Knowledge Transfer Yields Dividend for the NSF Science and Technology Centers Program

Atlanta Conference on Science and Innovation Policy 2011This paper presents the performance and policy questions raised in a recent review of the STC program by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Specifically, the AAAS study assessed of the value added in each of five objectives of the STC program: research, education, diversity, knowledge transfer and integrative partnerships. The AAAS review analyzed the work of the 17 centers funded in three cohorts: 2000, 2002, 2005-06. It is the first evaluation of the STC program since 1995. Several sources of evidence were employed by the research team to triangulate the findings. These ranged from self-reported accomplishments by the centers to primary data collected from site visits and surveys. The presentation here will focus on the study’s exploration of the knowledge transfer objective of the STCs, with respect to its mechanisms, value-added and contributions to human and structural capacity building to promote excellence in science and engineeringNational Science Foundation (U.S.

A Price Worth Paying: The Case for Controlling Marine Emissions in the Pearl River Delta

The Pearl River Delta (PRD) is a region with a single airshed, but different administrative and legal practices for controlling air quality. Under the Regional Cooperation Plan on Building a Quality Living Area (QLA Plan) released in June 2012 the Governments of Hong Kong, Guangdong and Macau have outlined a strategy to collaborate in reducing emissions from vessels throughout the PRD. This report provides evidence designed to assist policymakers in the region with this objective. It focuses on regulating toxic exhaust emissions from ocean-going vessels (OGVs) -- the most significant contributors of marine emissions. The findings show that marine sources of sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions currently account for 519 premature deaths per annum in the PRD. These deaths could be reduced by 91% should an Emission Control Area (ECA) mandating the use of fuels with lower sulphur content be introduced. The report also demonstrates that three less comprehensive control measures would also reduce OGV emissions and associated public health impacts by 41-62%. Policymakers are encouraged to introduce these measures as stepping-stones on the way to establishment of an ECA for the PRD

Substantiation of the choice of the model for the formation of oxidative stress in preclinical studies

At the preclinical stage, a comparative assessment of various models of the formation of oxidative stress by exposure to high and low temperatures, ultraviolet irradiation, and the influence of a low-frequency alternating magnetic field was carried out. Exposure to laboratory animals was carried out daily for 21 days. It has been established that the modeling of oxidative stress by exposure to ultraviolet rays on rats allows, by the end of the first week of the experiment, to induce an increase in the intensity of lipid peroxidation processes with the accumulation of lipid peroxidation products by 48-61% and a decrease in the activity of antioxidant components by 31-33% in comparison with the control, which exceeds similar parameters on day 7 in models of hypothermia, hyperthermia and magnetic induction. Cold exposure in rats is accompanied by a more pronounced shift in the antioxidant status towards the prooxidant side by the end of the third week, which is confirmed by an increase in the concentration of lipid peroxidation products by 45-67% and a decrease in the level of components of the antioxidant system by 28-37% relative to the control. In general, the prooxidant effect in vivo of all the studied effects was confirmed, which we recommend as experimental models for the formation of oxidative stress at the preclinical stage, substantiating in the work the possibility of using each effect depending on the purpose of the pharmacological study

Is diversity good?

Prominent ethical and policy issues such as affirmative action and female enrollment in science and engineering revolve around the idea that diversity is good. However, even though diversity is an ambiguous concept, a precise definition is seldom provided. We show that diversity may be construed as a factual description, a craving for symmetry, an intrinsic good, an instrumental good, a symptom, or a side effect. These acceptions differ vastly in their nature and properties. The first one cannot lead to any action and the second one is mistaken. Diversity as intrinsic good is a mere opinion, which cannot be concretely applied; moreover, the most commonly invoked forms of diversity (sexual and racial) are not intrinsically good. On the other hand, diversity as instrumental good can be evaluated empirically and can give rise to policies, but these may be very weak. Finally, symptoms and side effects are not actually about diversity. We consider the example of female enrollment in science and engineering, interpreting the various arguments found in the literature in light of this polysemy. Keywords: ethics, policy, higher education, female students, minority students, affirmative actionComment: 7 page

The survival of murine hepatitis virus (a surrogate of SARS-CoV-2) on conventional packaging materials under cold chain conditions

IntroductionThe cold chain conditions have been suggested to facilitate long-distance transmission of SARS-CoV-2, but it is unclear how viable the virus is on cold chain packaging materials.MethodsThis study used the MHV-JHM strain of murine hepatitis virus as a model organism to investigate the viability of SARS-CoV-2 on foam, plastic, cardboard, and wood sheets at different temperatures (−40°C, −20°C, and 4°C). In addition, the ability of peracetic acid and sodium hypochlorite to eliminate the MHV-JHM on plastic and cardboard sheets were also evaluated.ResultsThe results indicate that MHV-JHM can survive on foam, plastic, or cardboard sheets for up to 28 days at −40°C and −20°C, and up to 14 days on foam and plastic surfaces at 4°C. Although viral nucleic acids were still detectable after storing at 4°C for 28 days, the corresponding virus titer was below the limit of quantification (LOQ).DiscussionThe study highlights that a positive nucleic acid test result may not indicate that the virus is still viable, and confirms that peracetic acid and sodium hypochlorite can effectively eliminate MHV-JHM on packaging materials under cold chain conditions