(EOIN Volume 319, ssue 5871 COVER DEPARTMENTS ‘The many layers of gene regulation in a 1727 Sdence Ontine ‘eukaryotic cll, envisioned as a video game. 1729. This Weekin Seence Transcription inthe nucleus (areen circle) 1735 Editor” Choice proceeds to translation inthe cytoplasm via 1738 Contact Science ‘genome topology, polymerase pausing, 1701 Random samples AmiCIORNA repression, RNA splicing, and 1743 Newsmakers riboswitch regulation. See the special section ATTA ee ae Nels, beginning on page 1781. ie Renton ‘lustraien: Carta. Cain ot eee EDITORIAL 1733 Shortcuts to Medial Progress? by Buce Abers SPECIAL SECTION Gene Regulation INTRODUCTION Freedom ef Expression 781 NEWs ico Lpresson in i «Dis 1782 PERSPECTIVES Gene Regulation by Vanscription Factors and MicroRNA 1788 0. Habert ‘The Eukaryotic Genome stan RIVA Machine ver BR Amaral ME Dirge, CR. Mercer, |S. Matick NEWS OF THE WEEK dutstevel Regulation of Gene Expression by MicroRNA 17989 Roads, Ports, Rais Arent Ready fr Changing Climate, 17.44 E Ve Mokeyev and Maniatis ‘Says Report TTascrftion Reguaton Through Prmote-Proximat 191 Study Fingers Set asa Major Fayerin 1748 Pausing of ANA Polymease I ‘Global Warning Ee Gaeore Eis ‘Smart Birds Lend a Beak for Food 1745 Sane tga nthe Tht Denson 1793 IIH Reports reach of Patient Records 1746 aoe Elusive Pathogen Comered at Last war ‘ciel Recess ue: SCIENCESCOPE 1747 Evolution of Eukaryotic Transcription Circuits 197 Shina's Modern Medical Winister va BB Tuc, HU, AD, bnson Saul Start-Up Hopes Grant Will Buy Time 1748 >> Eft 23 fron conte, ep 1727 090 NEWS FOCUS ica hcceemabartata Science by the Massa 1750 Weiching the Climate Rsk ofan Untapped 1753 fossil Fu 1787, With New Disease Genes, a Bounty of Questions 1754 lunar and Paretay Science Conference 1786 (Cooking Upthe Solar Syste from the Woh recent New hee fhe Slr Sptem Pure Fes iat i Wwe and War Eat Mas Realy te? Snape For the Met CONTENTS continued >> 2B MARCH 2008 1721Science SCIENCE EXPRESS MATERIALS SCIENCE Sireichable and Foldable Silicon Integrated Circuits D-H, Kim otal. ioh-perfoamance, bendable, nd setchable decucnic devices re fabricated on anclasti plastic subsratby placing theca eledronic components inthe mooie nes O.L1266science.1154367 APPLIED PHYSICS Silica-on-Siticon Waveguide Quantum Circuits A. Poli etal. (Quart icuts—in which invidual photons interes, entangle, and form bgie gates have been realized on silcon chs 10,1126(science 1155481, CONTENTS BIOCHEMISTRY Reconstitution of Pilus Assembly Reveals a Bact Caayst M. Nishiyamo, ZIshikona, H. Rechstener, R. Glockshuber ‘he cal reo formation of tho protuberant pis of pathogenic corns aclrtad by a prcten tat ataes supramolecular assebl without inpt of celular ene. 10.1126scence.1154994 | Outer Membrane GENETICS Rare Strectural Variants Disrupt Multiple Genes in Neurodevelopmental Pathways in Schizophrenia I Welsh etal. Patients wth shieophrnta carry multiple smal elation and duplications in thei DHA thot ae asaitednenrondomiy wth neuronal signaling ané bain development pathways 10.1126(sience 1185174 LETTERS The Last Inventor ofthe Telephone J. Schmidhuber Thinking Outside the Reet EU. Peterson, A. Beger, ZT Richords Putting Ant-Acacia Mutuals tothe Fire 2. Cochord and D.Agosti Response TM. Palmer et al. BOOKS E7 AL, Proust Was a Neuroscientis Lehrer: Artscience Creativity in te Fost-Google Generation D. Edwards reviened by}. Labinger ‘Victorian Popularzers of Science Designing Nature fer New Audiences B, Lightman, reviewedby B.. Pauly POLICY FORUM ‘The Planet Debate Continues MV. Sykes 1759 1763 1764 1765 ee REA wwww.scioncomag.org SCIENCE VOL319. 28MARCH 2008 PERSPECTIVES Multitasking in Tissues and Materials PB. Messersmith Anilestonein Time Keeping D. Kleppner When a Commodity Is Not Exactly aCommodity H.Folbre Recording Earth's Vital Signs RE Keeling A Postgenomic Visual Icon JN. Weinstein 1767 1768 1769 1771 1772 REVIEW Doped Nanocrystals D.j Morris 4 LEfies,S. Erwin BREVIA PLANETARY SCIENCE Dynamics of Saturn's South Polar Vortex U.A. Dyudine eta. (Observations rr Cassin show thatthe coud vrtexat Saturn's seuth polo staves somo features wath huanot (uch ac an oe wal, but forms by adifrent mecharis, REPORTS ASTROPHYSICS ‘Mognetar-.ike Emission from the Young Pulsar inkes75 EP. Govril otal ‘pula exits ray burst ke that seen nly in magnets which have utratigh magnifies, implying ha mouton stars exhibit a continuum of magreticactvty. 1776 1801 1802 CONTENTS continued >> 1723Science REPORTS CONTINUED. PHysios STRUCTURAL BIOLOGY St Lattice Clock at Lx 10~ Fractional Uncertainty 1805 ‘The Flavivirus Precursor Membrane-Envelope 1830 by Remote Optical Evaluation witha Ca Cleck Protsin Complex: Structure and Maturation 1D. Ludiow etal. Liieta. “wo docs tased on optical tances in single Wappen, so 4 lmetrs pat, arable to heeptme within afractonal erm: 015 107 batter than the stand atomic cack, PHYsiCs Frequency Ratio of Aland Hg* Singlo-lon Optical 1808 Clocks: Metrology atthe 17th Decimal Place T. Rasenband et al Precke measutemert ofthe fequency rato of two opal dods indicate thatthe fne-eructur conser sine and constant to 2) uocestainty of 1°", chemsTaY Sell-Acsombly of Large andSmallMoleculesinto 1812 irarchically Ordered Sacs and Membranes RM Cope ea. Mingo a high-molecar weg polyes with a lon-ncteulr ‘waht pepe amphi instant forms repatiate membrane sacs age enough cencasulate cel, MATERIALS SCIENCE ‘The Transition from Stiff to Compliant Materialsin 1816 Squid Beaks A Miser, Schneberh, C Son, EW. Zok, } H. Waite ‘he squid beak, shap and had ory at het exhiitsacremica aradicrt that allo: mchaniapropotietoprevert damage tothe attached wht muscletsive, >> Persectve 1767 cHEMsTAY Determining Yrarsition State Geometries in Liquids 1820 Using 20-18 FEE Cahoon, KR, Sawyer, J Schlegel, C. 6. Harris “aching vbraonl modes though a ansiton state by specwoscapy reals a ten eompound’s thermal igandearangerent high wos previous too fst to moni CHEMISTRY Surface Trapping of Atoms and Molecules with 1824 ipole Rings HDiatal. Holesin aboron atid serface ined by t-plane ples fon 2 nanometer scala pore network witha rapping potential that cn hold eakly aesoibed molecules. MOLECULAR BIOLOGY Nutritional Control of Reproductive Status in 1827 Honeyinees via DNA et ylaion B Kuchorst, J Moleszle, S. Fore, R. Mateszko Epigenetic modifcations tha wove revlon cause feral honeybee arc te become queens att than workers wen fey axe fed yal jl AVAAAS Strucute ofthe immature Dengue Virus at Low pl 1834 Primes Proteolytic Maturation Pa Yuet, Dengue ang West Nie vreses mature when the erveloge protein precusar cleaved at ow pt andton the dearage produc. Sisocites eu the cll allowing fection, NEUROSCIENCE Insect Odorane Recopcors Ate Molecular Targets of 1838 ‘the Insect Repellent OEET Mi. Bivzen, ML. Pellegrno, LB. ossholl “he widaly sod inset epllent DEE cst niitng factory neurons that espond to aowssuch s those thatateac insects thoi hosts NEUROSCIENCE Aversive Leaming Enhances Perceptual and Cortical 1842 Discrimination of Indiscriminable Odor Cues. WILL O. Howard TB Parish J. . Gotiied Meer asdation of negative stimuli one of pi finaly ‘ndstngusable odors hurranpanicpantseartotel the wo ders apa and show alte brain epresatatons. NEUROSCIENCE Electric Fields Ove to Syraptic Currents Sharpen 1845, Bicitatory Transmission 5. Splaniyev eta. The clerical eld setup by currents iin he snaptc cet «an naencediston of nogathoty charges neurtan cites, such as glutamate, and proiong excitatory events NEUROSCIENCE Rule Learning by Rats 1849 RA Marphy, E Mondragén, V.A. Murphy ats can loa the rte governing emplesaquence: af tim and ‘then unexpectedly can general theserulestonew situations eee pe ti aa wei any nae ‘Schemes tne ovat np an sete wnyou.scioncemag.org SCIENCE VOL319. 28 MARCH 2008 CONTENTS L CONTENTS continued >> 1725‘The eyes hae it SCIENCE NOW wnnsciencenoworg OALY NEWS COVERAGE New Form of Vision Discovered ‘mance shin eyes can se cular pata lg, which may be sen mating oe secret Signaling. ‘Therapeutic Cloning Shows Promise for Parkinson's Disease Micoweated wih tairoon cll What Does a Plant Sound Like? _Acompater progam reveals ow bat find he aver foliage — tnd howe an use the same bck, SPECIAL SECTION Gene Regulation SCIENCE SIGNALING weston), THESGHAL TRARSDUCTON KOALEDS EDITORIAL GUIDE: Focus lsue—Mechanisms of Gene Regulation LE Foley matlayered mechanisms contra vatous aspects of gana expression PERSPECTIVE: Silent Assassin—Oncogenic Ras Diects Epigenetic inacivatcn of Target Genes Kecheng COncogeric Ras directs a program thatepigenetalysfences genes that inhib tumocigoness PERSPECTIVE: NFAT Well Placed to Direct Bath Enhancer Looping and Domain-Wide Models of Enhancer Function BM. Cockerill Indie trachromasomal loping between the tumor necrosis facto (NF gene promotes and wo NFAF-ependert enhances actintes TNF-agone oxreson. PERSPECTIVE: SRC-3 Transcription-Coupled Activation, Degradation, and the Ubiquitin Clock—k There Encugh Coactivator to Go Around in Cells? DM. Lonaad and 8. W. O'Malley ‘The cita ocr in esrogen dependent arnt of beastcancer ‘als appa tobe te abvevdance ofthe coactivator protein SRCA. wwwescioncomag.org SCIENCE The hazards of perfectionism. SCIENCE CAREERS. vue ciencecareer.oraiareet_develepment Mind Matters: Too Perfect? 15. Levine Peectonim can diniish producti, undermine ob setisecton, and damage wok ations. Mastering Your Ph.0.: Goodbye to All That P Gosling and 8. Noordam ‘Once you've aid goodbye tothe bench, you ante comortin he opportunites that at Educated Woman, Postdoc Ecition, Chapter 14: Interview Excursions MB DeWhyse 1 ofc: cela out shopping foramen cree. From the Archives: The Mind Matters Index 1S. Levine {ean how eae a mere success and fufling woke, SCIENCEPODCAST Download the 28 March Science Podcast to hear about rule learning by rats, the biamechanical properties of squid beaks, making sense of genome-wide association sueies, and more. NG wmscincenay cuabewoodas al Separate indvidvol or institutional subzeitions to these products may be required for ul txt access VOL319 28 MARCH 2008 1727Semiconductor Doping Writ Small Adding depants impurities isa kann method to change the electronic proper tif semonductr materials theory, shoul alsobe seul tick altering the Properties of semcondictrnanoceytalso ‘quantum dats. However, asthe pate sie gets smaller, becomes increasingly dificult cope the particles urifrmly ot avoid unwarted ‘hoical reactions of dopant thatiuoduce on fect lec or hole the pate. Nossal (0.1776) ceview a umber af techniques that fave en developed to overcome the chal lenges of doping nancial Careful Hold of a Sharp Tool The squid beak san organic har tissue embed- dd in salt nile tisue Mlserer eta. (1816; see the Perspective by Messersmith) question how the squid can use the sharp and rigid beak without causing damage tts oan muscle tissue that holdsand power it They find that thre isa ‘gradiantin the properties along the beak such that onl the cutting end i stiff and har the ‘end tat shel bythe soft isuas is sok anc ‘compliant. Gadient materials have been found in nature befrs, but in this case the authors map and conelate the mechanical properties with the local chemistry. In particuar, they find thatthe stiffness gradient can be tied to mixtures wwww.scioncomag.org ‘of citin anda histidne-rch protein family that bodies can beprodeced only a high cas and Law capacy hough expresion in mammalian SCIENCE VOL319 28MARCH 2008 cells and are therefore not optimal for commercial manufacture. Two studies escrbe the purification ofthe ant-HIV antibedy 2612 from genetically engineered maize ona large and costfectve sale Rademacher et cl. usad a fluorescent marker protein to identify and breed transgenic plants that accumulated a high amount of 2612 in the ‘80d endosperm, the plant's specialized sterage tissue. Ramessar ¢ al purified the antibody ‘rom 2G12-expressing maize without using protein A-affinity chromatography, a step typi- «ally used for antibody isolation, but toxic i protein leaches int the final produc Despite diferences between mammalian and plant-speciic processing of pratein-Lirked ‘atbotydrate, both studies found that glycan motification of maize-produced 2612 antibod: ies ¢id not alte antibedy bincing tthe gp120 subunit ofthe envelope protein of HIV. The Hiv-neutratizing properties of mammalian cell anid maize-produced 2612 were comparable, withthe later being somewhat more potent, Maite-produced 2612 could be aneffecive prophylactic mucosal microbicide, and large-scale plant cultivation and prolonged seed storage inthe absence of co tempera- tures make this method of antibody production ‘economically attractive. — 1c Pont Biotechnol). 6, 109 (2008); Fro. Net erd, Sc USA. 105,3727 (2008 A Fade-Away Injection Although arnumber of drugs canbe delivered vig a trnsdermal patch this paa-free methed generally does not Se of aneecle injec: tion In a hybrid > biocornpacibie polysaccharides, catboxymethy.celiutose (CMO ané amylopectin ‘a key to making robust needles was pre-concen approach, Lee et a. fabricated tration ofthe aqueous polysaccharide solutions Continued on page 1737 mmicroneedle arrays out of two 1735CContinsed from page 1735, before casting the nasies in a polymer mole, The strength of the mironeedles depended on shape, because qlindricl CIC needles were ot strong enough to penetrate skin, although pyramidal ones were. Drugs could be loaded Into the needles themselves, intaalbacking layer, or both, depending on whether dosing required a bolus shot or s more prolonged éetiv- ery. Oncontac wth skin, the microneedles dissolved, releasing the drug and creating path ways fr transpor irom the backing layer. Using isozyme as a mode poten, the authors showed that it was possible to store the arrays for up to 2 months with arast no loss of enzy- matic activity. — NISL Siomoterin29, 2113 2008), Inversion at Zinc (One ofthe first things taught in organic chem- istry is that a carbon atom can form bonds to four other atoms. Furthermore, these bonds point toward the vertices ofa tetrahedron, with the carbon atom located at its center. The con sequent variety of carbon-based molecules i, ofcourse, the basis for biochemistry and, in particular, the biolagical families of macromel- ecules —liids, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, and proteins. Zinc can contribute either tothe Catalytic poner or te structural integrity of proteins and usually binds in tetrahedral fash- Jon tothe sulfur or nitrogenvoxygen atoms ofits four ligands, such as, cqstaine or histidine. Koutmos et of find that the zinc ators in the cobalamin-dependent and independent methionine synthases ‘MetH and Meié undergo an inver: ston in thee geometry a5, these enzymes rmeciate the tans fer of a methyl group ‘te homocysteine (which reaction yields methionine) Like a tetrahedral carbon in a nucleophilic substitution reaction, the zinc atom releases one its ligands (glutamate or asparz-cine, respectively) as it reaches to make contact with the sulfur in homocysteine; this motion resem- bles an umbrella turing insie out ona windy day. The unanticipated flexibility of an active site metal fits nicely with recent thinking about the importance of intrinsic protein mations for enzyme catalysis. — GJC ‘Prec. Nol Ace. SC. USA 108, 3286 (2008) wwwwscioncomag.org EDITORS'CHOICE Activity at the Pore Throughout the nuceus, chromosomal regions localize to particular subcompartments, such as the nuclear periphery, that cortespand with ene activation oF repression. For exemple, {genes positioned near the Lamia-rich regions of the nuclear envelope in Drasophila generally correlate with transcription repression. Rela- tively less is known about spatial regulation in ‘mammalign cells. Brown eto have wsed bio- chemical mapping ard visualization techniques in hurman calls to elucidate genomic organize tion atthe nuclear pore complex. Upon treat- ‘mert wit a histone deacetylase inhibitor, eatersive nuclear reorganization resulted, with an increased association ofthe nuclear pore protein rucleoporin $3 with genomic features and transcription factors characerstic of tran- sctiptonaly active genes. Hence, the nuclear ore plays an important part in the regulation lf genes in the human genome, — BAP Genes Dex 22, 627 (2008, Copper in the Crust The concentration of most metals is extremely low in Earth’ crus. For copper, the mst impor- tant ores globally are the porphyry depasit, hich form when copper and other metals ae concentrated ta uids emanating from and flowing ‘through shallow bodies of macma he crust. Rapid cooling of these fluids or asudden change In thei chemistey as they interact with rocks or other fluid, leads to ‘recitation of copious amounts of metas and metal sulfides. thei formation has been episodic throughout Earth's history, and many ore deposits, as they form at depths, have been eroded. Kester and Wilkinson account for the formar tion, uplift, ard erosion of porphyry copper deposits to provide a gab accounting ofthese deposits through Earths history and assess the remaining arailable resource. They estimate that about 0.25¢h ofthe copper in Erth’s crust has actu- ally been concetrated in ores, and that about two-thirds ofthe more than 100,000 ore deposits that have formed over Eath’s history have been eroded and recycled. At curtent con sumption ates, they estimate that there is about a 5000-year supply of copper remaining in the Eth. — BH Geology 36,285 (2008 Travel with AAAS! Madagascar EXPEDITION September 2-18, 2008 _Mousstanuling introduction to thenature reserves and unique ‘ld of Medagavean this 1-day expedition offers travel enthusiasts anexceptional opportunity to ecome acquainted with the cultural hertage, flora, and fauna of Madagascar. Here, on the fourth kgestidand inthe world isa speciaeular a, unk that found an where else; 95% ofthe lemursand reptiles. 81% ofthe flowering plants, ‘98% ofthe palms, and many birds are simply found nowhere else. Explore the charming capital ety ofhocigcscar, Antananarivo. Visi internationally acclaimed wilde reserve, Berenty Reserve. See the sacred black lemurs at Nosy Be, aresort ‘on the Lacan Ocean, Look forthe largest ofthe kamu, tse indr,at Perinet Reserve. fantastic experience! $3,005 For a detailed brochure, please call (800) 252-4910 AAAS Travels 17050 Montebello Road Cupertino, California 95014 inal: AUSlaobetsurtexpediions com SCIENCE VOL319. 28MARCH 2008 17371738 www sciencemag.org Science {200 New vokAvenee, ‘Weshogon DC 20005 eo ESO MEO 32 Now 202 S94 ease 52 ‘atom Howe, 2-88 lle Road Cambridge, Ur CB2 110 ‘2005 Sar sae bea. 10s Myst BS, 0, feta mon canon a Mame ewe MeSbaneo steam dt wean iis nameuraranee Soe emer Seeman aa Mo iegeeegena ceca tet Seeeeceeyarcra Se sone satuiaiaion (ot gewalesterauens? Sea liesaasog” (bie toutes Scie feesgiog Jenny nunc yer 5oene teagan (bi bol we ated ‘Mid ean ten he haar Se {EEStor nam eet tony awh ar cinemas oe peel a egy As hct ualtes Scenes ong {toa rowan ane anda ear-westavedare Dasonenmumemnecreamessesisas fee fence Reena someon ‘Sane adi olan: pone fereconte cat anse Titecenepet vera wanicend siete ‘ne skye ec yp ui oe nea dnd ‘Boks taro, Bakara R}sen, Cla oxen rife ven knee Mere tore erat rayne bn Shices nasement aera ote Ee Seievciit ts ome aan Shiga marie eee Bearer it conrvatcenoae Bore iahe ieee Zoran ere seteortrmmarene Say SeTcsn tg ta eoseNT CS, ‘Promacon second; mans Mey K Sh ome corcbrsiote mente nt Sema coneane Sean Se arn ae Eocene arcane Scere cee Siena meter sana oa wr ScSeetiadine manne Fae macnn eters Soja Suerte SEER iaiareounaa ssa pair ta sponte Bl oa, ute Baa. Pbllinson Guo datz ay S30 18. Scat Rater art cem e {Sttmems ers tov ass S395 000, At ors ars dnemlagyl cory tn Xn Chae +860 eas 0) 10 08 Sage Gout ioe 210 ETL nabioveray oe roma eneengpynaen) ‘oss Beth Ronee ‘ines fuer leo ane tosuearhd enone ‘Snort sana fa eeisenaie est Sat cee he il Sth skate ist syder asa mast a Sondre frotcnn es Col en We es wot Sonnet sen ins Oset ‘er mg tne Gaeta ra yat sts ge55 pe ey riage) ve mamma set ‘ng imuroe aus wma Ty Hoes 948 (0) 2) rt an) sasha seared, Ne Sr teem oe ieee Sun riaieh meet MVAAAS fees a swe puEEDE Hi ; Hf ee nn ae Bees BRS. tame en Penearhowe ‘Bomopmer} tata ine colori, Suteey SCIENCE wnwwescioncomag.org_Chimp Corridor Proposed ‘An Jowa conservation group hopes to salvage a tiny group of chimpanzees in Faanda by creat- ing a forest “corridor” to connect ther with a larger population “The Gishwat Forest used to cover 100,000 hectares, but logging and farming have shrunk it by 909%. colanyof us to 20 chimgs has been hanging on insolation fcr decades. The Great ‘Ave Tustin Des Maines is now collaborating with wane’ forest authonty to plant trees near the Isolated chimps, collecting seeds fom chimp feces to make sure they ae tres thatthe ani- ‘mal keto use. They plan to covee BO hectares this year and hope to eventually create a contin- Lous stretch of forest hat wl alow the pepua- tion to merge wih some 800 chimps that ive in ‘wo national parks about SO kilometers anay. Such corridors ave relatively untied. But the trust's conservation director, Benjamin MOTETS, MONKS, AND MORTAR Anarchitecual historian has taken a choi t Venice to deer- ‘mine how much Renaissance archi- tects and composers shaped each others work. Las spring, with acoustians and musicolociss, Deborah Howard of Cambridge University inthe U.K led an expe ‘imental public concert tour on hich the Choir fst John's College, Cambridae, performed Renaissance wars in 11 Venetian churches and monasteries, includ ‘ing the San Marco basilica, Recordings as well as audience ‘actions, indicated that complex wawscioncemag.org Vi EDITED BY CONSTANCE HOLDEN oo Looking Within Comme: ache tt ote nstastace ore toahea Ansenie tae Hage els sts soem pfvegh a gt hen ay sang ht Sete, Opes cha thbrin nd the weeb ene ws nite which ere Cento ene and ond etecetth a9 uci ound a henge explain everything from pregnancy and wound healing to sneezing, The ache spas but acon fel eprndutns ogs b's define “tinny ver ander He ene, ase. dsrbed “cep dt oper” who also helped set up an archaeological theme park in the Netherlands. ater vis worded dg, ites ot om bah dint an wertin ‘center that promotes healthy lifestyles. Supported by corporations, medical groups, and th gown e420 lien hiding-nhih fom te ate Fsnblesa cated ete itm ater arty polyphonic pisces reverberated too ‘much throughout large spaces such asthe bsilica but sounded rightin San Marco's smaller ducal. ape. Monastary chapels were thebest settings for resonant but Beck, cites a prevcus successful 10-year proj= ect in Brazi involving golden tion tamarins. Beck estimates the cost in Rwanda ata fea mil lion dollars, mostly to compensate landowners. Locals ae skeptical right now, he acknol- edges, but he hopes that continued ‘meetings will help win them over. Science Off the Air "Nearly half of Americans cannot name a “role model” scents, ing ordead, And only 11% can come up with thenamne ofa tiving ‘one, acording toa survey released lasteck by the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, linois.And whom do they think of most often? Bill Gates and AL Gore. Each was named by 6% of the sample, on ‘par wit Albert Einstein. Most respondents also reported that citizens’ ignorance of science rd oo Cece straightforward chants. And hum ble parish churches adorned with sound-damping tapestries were suited ta simple hymn sing. "Each chutch cid generate the kind of acoustic that wasappropri- ate tls needs, says Howard, showing that architects desioned is“a detriment to cur nation.” ‘Apossble source a the problem emarged from another sty released last week by the Few Research Center for the People and the Pres. It found that fr every S hours of US. cable elei- sion news only2 min- tutes are devoted to sc- fence or the ervron= ‘ment. By cotrat, the same petiod contains 10 minutes ofeebrity ews and nearly hall ‘an hour on rine Given the priorities Inthetemajee news outlets, “its not sur- prising that in polls, few American rank climate ‘change athe ervitanment as atop politcal px ity or even a msjor national problem, says Matthew Nisbet, social scientist at American Washington, D.C. with acoustes in ming. Composers also probatly tak lored their work to speci build ings, says Howard, who presented her fining at this month's Cambridge Science Festival. For ferample, the eam found compo- sitions calling for a double choi that in a reverterating space such {San Marco would achieve 2 “surround sound” eect. “We sup- pose that many musicians com= ote their wok having in mind very particular kindof place," ays applied physicist Frencesco Martellota cf the Feytechnic Univesity of Bari, “but in this case itis dearly doqumented.” SCIENCE VOL319 28 MARCH 2003 1741IBN TAS oso EDITED BY YUDHIJIT BHATTACHARJEE POLITICS RASING HACKLES. During er many cars urveying brown ba in Montana end Saroundng sit Kathene Kel hast er ground ine fice of growing tsa, The Sé-yea-old US, Gols Savy (USGS) biog has domon Stated the ame statins agains Arizona Senator Jahn McCai, the peste Republica raidolalrowanes obo he repeated ced Kendall $5 rallion pr clin a conpupato climate sot he mpot ne vale earactingby Cong. Kendall trgscale DNA analjssofbear ha, which was fended othe USGS budgetin 2003, provides ancnntuie way io doa cena of ts bot pop aon nthe Nother Ceninenal vie Ecosse, wih an eye ona deter ining the Bx way to manage th pes. Du MeCain ba dcled tas wei nly forimentgang bearpatrty eisend dnp res isnot cera elng ove that Kin of pigng inanuntvonbe Ligh” Kendal ys abou th salvos McCain launched rng rocentspecches in MOVERS GENE SEEKER. A ligeria-bom geneticepie- miologit who hasled studies on why some eth groups suffer higher res certain dsaaces has been chosen to heed anew $1.7 million Center for Genomics and Health Disparties at the USS. National Human Genome Research Institute in Bethesda, Marland, Charles Rotimi, 50, had been directing a human genome certr at Howard University in Washington, 0.C, one ofthe coun tyy’s leading minenty-serving institutions Rotim! is working on the frst genome-wide association study ofan Airican-American popu: lation, looking for DNA inwotved in di betes, hypertension, and cesty. He plans to continue studies of diabetes in Vest Attica and China end join with Duke Unversity sclemists to study genetic citferences in Fesponsas to crugs. He Three Q’s >> Hotmat Schwarz, 64, ular chemist at the Technical University of Berlin, took over as president ofthe Alexander ‘von Humbold Foundation in, Boon in January. The foun- dation awards hundreds of fellowships each yearto researchers from around the ‘world to work in Germany. This year, itwill begin a pro- gram to lure foreign scientists to German universities with nwmuscioncemag org, 10 5-year, €5 million profes ip awards, Q: What can the foundation do to be more effective? Itisclearthatour competition thas increased, and other organi- zations pay much betterthan we do, Itwill be important wo signif cantly raise the amount we award fellows [for example, $40,000, per year for postdoctoral fellows} so that we can make sure that no ‘one chooses to go somewhere celsebased onmoney. South were very careful about mal results sometime this year says moving tothe NIH campus wil allow ir to expand collaborations and da highsk research without the constant pressure to obtain outside grams, Rati brought along five workers from his lab at Howard and expects to build a total staff of 10 to 22. Marine biologist John Burris has been named president of the Burroughs Welleame Fund, an 5800 million foundation in Research Triangle Patk, North Carolina, that supports biomedical research. Burs, who diveied the Marine logical Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, during the 90s, has serve as president of Boot College in Wisconsin since 2000. He starts his new job in July, succeeding Enriqueta Bor ON CAMPUS FELLED, NOT. Brian Karpes was shot five times by the gunman who killed five students and wounded 18 others during last month’s shoot ing at Northern linois University (NIU] in DeKalb. Bu the geology graduate student sur- vived—and cod hisplars ta present aposer will achieve? Planck So abroad, ‘that when the 5 srolina and in a November 2007 television c : What do you hope the Humboldt Professorships The award is somethii 11 fora person plus an insti~ tution. A person must be nominated by the potential host university. The Max by recruits 30% of its top researchers from nd we want to make it possible fora university to recruit top talent, too. But the universities have to make sure SCIENCE VOL319. 28MARCH 208 We npaign commercial ng every penny count.” Kendall hopes to publish the at this months Lunar and Planetary Science Conference ouside of Houston, Texas Korpes, 27, was siting inona 150-student oceanography dass as 2 teaching asisant wen the shooter began firing 2 shotgun and three hand- uns fromthe auditorium stage. Karpes was hit inthe hhead, twice in his Ltt sid, and once each in his right hhand and left biceps. He spent a weck in the hospi tal. Despite a broken wt ing hand, Karpes was able to assemble a poster based on his cataloging of impact craters around the equatorial region of Saturn's plume-spouting moon Enceladus. And ater doctors said he coulda rave, an NIU protes- sor agreed to carry the poster to Houston. It was the only one among hundreds atthe meeting tobe sioned by dozens of well-wishers ‘Got tip forthe page? E-mal people @anacr through, it is possible forthe person to stay : Youhave said thatthe professorships should go to researchers who are play- ‘makers, What do you mean by that? Inrecent years, we have become a bit provincial at German universities, We want ‘the Humboldt professorsto set something in motion that hes an infectiouseffect onthe whole university 1B neW: 17431744 GLOBAL CHANGE Cooperating rn Roads, Ports, Rails Aren't Ready for Changing Climate, Says Report A federal study released this memth documents the significant impact dha climate change is expected to have on theUS. transportation sys- tem Ts conclasion, says Henry Schwartz, the former head of one of the country’s largest highway engineering firms, isa prety damn. ing taleof what could happen The 3-year effort, led by the US, Depart ‘ment of Transportation and including. out- side experts as well as climate scientists, focused on a roughly 80-km-wide strip along the Gulf Coast region from Mobile, ‘Alabama, to Houston, Texas, that is home to 10 million people (climatescien: sgov/Library/sap/sap4-7/Final-report). It found an expected sea-level rise of 122 een- timetets over the next $0 to 100 years—an estimate reflecting the midrange of previcus Read hazards. Newstudy fabovet shows what a 122-cm sein sea evel would do te H Otis hahway below 22cm tion, the report says that a temperature rise of between 0.3° and 2.5°C would cause rail- road lines to buckle, require more sturdy driving surfaces, and boost the cast of road maintenance by increasing the strain on repair crews, Scientists say the study is the most rigor ous effort thus lar to quantify how climate ‘change could impact vulnerable U.S. infra- structure atthe local level. “Transportation professionals... by and large haven't looked very seriously at global warming,” says Schwartz, a former president of engineering gant Sverdrup Civil (now Jacobs Engineer- ing Group in Pasadena, Californ Schwartz is also chair ofa pane of the US. National Academies" National Research Council (NRC) that has tackled the same teen ion ome 33cm) the Gull Coast's major roads, already vulnerable to major scrms suchas Hurricane Karina in 2005 op). global forecasts that was tweaked to facior in as much as 81 em in subsidence in some areas—would permanently flood nearly 2 third of the region's major roads. Some 72% of por's in the region woul be at risk, the report concludes, anda majority of roads and 29 airports would likely experience ‘major flooding during major siorms. In adi- 28MARCH2008 VOL3I9 SCIENCE iswie on a national scale. Is report, released last week, calls for similar partnerships Deween climate scientists and transportation planners in other regions (nap eda catalog 12179 hm The Gull’ Coast study examined how the region's climate might chan ge over the expected life of major transportation facli= es ties, a period that extends for the next half century and beyond. The pane! extracted data from 21 global climate models that project a temperature inerease forthe region of from 1°t02°Cy 2050, Rescarchersalso took into account geologic data, global forecasts on sea-level rise, and ground subsidence of as ‘much as 0.8 em per year. Transportation planers then overlaid the forecasts onto thousands of kilometers of roeds, ports, rail ways and airports, ‘The results point to a looming di “Based on these levels, an unte tion of the region's road, rail, and port net- \work iat risk of permanent flooding” the federal report says, Hurricanes and the ris ing ocean are already destroying barrier islands, which blunt the coastal impact of incoming siorms. The Gulf Coast study ls or more drainage and alternative tuaffie-handling schemes to cope with increasingly severe rain storms, as well as better evacuation routes for hurricanes expected to grow more intense. The two repors acknowledge their limita tions. The Federal sudy admits that its precip- tation projections are open to question and that more rapid polar melting could wreak fer havoc on transportation systems. To address such gaps inthe research, the NRC study called for more regional climate staies, short-term prediction tools to foresee disrup- tions such as storm-flooded roads, and more help from the federal government to local planners trying to batten down the hatches Both reports recommend new ap- proaches to infrastructure investments. In the past, says Schwartz, engineers decided how high to make a highway overpass or how deep to make a drainage ditch by ‘ome preset desi based on historic variations in rainfall, temperature, and other climate variables The changing climate patterns now require planners to devise a standard for teach project based oa the probability of ‘mote severe weather events, Additional Federal studies are expected io focus on how climate change would affeet a partic: ular Gulf Coast facility, be ita port, high way, or coasal city ‘lan Clark, a transportation planner for the greater Houston, Texas, area who partic pated in the study, plans to take shiftin climate patterns into consideration in standard; wnwwescioncomag.org_ i i 5 g i i i j j g i i i 8 i 5 é iFOCUS preparing development plan forthe Houston Galveston area In particular, says Clark, ‘mate change should be factored ito decisions ‘on whether o build a proposed second bridge connecting the rapidly growing Galveston Island tothe mainland, Aside from the usual factors such as cost, environmental impact, and the population to be served, Clark notes, oficials also need to think about whether con- tinued coastal development is prudent in the CLIMATE CHANGE Ty itt oo face of rising sa levels and worseningstorms, ine real question is whether we should be going down this route at all"he says. ‘Transportation managers in several southe em and westem states say they would like to undertake similar studies of their regions but that money isan obstacle. John Zamurs ofthe New York State Department of Transporta- tion, who advised on the Gulf Coast effort and has tried to launch an equivalent effort for ures eas his state, says, “Were ail sruggling to find the funding.” Putting the issue off would be a mistake, says Schwartz The Missouri-based Sverdrup Civil he once headed has built billions of del- lars’ worth of water, highway, rail, and bridge projects across the country. But he says that, the challenges to infrastructure will be mare ‘complex and the cos greateras both the seas and the merewry ise, EL MNTISCH Study Fingers Soot as a Major Player in Global Warming Climate-change authortiss long ago tagged carbon dioxide public enemy number one Now there may be a new number to: tiny Partles of black carbon, or soot. According to ave analysis reported onlin this weck in Nature Geoscience iontsare con- ching that re last November's assessment by the Intengovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) may seriously under- estimate black carbon’ role i global warmn- ing The woed news is that—unikeredoetions in greenhouse gas emissions—reducing the release of laze amounts of black carbon worldwide would have immediate effects Although te errorbarson the new meas urement are lage, “the eifects of black ear bon are definitely stronger than what the IPCC estimates.” says Mark Jacobson, an atmosphere scientist at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, who was not ivalvedin the study. The IPCC report ned that black eatbon isa strong absorber of sunlight but down- played its impact because the haze it pro- dluces occurs regionally rather than globally IPCC estimated tat, at current levels, black carbon warms the atmosphere by D.2 10 04 wats persquaremetr (W n),consdor- ably below the value of 1.66 W mr? for CO, Butintheirnew analysisof awide variety oP recent data, Veerathadran Ramanathan of the Seripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego, California, and Gregory Carmichael ofthe Univesity of fowa in fos st that black carbon warms the re by as much as 0.9 W m enough to vault it over the impact of other climate-warming gases such as methane, halocarbons, and toposphericezone. wwrnsciencemsg org Se ee eee eo Black carbon comes from sources as diverse as the buraing of grasslands in Africa and the rainforest in Bravil, diesel emissions from trucks in North America, cooking fires burning coal in China, and cow dung in india, ‘The soot watis high into the atmosphere, ofien inthick brown clouds tha block some sunlight, and absorb significant solar radiation Ramanathan says previous conservative cestimates of black carbon’s warming effect overlooked key factors—most important, the interaction between black caybon and ether particles in the atmosphere. “Black carbon doesn texis! by itself” says Ramanathan, “Is always mixed with ether aerosols” such as sulfate particles, and other organic combus- on byproducts. Many of those other aerosols reflec light, inereasing the chances that twill be absorbed by nearby flecks of soot. Black carbon high in the atmosphere also absozbs ight reflected by Earths surface and clouds Because most climate models don’t ade- ener eee quately represent such effects, they often underestimate how much reflected light soot absorbs, Ramanathan say. studies by Ramanathan and others tum ‘ur to be right, hats oth good and bad news for policymakers. On the downside, the plethora of sources of black carbon will make ithatd eat emissions. On the other hanel the particles circulate inthe atmosphere for only bout a week before Filling back to Earth. So concertedeffortsto duce biomass burning in the Amazon, eut diesel emissions, or comer: cooking stoves to biogas or even solar power couldhavea powerful impact farmore quick than changes in CO. emissions Public heath researchers have long sought to curb black carbon because inhalation of smoke from wood firs isthoughtto contribute toas many as 400,000 deaths a year in India alone, Now, Jacobson says, climate change esearch'"underscores the need o coral black ccrbon evenmere"” ROBERT E SERVICE SCIENCE VOL319 28 MARCH 2008 1745i NEWS OF THE WEEK 1746 BEHAVIORAL ECOLOGY Smart Birds Lend a Beak for Food Corvids—including ravens, crows, and rooks are among the smarty-pants of the bird world. Now scientists report that rooks, like chimpanzees. can cooperate in food- setting tasks. Researchers have long sought to demon- strate cooperation in animals to probe the cognitive underpinnings of this behavior, ‘These insights may help explain how cooper ation evolved so spectacularly in humans. In 2006, researchers shovved that chimps could work together to bring a focd-laden platform within reach of their cage (Science, 3 March 2006, p. 1297). Now. a team of esearch inthe United Kingdom has shown that rooks are capable of the same behav’ even though they are vastly removed evolu tionarily from chimps, “All the things that have been popping wp in primates seem to be Popping up as well in social bird,” says Har- vard University primatologist Marc Hauser Seientists have alweady demonstrated that ccorvids will share food and help a palin 2 fight, much as chimps do. To see how well coks would cooperate in a food Amanda Seed, Nicola Clayton, Emery at the University of Cambridge in the UK. rigged up a piatform containing dishes ofwormsard cookedegg yolk. A string pass ing through loops an the platform provided beak holds that the birds could use todrag the CLINICAL RESEARCH beste = Strings attached. Roots wil wok together t’sconvenient Food into their cage. Because the two ends were too far apart for one bind to pick up, two individuals—one at each end—had to pull simultaneously. If one pulled by itself, the string would slip through the loops. The researchers exposed cight pairings of ‘ight rooks to the challenge. In 60 trials per pair, all were able to pull in the eggs and worms. But as with chimps, the pairs who were most “olerant”—that is, got along with cach othorthcbest as evidenced by behaviors NIH Reports Breach of Patient Records “The theft Last month ofa laptop with patient dlata from a clinical wial under way at the US. National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland, is fueling broader con- cerns about privacy. The computer, stolen fom the locked car unk of an NIH scientist, has led to a tightening of NIH policies on safeguarding patient information and raised concerns about practices st US. universities. The incident, frst reported this week by The Washington Post, involved Andrew Arai, head of the cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) section at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). The laptop contained names, birth dates, and some clinical data for 2500 patients taking part in a 7-year study of cardiac MRI The files did not inckude Social Security numbers, phone numbers, or addresses. The laptop was password- protected but not encrypted. Last May, 28MARCH2008 VOL3I9 SCIENCE the government began requiring laptops containing sensitive data vo be enerypied following the 2006 theft ofa laptop contain. ing personal information on millions of Veterans Affairs (VA) patints Nearly | month after Arai reported the ‘of campus thet to NIH officials, an internal NHLBI committee approved a letter to ‘snotifying themof the incident. A pric advocacy group expressed concern about the delay, noting that there isno federal requirement that paticnts be informed of a security breach. “texposesa weakness of oar national standards” says Deven McGraw of the Center for Democracy and'Technology in Washington, DC. NHLBI Deputy Director Susan Shurin says that“thisparticular breach was unlikely to cause harm.” Still, she says, NTH now realizes it needs to tighten its policies. NHLBI has already taken a first step by such as feeding from the same dish—picked Upthe wick the fastest, The most tolerant pair reeled th: food platform in 632%of the tries, ‘whereas the least tolerant had a score of the team reportsanline 26 March inthe Proceedings of the Roval Society [But unlike chimps, the rooks did not have the insight to realize they would be beter off waiting for help. The researchers monitored Individal birds place in a room withthe tes. platform, The bird could either pul fualessly fon one end of the string or waita minute or ‘more for a partner to push through a one-way ‘ap and help with the job. All he bird pulled ‘ona string without waiting for aid. ‘Nor dithe birds show a prefer ence when given a choice between palling the sting when they could reach both ends and pulling itehen the ends were too far apart. This result confirmed that the birds were not able to discriminate between situations that required help and those that did not. It'sa “wonderful paper” says Brian Hare of Duke University in Durham, North Car. lina, who did the chimp studies. He says it supports the idea that tolerance is erucial for the evolution of cooperation, But the Fools cognitive skills may not be quite as advanced as those of the chimps. The “delay” task, he ‘notes, shows that rooks “don’t really have a solid understanding of needing the other indi vidual” to get the goodies. “CONSTANCE HOLDEN forbidding intramural researchers from ster. ing identified patient daia ons laptop. Halse will clarify that patient information should be stored on network servers, Shurin says, and that only coded data may be downloaded ‘om desktops. ‘Mier the VA laptop was stolen, NIH cau- tioned its grantee institutions to use encryp: tion and other methods to protect sensitive data. But isnot clear whether that adviceis being followed, “Its incredibly difficult to enforce on an investigator-by-investigator ” Shurin says, David Korn of the Association of American Medical Colleges in Washington, D.C., says “it wouldn't sur. prise me” to learnthat some researchers are ‘carrying unencrypted patient data home on ‘laptop, adding, “I just think our comms: nity has to step up 10 another level of secu rity concerns.” ~JOceLYN KausER wnwwescioncomag.org_INFECTIOUS DISEASE Elusive Pathogen Cornered at Last Frangoise Portaels has finally answered the question sho began to study in 1969 as a PRD. student in the Congo, She and her colleagues have discovered an environmental hiding place forthe bacteria that cause a devastating disease Known as Buruli ulcer. As they report in the March 2008issue of PLaS Neglected Tropical Diseases, Poraels, now amicrobiologist at the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, Bel- gum, and her team have cultured the dsease- causing organism, Micobucterium ulcerans, fromanaqusticinsect from Berin. Theaccom- ivrsaty ofthe (WHO'S) Global ‘Buruli Uler initiative and masks major mile- stone in efforts to undersand and! contac one ofthe world’s most negleetad tropical diseases. Ausaan doctors fis ceseribe Buruli ulcer and M. wieerans in 1048, Although it belongs to a vyell-xnown genusthatineludesthe bacteria response for tuberculo- sisand leprosy, the life eycle of Meera has remained mnyster- ous, The infection begins as an innocentlooking bump under the skin that, in several months, opens into a painless lesion. The ulcer gradually spreads over the body, demolishing skin, soft tissue, and sometimes bone. leaving behind severe scars that cause both immo- bility and social stigma. The dis- case affects several thousand peo- ple each year, mostly in Affics and Australia, The infection is not transmitted person to person but alvays occuts near slow-movin, ‘water, leading researchers to suspect that aquatic insaeis might harbor and transmit the disease. But without alive culture as evidence, no ane could be sure. “Ten years ago, Portacs resumed thesearch she hod abandoned after her frustrating dis- sertation. “The big problemis that Uf uloerans sa very slow grower.” she explains. It takes 6 weeks to cultivate a colony of M, wcoruns even from a human lesion in which it is abundart and active. ‘To keep fast-growing competitors from overrunning Mf wleeransin culture, Portacls's team used an unconventional growth medium: mice. They ground up five differ- cent water bugs collected from Benin and ‘Togo and treated the samples to kill every thing except mycobacteria. Then they Injected the cultured mycobacteria into the wonw ecioncomsg.org paws of mice, where harmless species, not suited for life in a mammalian host slowly perished but Mf, wleerans took hold. After passing through three different mice over the course of about 2 years, an M. ulcerans lineage from a single water strider began to grow in culture, Nearly 40 years after her First trip to the Congo, Portacls had, for the first time, isolated M. ulcerans from the “I's a significant contribution,” says ley Asiedu of WHO's Buruli Uloer Ini- uve. But there catch: The water stride, Linnogonus hypoteucus, doesn't bite people, soitcan transmit the disease. Pamela Small, ‘microbiologist atthe University of Tennessee, Knoxville and an author of the study, suspects Ki Scarred. Bacrla tat cause the dsfiguing Burl ulcer disease have been cultured rer an trcan wate ser, that AF ulcerans thrives in another aquatic niche and had to pass through several inks in the food chain before infecting the water ssrider. “Eventually, we will find where this ‘organisms replicating” she says Portaels, Small, and dozens of other researchers will assemble in Geneva, Swizer- land, on 31 March at WHO’ [Othannual moet- ing on Buruli ulcer Asiedu says the initiative’: ‘most notable success has been the develop ‘ment of antibiotic remedies for the disease bout mach remains to be done: There isa need for earierdigenosis fester treatment and bet- ‘er understanding of transmission. For the at- ter, Asiedu says Portals work isa boon. “This is the first time is been proven beyond any doubt that MY. ulcerans foceurs} in aquatic insects” he says. “It will stimulate interest- ing diseussions “ELSAYOUNGSTEADT SCIENCE VOL3I9 28 MARCH 2008 Last Collider Standing ‘Nest month, U.S. patce physicists wll be ‘on other ast partite smasher.On 7 April the Stanford Linear cceeratr Cente in Menlo Park, Calta, wil shut down the PEP.tlal- lier, § weeks after Cornell University's CESR collider took its ast data, That leaves only the Tevatron at Fermi National Accelerator Labora tory (Ferma in Bava, lino, ti un- ‘ing—and itil ut don in 2020 at the Latest. The United States is nat pulling out of par- ticle physic more than 1200 U.S. physicists are working on experiments that willrun atthe aige Hacron Golider(LHO, which will power Lup this summer atthe Europea aberatery for parle physics, CERN, near Geneva, Switer- land, That's more than anyother country in theverld, but Abothassan Javahery ofthe Uni- versity of Maryland, Cllege Fark, worries that after LG “i's a question” of how the US. program can thrive without a domestic cole lider. American physicist hope the ansner les {in hosting the proposed Intemational Linear Collider at Fermilab. But there's competition {tam Europe and japan, and Congresshas reduced funding this year for esearch on that ‘nultitiion-dollr machine, “ADRIAN HO Fund Urged for Tropical Diseases Developed countries should setup a special fund to fight neglected tropical diseases (TDs) such a intestinal worms, schistosomia- sis elephantass, ard river blindness, Five fnfletil researchers from around the warts ‘ay in the cuter sue of PLos Neglected Top- ical Diseases, While the world is waging a ‘multiilion-dola attack against three major ‘infectious ilers through initiatives such as the ‘Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, NTDs have received scantatetior-— 2 "tagic oversight,” the group wits. The researchers, who hope government leaders will launch the fund at this summer's summitin Toyako, Japan, put the cost at $2 tilbon forthe fist years. MARTIN ENSERINK, Gates Is Rainmaker for Drought Research The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation anrounced last wook a joint $47 millon oration with the Howard G. BufettFounda- tion to help develop érought-tclerant corn in ‘Acca The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center in Nicci wll work with technology from Monsanto and BASE. The ‘rican Raicultual Technology Foundation plans to distribute seeds royalty tree. ERIK STOKSTAD 1747i NEWS OF THE WEEK 1748 CHEN ZHU INTERVIEW China's Modern Medical Minister BEWJING—China’s minister of health, Chen Zhu, has an enormous re ity: to improve medical care for |.3 billion people in a rapidly developing country. Now he is busier than ever. reshuffle this month put Chen's minisry in charge ofthe State Food and Drug Administration, whose previous chief was found guilty last year of taking bribes—a crime for which he was executed. If Chen is feeling pressure to clean up China's scandal-ridden food and drug industries, he doesn’t show it, Perhaps that’s because the hematologist, who earned Ph D. in Paris, is not your typical bureaucrat, For starters, he one of only two Chinese minis: ters (the other being science minister Wang Gan) who are not members ofthe Communist Party. And Chen is keeping. a hand in research, witha paper aboat a traditional Chi- nese medicine (TCM) preparation for acute promyelocytic leukemia that appeared online earlier this month in the Proceedings ofthe National Academy of Sciences. Investigating this form of leukemis is how ‘Chen made his sciemific name in the 1990s, ‘when he led a team that unvaveled the molec Jar mechanism of arsenic based TCM therapy . His honors include member- re Academy of Sciences and the US. National Academy of Sciences, ACADEMIC RESEARCH “there is a need for a specialized funding channel for medical research, This idea has gotten the support of the top-level policymakers.” cen 24 Chen took a break from the annual sessions of the National People’s Congress and the onal Commitee ofthe Chinese Popes Political Consultative Conference to discuss the tension between Western medicine and ‘TCM, aplan to strengthen medical researeh, and the move open research atmosphere in China since the SARS cutbreak in 200 RICHARD STONE Saudi Start-Up Hopes Grants Will Buy Time Universities often throw money at top sci= centists they want to hire. But an unusual sity rising in the Saudi Ara bian desert (Science, 8 June 2007,p. 1409) ‘has come up with a new twist on that for- ‘mula: Let the scientists remain where they are but ask them to share their expertise and Ccontacis to help the schoo! launch its own research programs. ‘Backed bya $10billion endowment, offi= cialsat the King Abdallah University of Sei- cence and Technology (KAUST) this mont awarded 12 researchers up to $10 million ‘each over 5 years for research at their home (austedusa) The scientists are fice to use the maney as they se ft, with no immedate returns to KAUST. The one string is thatthe awardees will spend aminisnam of 3.weeks a year talking shop at KAUST, \which will open in September 2009 ata site bordering the Red Sea 28MARCH2008 VOL3I9 SCIENCE The announcement comes on the heels of deals struck with three ULS. universities and a British institution, worth $25 million ‘over 5 years, to help KAUST develop its cur ricula, recruit faculty, and establish its research agenda. Those agreements involve individual departments at Stanford Univer- sity, the University of Texas, and the Univers sity of Califomia, Berkeley, as well as Impe- rial College London. This month, KAUST also announced it had hired Fawwaz. Ulaby, ‘an electrical engineer and former adminis- trator a the University of Michigan, Ann ‘Arbor, as provost, Half the awards in the Global Research Partnership (GRP) initiative announced last week will goto LS. scientist, withthe res! sprinkled around the globe. The LT men ‘and one woman range in age from their early 308 to their 608 and work in one or ‘more of four broad areas—energy and the 0: You have many challenges providing ade- quate health care in a country so large and diverse and with a growing gap between rich and poor. How can science help? ZC: Even if you have a health care system that covers everyone, if you don’t have the right strategy, the system will be difficult to ‘stain because of an aging population and chronic diseases. What's happening in the developed world today is China's tomorrow: We need to focus on discase prevention. To beelfective, we need more epidemiologi cal studies. On one hand, we need to strengthen the community medical health care system, and on the other and, we need to stengthen the science of prevention and carly interventi Ching’s heath care policy has three pil- lars: One is prevention, the socond is taking the countryside as the emphasis, and the third is an equal position for Western medi- cine and traditional Chinese medicine, (G:How can the elit system of Tbe reconciled with the Wester approach to medicine? 2.Cz First ofall, you nced to have proven clinical efficacy. And youneed good models ai the organism level, at the cellular level, and at the molecular evel. To establish clin ical efficacy, T encourage my colleagues in aoering, bioscienees, and computational Sclences important to Sasa Arable’ development “It wil havea huge impact on my research,” says synthetic organic chemist Bran Sol, 37, who was rcely ppoiied fo sched professorship a the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, The $10 milion award, he =a) “Is probably three to five times what | get soe Fociny ob SiLiz saya be iad by KAUSTS attempt oar from sraich sd bull bigh-quslty university" The winners wee day from «pool of 60 schools invited by KAUST 10 apply divided equally among North and South ‘Aion top and Ad andthe tof the ‘world A blueribbon panel led by Frankf Press, former president of the US. National © Academy of Sciences, ranked the proposals. 3 and Corwotded its recorumendationsto AUST whichmads the fin selection, § Somcoftie grantees hore apendmore § than th required 3 wenksa yearat KAUST, 8 wnwwescioncomag.org_