10WWW.CEN-ONLINE.ORG MAY 3, 2010

NEWS OF THE WEEK

T HE NATIONAL ACADEMY of Sciences an-nounced last Tuesday the election of 72 new members and 18 foreign associates in recogni-

tion of their distinguished and continuing achieve-ments in original research. Election to the academy is considered to be one of the highest honors that can be accorded a U.S. scientist or engineer. Those elected bring the total number of active members to 2,097.

Of those elected, the following are chemists or

work in areas related to the chemical sciences: Alexis T. Bell of the University of California, Berkeley; Vann Bennett of both Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) and Duke University Medical Center; Mina J. Bissell of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; Mi-chael D. Cahalan of UC Irvine; Roger D. Cone of Van-derbilt University School of Medicine; Nancy L. Craig of both HHMI and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; James C. (Seamus) Davis of Cornell

University; Richard Eisenberg of the University of Rochester; Robert J. Fletterick of UC San Francisco School of Medicine; Susan S. Gold-en of UC San Diego; J. Eric Gouaux of both HHMI and Oregon Health & Science University; James E. Haber of Brandeis University; Kendall N. Houk of UCLA; Barbara Imperiali of Massachusetts Institute of Tech-nology; Chad A. Mirkin of North-western University; Kevin Struhl of

Harvard Medical School; Attila Szabo of the National Institutes of Health; and Richard P. Van Duyne of Northwestern University.

The newly elected foreign associates in this chemis-try-related group are Wolfgang P. Baumeister of the Max Planck Institute for Biochemistry, in Martinsried, Germany, and Michele Parrinello of both the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich, and the Uni-versity of Lugano, in Switzerland. —LINDA RABER

A BILL TO ADVANCE innovation in the U.S. through increased investment in three key science agencies and in education cleared the

House of Representatives Science & Technology Com-mittee on April 28. The America Competes Reauthori-zation Act of 2010 (H.R. 5116) now heads to the House floor for an expected mid-May vote.

Under the bill, which received bipartisan approval, NSF, the National Institute of Standards & Technol-ogy, and the Department of Energy’s Office of Science will continue on a 10-year budget-doubling track that began when the original America Competes legislation was signed into law in 2007. The authorized 7% annual growth over the next five years for the three agencies will still have to be appropriated each year by Congress.

“This funding trajectory is not as steep as the bill en-acted in 2007, and it is not as shallow as the President’s

budget request,” said Bart Gordon (D-Tenn.), the com-mittee chairman and the sponsor of the bill, after the legislation was approved. “These levels are lower than I would like them, but I believe they are practical, con-sidering our current budget deficits.”

Committee Republicans, although supportive of the bill, continue to question its estimated $83 billion price tag. “I remain committed to investing in basic science research and development, but I am also mindful of our current dire economic situation,” Ranking Member Ralph M. Hall (R-Texas) said. “As stewards of the tax-payers’ dollars, during these times we need to be even more vigilant with how we allocate our resources.”

The bill also boosts support for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education. And it sup-ports innovation by reauthorizing DOE’s high-risk Ad-vanced Research Projects Agency-Energy development program and by authorizing DOE’s Energy Innovation Hubs to support clean energy development.

“Despite these partisan times, it is very heartening to see that a majority of both parties has united in sup-port of reauthorizing America Competes,” says Glenn S. Ruskin, director of the American Chemical Society’s Office of Public Affairs. “We are hopeful that this test vote in committee is indicative of the bipartisan sup-port the bill will enjoy when it comes to the full House for a vote.” —SUSAN MORRISSEY

Gordon presided over the nine-hour bill markup that included consideration of nearly 55 amendments.

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ACADEMY ELECTS NEW MEMBERS

HONORS: Ninety scientists join the ranks of the National

Academy of Sciences

RENEWING AMERICA COMPETES ACT

LEGISLATION: House committee clears bill to continue investment in science, innovation, and education

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