Science Education & Policy

College tuition has increased 439% since 1984, and the net yearly cost of college at a 4-year public university is 76% of the median family income, according to a story in today's NY Times. Even community colleges don't end up being a much bette ...

Blog Post - Michael White - Dec 3 2008 - 10:55am

Obama puts Scientist in his Cabinet

Obama is going to appoint a Nobel-prize winning physicist to be his Energy Secretary. I don't know anything about the physicist, Steven Chu (except that he's director of the Lawrence Berkely National Lab), but I can't complain anymore that s ...

Blog Post - Michael White - Dec 10 2008 - 10:25pm

Finding Meaningful Variation In IQ Scores Of Kids With Intellectual Disabilities

Parents of children with intellectual disabilities have long been frustrated by intelligence quotient (IQ) testing that tells them little to nothing about the long-term learning potential of their children. That's because these tests are scored accord ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 16 2008 - 11:06am

Ivory Towers are the New Smoke Stacks of Economic Development

Ivory towers are replacing smoke stacks in Alabama and all over the US. This can be a good thing, but there is a core problem: Until relatively recently, most universities and the cities surrounding them went about their business without taking full stock ...

Blog Post - Michael White - Dec 16 2008 - 9:50pm

6 Researchers Take On Science Education

A greater commitment by science faculty to focus on science education could drive education reform at universities and K-12 schools, according to a new report by a team of five researchers from the California State University (CSU) system and one from Purd ...

Article - News Staff - Dec 18 2008 - 3:09pm

No Economic Stimulus for Science

Larry Summers says that R&D spending should not be part of an economic stimulus package, contrary to what many scientists were probably hoping for. Summers actually has a good point. The rationale for current ideas about a fiscal stimulus package is th ...

Blog Post - Michael White - Dec 18 2008 - 5:13pm

Two more scientists added to Obama Administration

Continuing today's theme of science and the Obama administration... Physicist John Holdren will be Obama's science advisor. I was hoping we'd finally get a biologist in that position, but his expertise on energy and climate issues will be ti ...

Blog Post - Michael White - Dec 18 2008 - 5:37pm

Fun Physics (???)

I have received this request from a friend roughly 5,000 miles away: My maternal cousin has to prepare a write up for her school. She needs to write something on 'fun physics'. ...

Blog Post - Robert H Olley - Dec 30 2008 - 9:40am

DoD New Year's Resolution: I Promise I Will Destroy All My Remaining Stockpiles Of VX Nerve Gas

Well, it's now a merry Christmas for everyone except Nicholas Cage. The U.S. Army Chemical Materials Agency (CMA) announced Monday that as of Christmas Eve, 2008, they've completed the destruction of all munitions carrying VX gas in the possessio ...

Article - Chris Rollins - Jan 17 2009 - 2:16am

Making new clichés in 2009

Clichés are soft.. they leave it to your imagination. Clichés are hard.. they leave it to your imagination. Embedded in the clichés are stereotypes. A new cliché: "2009 is years-old." P.S. A Happy 2009 to ALL with peace and love. ...

Blog Post - Hatice Cullingford - Jan 8 2009 - 10:36pm