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Coalition Launches Petition for Scientific Integrity
The Coalition to Protect Research (CPR) is launching an
online petition this week to provide scientists and health professionals
concerned about threats to the integrity of the peer review process with
another way to show their support for the National Institutes of Health
and for scientific principles. The petition will be shared with members of
Congress and their staff over the next few months, and we encourage all
SPIN readers to show your support for peer review by signing on and
forwarding this information to your colleagues. CPR was founded and
co-chaired by APA science policy staff in response to the 2003
congressional attacks on peer-reviewed research.
 Sign
the petition
More
information about CPR
Science and PPO Touch Base with VA Psychologists On March
10th, the Executive Committee of the Association of VA Psychologist
Leaders (AVAPL) made its annual trip to Washington and APA. Committee
members, who represent psychologists working within the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) system, spent time both on Capitol Hill and within
the APA building. APA's Associate Director for Science, Merry Bullock, updated the committee on relevant programs
and potential collaborations within the APA Science Directorate,
especially those related to advanced training for psychological scientists
and human participants in research. PPO's Heather Kelly talked with the
group about the outlook for VA research funding and infrastructure in
FY05, and solicited input for upcoming congressional testimony, Hill
visits and advocacy initiatives related to the VA.
More
information about AVAPL [back to top]
Congressional Briefing Explains Need for Research on
Self-Management of Chronic Illness
Nearly half of all adults must manage at least one
chronic health condition that affects their daily activities. These
conditions, including diabetes, asthma, arthritis, obesity,
depression and others, affect more than 90 million Americans now,
and the numbers will climb as the population ages. Research on
self-management, funded by the National Institutes of Health, can
improve knowledge about what patients, families and health care
providers can do to improve health and quality of life.
Read
the full article
APA Urges Congress to do Better by NSF, NASA and the
VA
On March 25th, Merry Bullock testified before the House Appropriations Subcommittee with
jurisdiction over funding for agencies including the National Science
Foundation (NSF), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). APA's testimony highlighted
concerns about the
Administration budget request for psychological research within each of
these agencies. Bullock stressed the need for continued, strong investment
in human-centered research, even given the current climate of tight
budgetary constraints on discretionary spending and a host of competing
needs.
APA's CEO, Norman Anderson, will testify later this month
before the House Appropriations Subcommittee that directs funds to the
National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control, the
Department of Education, and the Health Resources and Services
Administration. APA may also be given a public witness testimony slot in
early May before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense.
Testimony will focus on the need to increase FY05 support for
psychological research within the Department of Defense above the
Administration's request.
Read
Dr. Bullock's full written testimony
Read
Dr. Bullock's oral testimony [back to top]
Researchers Discuss Lying on Capitol Hill
On March 18, the Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA), APA,
and the National Communication Association co-sponsored a briefing on
Capitol Hill entitled "Detecting Deception: Research to Secure the
Homeland" featuring three prominent social scientists discussing
deception research from a variety of different perspectives.
Read
the full article
[back to top]
Homeland Security Advisory Council Meets at Secret Service Headquarters
On April 31, Science Policy Director Geoff Mumford
attended the meeting of the Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC) at
Secret Service headquarters here in DC. Given the attention homeland
security issues are getting, the public attendance was light and the small
crowd of about two dozen people provided a sense of intimacy rarely found
in a gathering led by a Cabinet Secretary. Secretary Ridge provided some
brief opening remarks and then turned the meeting over to Deputy Secretary
Loy, who proceeded to review programmatic activities. Loy said that the
overall mission has been expanded from three to five tiers with respect to
terrorist threats/incidents: 1) awareness, 2) prevention, 3) protection of
critical infrastructure, 4) response in the immediate aftermath of an
event, and 5) recovery. Within that list, admiral Loy highlighted the
importance of heightened "awareness" as a means to produce
better prevention protocols.
Dr. Ruth David gave an overview of the Lexicon Project,
which acknowledges that the proliferation of acronyms and terminology
means different things to different elements within the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS) and to the general public. RDD, for example, means
"radiologic dispersion device" in one community and "
remote detonation device" in another. The Lexicon Project seeks to
ensure that all of the elements within DHS start using a common,
transparent language.
Secretary Ridge then asked for updates from the HSAC
Senior Advisory Committees. Massachusetts Governor Romney reported in by
conference call on behalf of state and local responders, whose chief
concerns revolve around the logjam in the flow of funds from states
through county governments to cities and towns. The bind appears to be
that states are required to spend and distribute funds in a fixed window
of time, after which point the funds can languish at the county level,
which is not similarly constrained by such a "time fuse".
Kathleen Bader reported for the Private Sector Advisory
Committee, calling for greater public-private partnerships in homeland
security, an effort likely influenced by events overseas. The Madrid train
bombing on March 11 and subsequent election results have raised concerns
about pre-election terrorist events here in the U.S. Secretary Ridge has
called for the formation of a Task Force to bolster security around a
number of planned events between now and November 1 (see below for a link
to the Washington Post story).
Jared Cohon reported for the Academe and Policy Research
Committee. Dr. Cohon described the chilling effect U.S. Visa policy is
having on the graduate student population - a key workforce in the
academic research enterprise. Foreign graduate students are becoming more
and more concerned about uncertainties they face on exit and re-entry to
the U.S., and such issues may be decreasing foreign participation in U.S.
graduate programs.
Dr. Cohon noted that the Homeland Security Science and
Technology Advisory Committee (HSSTAC) met on the same day (2/26/04) as
his committee and discussed the importance of coordinating their
respective activities. He was pleased that despite the schedule conflict,
S&T Director Dr. Chuck McQueary still found time to brief Cohon's
committee (see below link for HSSTAC minutes).
He lauded the Science & Technology (S&T)
Directorate for taking a systems approach to homeland security. As an
example, Dr. Cohon cited the need to not only produce sensitive and
reliable biosensors but also understand how they would function within a
system relying on humans to monitor and resolve alarms. He noted the
importance of organizational and management issues in the successful
integration of the small S&T Directorate within the enormity of DHS. A
broader concern he raised related to the wellspring of individuals and
institutions claiming expertise on homeland security and offering various
certifications without any controls over accreditation of such programs.
This led to a presentation by the U.S. Coast Guard, now part of DHS, which
is seeking to develop a homeland security training and certification
program to build leadership for DHS. An overview of that effort was
presented by Commander Joseph E. Vorbach III, PhD, Associate Professor of
International Relations in the Humanities Department at the U.S. Coast
Guard Academy.
In subsequent correspondence, Commander Vorbach
enthusiastically welcomed APA participation in the planning of a fall
conference and subsequent curriculum development.
Read
the Washington Post story about new Homeland Security Task Force
View
minutes from the HSSTAC meeting [PDF]
View
Commander Vorbach's presentation [PPT 200 KB]
More
information about the HSAC
[back to top]
Any questions?
If you have any questions regarding SPIN or specific
science policy issues, please feel free to contact any of APA’s Science
PPO staff.
Geoff
Mumford, Ph.D., Director of Science Policy
Pat
Kobor, Senior Science Policy Analyst
Heather
O'Beirne Kelly, Ph.D., Senior Legislative and Federal Affairs Officer
Karen
Studwell, J.D., Legislative and Federal Affairs Officer
Sara
Robinson, Legislative Assistant
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