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Office of Science and Technology Policy Blog

  • Scientific Integrity Policies Increasingly in Place

    Posted by John P. Holdren on December 21, 2011 at 4:12 PM EDT

    Departments and agencies across the Federal government submitted to OSTP their latest and, in some cases, final, drafts of their scientific integrity policies this past week, in compliance with a deadline I set in October for completion of final or draft-final versions for review. The latest versions—produced by 20 Federal entities—reflect inputs received from OSTP this past fall to ensure that each includes the full range of assurances called for in President Obama’s March 2009 Memorandum on Scientific Integrity and my December 2010 Memorandum that outlined in greater detail the minimum requirements expected by this Administration.

    As I’ve noted repeatedly in this space, the Obama Administration is firmly committed to the highest standards of scientific integrity. That does not mean that “science trumps all” in the policy-making process. Policy always reflects an array of equities, including scientific, economic, and social realities. Further, scientists do not always agree with one another on how to interpret or respond to scientific findings. But as the President’s science and technology advisor, it is my duty to ensure that when science is relevant to policy-making, the very best science—and the best thinking about that science—is at the table for consideration on its merits.

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  • Extended Deadline for Public Access and Digital Data RFIs

    Posted by Rick Weiss on December 21, 2011 at 3:24 PM EDT

    In November, OSTP issued two Requests for Information (RFI), one on open access to scientific publications and the other on the management of digital data. Yesterday, responding to numerous requests, we submitted to the Federal Register an extension of the deadlines for those RFIs to January 12, 2012. We anticipate the official notice of that extension appearing in the Federal Register this Friday, but wanted to ensure that all stakeholders knew as soon as possible about the extended deadline.

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  • Tech Initiatives to 'Build it Here, Sell it Everywhere'

    Posted by Aneesh Chopra on December 21, 2011 at 1:41 PM EDT

    Last week, Commerce Secretary Bryson spoke about his vision for American manufacturing – a vision he summarized as “Build it Here, Sell it Everywhere.” That inspired me to share an update on three tech initiatives that have achieved important milestones this month in furtherance of that vision.

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  • 'Investing in Innovation' Creates STEM Awards

    Posted by Jefferson Pestronk on December 20, 2011 at 5:41 PM EDT

    The Department of Education’s Investing in Innovation (i3) competition provides funding to school districts and non-profit organizations around the country to develop new approaches to longstanding challenges in education.  Today, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced the 23 applicants who will receive grants from the 2011 i3 competition. For the first time, Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education was a priority of the competition.  Five of the 23 awards will address that critical area and include programs devoted to:

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  • A 'Bottom-up' Milestone towards a Safer America

    Posted by Aneesh Chopra and Terrell McSweeny on December 19, 2011 at 5:20 PM EDT

    Our friend and Seattle’s dynamic tech leader, Bill Schrier, recently issued a Request for Information to cull out innovative public/private partnerships to deliver a mobile broadband and mission-critical voice capability for the metropolitan area – an idea surfaced during our technology roundtable earlier this year in LA in support of President Obama’s National Wireless Initiative to build a nationwide interoperable wireless broadband network for America’s first responders.  

    More heartening is the spirit of voluntary collaboration as the RFI was released with the support of at least 10 other state and local governments, including several actively engaged in the build-out of wireless public safety infrastructure. In the spirit of “bottom-up” change, that group includes state governments (Oregon, Iowa, and Arizona), cities (Honolulu, HI; Chesapeake, VA; Boston, MA; Charlotte, NC; Pembroke Pines, FL) and regions (San Francisco BayRICS; Calumet, Outagamie, and Winnebago Counties, WI).

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  • NASA’s New Science Leader Brings Out-Of-This-World Creds

    Posted by Carl Wieman on December 19, 2011 at 2:28 PM EDT

    From far-reaching probes traveling across the Solar System, to Earth-observing satellites, the giant Hubble Space Telescope, and a car-sized Mars rover, NASA’s Science Mission Directorate has led an astonishing array of missions that have unveiled vital secrets about our home planet while deepening our understanding of the universe around us.

    And as NASA announced today, there isn’t a better person to guide the plethora of world-class science projects currently in that Directorate’s pipeline than the "Hubble Repairman" himself, John Grunsfeld.

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