Friday, 25 Dec 92 Washington, DC
1. PCAST BOWS OUT WITH SOBERING REPORT ON RESEARCH
UNIVERSITIES.
The system of research-intensive universities
will not continue to grow as it has, according to a report
released Monday by the President's Council of Advisors on Science
and Technology, and it is time to adapt to a new "constrained-
resource environment." The report urges universities to adopt a
more selective strategy. It would be better to eliminate some
departments or programs, the panel says, than to sustain less
than world-class activities in every area. Some of the harshest
language is reserved for those universities that indulge in
academic pork. Indeed, the panel calls for ALL federal basic
research funds to be allocated on a merit review basis--including
basic research at national labs.
2. "A FOOLISH CONSISTENCY IS THE HOBGOBLIN OF LITTLE
MINDS,"
according to Emerson. Consistency is not generally
a problem in Washington. Thus, while PCAST urges agencies "to
refrain from programs that would increase the research capacity
of the system of research universities," NSF's Current Operating
Plan, which was approved earlier this week (WN 18 Dec 92), includes $25M for
Experimental Programs to Stimulate Competitive Research. EPSCOR
is intended to develop new research capacity in states receiving
relatively small amounts of federal research money. But EPSCOR is
also meant to satisfy the craving for academic pork. Alas, it's
only an hors d'oeuvre; 18 states are eligible for EPSCOR, but
$25M is less than the earmarks for Wheeling Jesuit College alone.
3. IT'S NOT JUST CONGRESS -- EXECUTIVE-BRANCH PORK JUST AS
SWEET.
DOE just announced an $8M grant to complete a Graduate Research
Center at Clark Atlanta University. Since 1986, DOE has provided
$22.4M for the Center, which will conduct research and education
in "waste management." They appear to be perfectly positioned.
4. THE NSF OPERATING PLAN SHOULD KEEP RESEARCH CAPACITY IN
CHECK.
The emphasis is on "strategic research," which
translates to the seven "Presidential Initiatives": manufacturing
research, up 19%; advanced materials and processing, up 14%;
biotechnology, up 9%, high-performance computing, up 13%; global
change, up 15%. Where did it come from?: astronomy, down 8%;
physics, down 7%; no new Science and Technology Centers and no
increase in support levels. The plan, contained in a letter from
Walter Massey to Congress, also raises the possibility of
"furloughs" for NSF employees.
5. EDDIE CURRENTS: "DISTINGUISHED GENTLEMAN" FIGHTS EMF
COVER-UP!
A new Hollywood film features Eddie Murphy as a
two-bit shill who gets into Congress (nothing new here). His
epiphany comes when he
meets a bald eight-year old who got cancer from a power line that
runs by the playground. Does he dismiss the kid with a nod and
Rogaine--or launch a crusade from his rookie seat on a fictitious
Power and Industry Committee? Et tu Murphae! If Murphy had kept
up with What's New (WN 20 Nov 92), we
might have been spared.
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