers at Brown University has unlocked the genetic and molecular ...
NASA's Fermi proves supernova remnants produce cosmic rays
2013-02-15
A new study using observations from NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope reveals the first clear-cut evidence the expanding debris of exploded stars produces some of the fastest-moving matter in the universe. This discovery is a major step toward understanding the origin of cosmic rays, one of Fermi's primary mission goals.
"Scientists have been trying to find the sources of high-energy cosmic rays since their discovery a century ago," said Elizabeth Hays, a member of the research team and Fermi deputy project scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, ...
Researchers discover breakthrough in ovarian cancer
2013-02-15
(Phoenix, AZ Feb. 14, 2014) -- Researchers at The University of Arizona Cancer Center at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix have discovered that many women with low-grade serous carcinoma of the ovary or peritoneum have seen their tumors stabilize or shrink after taking a regular dose of the compound selumetinib.
The findings, published in the Feb. 14 edition of The Lancet Oncology, show that selumetinib targets a mutation in the MAPK pathway for patients with low-grade serous carcinoma, allowing for treatment on previously chemoresistant tumors.
"This ...
NASA satellite sees Cyclone Gino's rainfall shoved southward
2013-02-15
NASA's Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission satellite known as TRMM measured Cyclone Gino's rainfall from space and saw the bulk of precipitation was south of the center. Gino's rainfall is being pushed away from the center by vertical wind shear.
TRMM flew over Cyclone Gino on Thursday, Feb. 14 at 0806 UTC (3:06 a.m. EST) and measured the rainfall rates occurring throughout the storm. The bulk of the rainfall stretched from south to southeast of the center. The heaviest rain was falling at a rate of 2 inches (50 mm) per hour southeast of the center, and scattered throughout ...
Prevention efforts focused on youth reduce prescription abuse into adulthood
2013-02-15
Middle school students from small towns and rural communities who received any of three community-based prevention programs were less likely to abuse prescription medications in late adolescence and young adulthood. The research, published today in the American Journal of Public Health, was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, and the National Institute of Mental Health, all components of the National Institutes of Health.
"Prescription medications are beneficial when used as prescribed to treat ...