FABBS reports on items of interest to many communities – scientists, policymakers, and the public. In our news, you will see updates on science funding and policy, articles that translate research for policy, and descriptions of the research contributions of scientists at all stages of their research careers.
Unfinished Business Awaits Congress in 2018
January 9, 2018
Congress returned to Washington, DC on January 3rd with a long list of unfinished business—especially as it relates to the federal budget. On December 21, Congress passed, and the President subsequently signed, H.R. 1370, a continuing resolution (CR), to fund the federal government through January 19, 2018. This was the third CR since the start of the fiscal year on October 1, 2017, and it is likely Congress and the Administration will need to agree on the terms of a fourth
read moreStruggles with NIH Clinical Trial Policies Continue For Basic Scientists
January 9, 2018
For at least six months now, NIH and segments of the basic science community have been engaged in a dialogue around the agency’s operationalization of the clinical trials definition to include much basic science involving humans. Through petitions, open letters (see NIH Director Awardee letter and Study Section Chairs letter), emails, responses to NIH blog posts, Advisory Council discussions, and more, the back-and-forth has led to some improvements in the process (e.g.,
read moreFABBS Honors E Tory Higgins
Tory Higgins is the Stanley Schachter Professor of Psychology, Professor of Business, and Director of the Motivation Science Center at Columbia. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. He is the author of Beyond Pleasure and Pain: How Motivation Works, and Focus:Use Different Ways of Seeing the World for Success and Influence (with Hiedi Grant Halverson). He gave the University Lecture at Columbia University and received Columbia’s Presidential Award for
read moreHow Nurture Affects Nature
November 15, 2017
Policymakers often debate the merits of programs to change decision-making and behavior, wondering if they have enough bang for the buck. Now there is research showing that the choices people make affect us all the way down to the genetic level, and can even influence the biology of our offspring. Epigenetics is a relatively new field that is illuminating how genes and environment interact. It has changed the nature-versus-nurture debate, replacing it with the understanding
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