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 Welcome to the second issue of The Science Leader,
the new digital newsletter of the Council of Scientific Society
Presidents. Its role is to strengthen our collegial networking, broaden
our knowledge sharing on emerging issues and enhance interactive
idea analysis among our unique peer groups of science leaders.
In this issue you'll find compelling articles on CSSP news and current
events in science. We're pleased to include society-based articles that
facilitate better understanding among colleague organizations within
CSSP - so send them, please! Each issue also contains member and alumni
profiles, so you may better know one another as the truly fascinating
individuals you are. Who would have guessed that our Past Chair owned a
mine in
Mongolia?
Networking takes on many electronic dimensions, and you are in one of
them right now. Nothing, however, substitutes for the nuanced,
cue-laden, five-sense, face-to-face networking with science and
political leaders that constitutes the May and December meetings. If
you have a question about publishing expenses, the next big thing in
the open- access movement, society governance models or a thorny
science ethics dilemma, chances are very good that one of your 60
sister societies or federations holds the answer and that you can find
it over breakfast, lunch or hors d'oeuvres. If you want to know what's
next in the plans of any science-relevant government agency, nationwide
organization, major foundation, national academy, or national
commission, ask its first or second in command at a CSSP meeting.
It is easy to get discouraged by flat or falling science budgets and
the realization of the ultimate tragedy of the commons at whole-earth
scale. Like it or not, we inhabit an engineered planet. Humanity is
causing heating of the whole world and acidifying and depleting the
whole ocean. Science is hope, however, and the only hope of
intelligently rather than accidentally engineering the planet w
ill come from teams of the 1.4 million members of CSSP.
Join with us and help lead the way.
Dr. Martin A. Apple
CSSP President
Dr. Peter A. Jumars
CSSP Chair
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December CSSP meeting highlights
Meeting expands presidents' knowledge of
leadership
By Gaylen Bradley, CSSP Board member
The December 2007 CSSP meeting was another
comprehensive, informative and exciting review, analysis and forecast
of the State of Science
and Science Policy. CSSP members engaged in learning new ideas,
productive idea and policy exchanges with each other and Nobel
laureates, foundation presidents, the Undersecretary of Interior, top
NSF leaders , Pulitzer Prize-winning writers and other notables.
- CSSP Chair Jim Baur opened the meeting by
welcoming and introducing the first time attendees, and providing
an outline of the program and the CSSP business to be addressed.
- Marty Apple discussed how to be an effective
change leader, a 20-year plan to reach zero CO2 emission energy
systems in the USA,
a growing list of failures of university leadership, processes and
sources of political power and public policy, and framing science
to ensure its place on the national agenda.
- The opening session centered on educational
leadership and leadership in education. Judy Jeffrey, Iowa State
School Officer, expressed concern about the increasing unfunded
accountability requirements that have a negative impact
on teaching and learning. It is anticipated that there will be substantial
revision (and re-naming) of "No Child Left Behind."
- Lesa Mitchell of the Kauffman Foundation
urged research universities to promote entrepreneurism by faculty
and research trainees, and to reduce impediments to
university-industry relations. She specifically encouraged
consulting arrangements and criticized university Intellectual
Property Offices for inhibiting technology transfer.
- Howard Gardner of Harvard University
described his concept of five mindsets and their consequences on
the learning process: disciplined; synthesizing; creating;
respectful and ethical.
- George McHaffey, American Association of
State Colleges and Universities, called upon undergraduate
programs to reform curricula to prepare citizens for democracy.
- Jerald Jacobs, an attorney, reviewed the
responsibilities of offices of scientific societies: due
diligence; integrity and oversight of staff and operations.
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Read more...
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Houses of the Future
Teams create energy-efficient homes
By Bill
Carroll, CSSP Board member
Science leads to technology, which leads to
products which can transform the way we live. Every two years there is
a competition whose goad is exactly that: to transform the way we
live by transforming where we live.
At the December CSSP meeting, Chad Corbin of the
University of Colorado and Kim Singleton of the University of Maryland discussed their
experiences as members of housebuilding teams in the Solar Decathlon,
sponsored by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the
U.S. Department of Energy. Each team designs, builds and powers a
dwelling ultimately suitable for sale in the consumer market.
The decathlon consists of 10 energy-related
events ranging from totally powering the house "off the grid"
to utilizing any excess to power an electric vehicle. Each program
involves upwards of 50 students and faculty and two tough-but-rewarding
years of work. Full reports on the houses, the innovations, the
designers and the competition can be found on Web sites at The University of Colorado;
The University of Maryland and
the Solar Decathlon sponsor site.
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Scholars receive 'golden
opportunity'
Crop Science Society of America celebrates anniversary
During its first 50 years, the Crop Science
Society of America (CSSA) has seen tremendous changes ranging from the
merging of plant breeding and biotechnology to an expanding focus
beyond just increasing yield and towards improving crop quality and and
environmental stewardship. Society members have made the choice not to
rest on past achievements; rather CSSA members know that it is time to
look forward to how they can strengthen the profession through the next
50 years and beyond.
CSSA's membership determined that strengthening
the crop science profession and achieving the international goal of
sustainable development of food and nutritional self sufficiency can
only be achieved by developing an outstanding cadre of young crop
scientists to provide leadership in the coming decades. Clearly, CSSA
had a "golden opportunity" as it celebrated its half-century
anniversary.
CSSA's anniversary-inspired project is the
Golden Opportunity Scholars Institute, directed at baccalaureate-level
college and university students. The objective is to select the most
promising undergraduate students from all regions of the United States
and beyond, and bring them to the CSSA annual meeting. This effort
began with much success at the 2006 annual meeting, held in
Indianapolis, when 15 outstanding students attended presentations by
high-profile agricultural scientists, presented their thoughts on what
they learned, and gained exposure to the many disciplines of crop
science. A critical component of the program is the pairing of each
student with a "mentor" for the meetings and the year
following. In addition, a number of mentoring activities and an alumni
network is planned so that a significant number of these students will
be inspired to enroll in crop science-related programs. Ultimately,
this group of students will be prepared to join the next generation of
leaders in the crop science profession.
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Read more...
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CSSP Member Profile: Marvin
Dainoff
Board member is 'a mover and shaker' in ergonomics
Marvin J. Dainoff is professor emeritus of
psychology and founding director of the Center for Ergonomic Research
at Miami University
in Oxford Ohio, president of Marvin Dainoff
Associates Inc., Consultants in Workplace Ergonomics and chairman of
1st Principles, Inc., an investment software development company.
He is immediate past president and outreach
domain leader of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society. He is an
elected director of the Board of Certification in Professional
Ergonomics and an elected board member of the Council of Scientific
Society Presidents.
Dainoff's areas of research and professional
interests include laboratory research on ergonomics of the work
environment; applications of ergonomics and cognitive work analysis to
methods of information display and communication, practical implementation
of ergonomic priciples in the field; and communication of ergonomic
principles to scientific peers, interested professionals, and the
general public with a particular emphasis on national and international
technical standards (ANSI/ISO.)
He is a fellow of the Human Factors and
Ergonomics Society. He has received the Professional Accomplishment
(Academic) award from the Technical Societies Council of Cincinnati and
a Certificate of Appreciation from the Assistant Surgeon General of the
United States Public Health. Dainoff serves on the editorial boards of
three journals and was program chair for the Human Computer
Interaction International 2007 Conference.
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Save the Date!
The next CSSP semi-annual meeting is slated for
May 3-6, 2008, in Washington D.C. Alumni members who have paid their
dues will be able to register for the dramatically reduced price of
$250! Regular registration costs $450. Call the CSSP office to register.
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Got news? We want to hear it! The Science Leader was developed to help us communicated better with our members, alumni, supporters and member organizations. In addition to keeping you abreast of CSSP events and science news, we want to share news from our members and member organizations, but we can't do that without your help. Please send submissions, story ideas and suggestions to Science Leader Editor Amber Allen at
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
or call (304) 755-7214. We look forward to hearing from you!
Thank you so much for reading our newsletter. We hope you have found it informative and interesting. Please contact us with any ideas and/or submissions for the next newsletter. We appreciate your support! James F. Baur, Publisher
Amber Allen, Editor Martin A. Apple, President |
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