by Philipp Steger

Science Policy & Funding in the U.S. - Dire Times Ahead

You know something is not quite right, when a staunch Democrat like Bob Palmer, heaps lavish praise on Newt Gingrich, the mastermind behind the 1994 Republican revolution, which brought Congress under firm Republican control. Palmer, a long-time House science committee staffer called a speech given by Gingrich at a science policy event several years ago “brilliant”, because Gingrich had “the audience mesmerized” by talking about what science could do for all of society. According to Palmer, that sort of speech and its underlying vision are a relict of the past and not to be found in today’s discussions on S&T policy.

by Mary Kavanagh

The EU-US Science and Technology Agreement was renewed on 8 October 2004 and will now continue through to 2008. The renewal provides an opportunity to reinvigorate the Agreement and raise its profile on both sides of the Atlantic.

by Margarete Lamb-Faffelberger

Elfriede Jelinek (*1946) will receive the Nobel Prize for Literature on December 10, 2004 and become the tenth woman writer to be recognized by the Nobel Prize committee as one of the most significant literary voices of her time. She won the award "for her musical flow of voices and counter-voices in novels and plays that with extraordinary linguistic zeal reveal the absurdity of society's clichés and their subjugating power." Critics may argue that the selection of Jelinek as Nobel Laureate is politically motivated, but a read through her works can convince readers otherwise.

by Gabriele Zuna-Kratky

Abstract

by Caroline Adenberger

Science is advancing and changing our lives in many ways. Although outcomes may be very beneficial, there are also many areas of ethical concern and critical points to discuss. The public cannot be excluded from those new insights; they must have access to proper information, and there must be a platform where the scientific community and non-scientists are enabled to speak to each other.