Just over a year ago, I found myself pausing during a research lab meeting. “Why were all the subjects in our studies of wearable devices white? And what were the consequences of exclusion?” This question stuck with me long after the meeting. Digging into the evidence, I was alarmed to find paper after paper signaling embedded […]
Over the past two years, the federal government has invested unprecedented amounts of funding in wildfire suppression, hazardous fuels reduction, community preparedness, and restoration through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Together, the IIJA and IRA provide $24 billion in funding for wildfire issues, distributed over 40 different programs and administered […]
About FAS When properly harnessed, science, technology, and innovation can greatly benefit society. The challenge, however, is that the U.S. governments often struggle to capitalize on these sources of ideas, evidence, and experience to drive effective policy and governance. FAS exists to change that dynamic. Founded in 1945, FAS envisions a world where cutting-edge science, […]
Earlier this year Congress passed the CHIPS And Science Act: a once-in-a-generation piece of legislation to secure U.S. semiconductor manufacturing, enhance U.S. science investment, and foster the next generation of STEM talent. But at the core of that legislation are aggressive spending targets for the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Department of Energy Office of Science […]
Addressing health inequities and serving our nation’s diverse population requires an equally diverse biomedical workforce.
Like HIV/AIDS, acute childhood malnutrition is deadly but treatable with the right approach. A President’s Emergency Plan for Acute Childhood Malnutrition could catalyze the fight against malnutrition and direct resources to greater impact.
In our growing age of tech and social media, tech-ethics are increasingly relevant. A National Digital Ethics Framework can equip students to navigate a digitally transforming world responsibly and successfully.
Improving local food security is critical to ending poverty and eliminating hunger, and United States Government can be a global leader. From Jonathan Lehe, Nick Milne, and Gautam Bastian, a proposal for USAID, Feed the Future, and its partners to launch a Digital Agriculture for Food Security Challenge to improve crop yields worldwide.
Plants are key to enable a diversified and climate-resilient food system. Mary Fernandes proposes a Plant Genome Project (PGP), a robust Human Genome Project-style initiative to build a dataset of genetic information on plant species.
Until a month ago, I was an event skeptic. When it’s as easy as a Zoom link to connect with colleagues, I found it hard to believe that getting a bunch of people together around an agenda was ever really worth the time and effort. Point one for my colleagues at FAS and the White […]
STEM subjects are powerful levers for change, but formal STEM-ed lacks opportunities to practice cultural competency. Anjika Pai and Sophia Swartz propose a task force committed to building values of inclusion and public service into the U.S. STEM workforce.
Question: What do family game nights and federal government initiatives have in common? Answer: They’re both much easier to successfully start than to successfully finish. Coordinating multiple stakeholders—each with their unique interests and perspectives—around a common goal is simply difficult. At FAS, we have yet to figure out how to best tackle family game nights. But we […]