EcoTone

Supreme Court rules natural genes not patentable

katie@esa.org (Katie Kline) — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 20:18:49 +0000

The Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Thursday, June 13th, that Myriad Genomics Inc. may not retain exclusive rights to the use of DNA sequence information for breast cancer associated genes BRCA1 and BRCA2, stating that Myriad had not created anything new in identifying the genes. Continue reading →

ESA Policy News: June 14

katie@esa.org (Katie Kline) — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 21:04:26 +0000

Here are some highlights from the latest ESA Policy News by Science Policy Analyst Terence Houston. Read the full Policy News here. EDUCATION: STEM REORGANIZATION EFFORT MEETS BIPARTISAN CRITICISM On June 4, the House Science, Space and Technology Committee convened for Continue reading →

Geothermal engineering in Newberry volcano

katie@esa.org (Katie Kline) — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 20:02:58 +0000

By Peter Janetos, ESA public affairs intern In the quest for cleaner, greener, and cheaper energy some are looking 10,000 feet below central Oregon where temperatures exceed 600 degrees Fahrenheit in Newberry Volcano. A recent Popular Science article takes a Continue reading →

Water for the trees

katie@esa.org (Katie Kline) — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 22:28:16 +0000

Saving forests from drought as the climate warms. Drought complicates the big problems afflicting modern forests. Gordon Grant, Christina Tague, and Craig Allen think that mitigating drought stress should be an active priority for management of US public forests – in keeping with the US Forest Service mission to “improve and protect the forest” and “secure favorable conditions of water flows”. Continue reading →

EU reforms fishing policies

katie@esa.org (Katie Kline) — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 19:27:28 +0000

By Peter Janetos, ESA public affairs intern As noted in a New York Times article on May 30, 2013 a unanimous agreement between all 27 European Union (EU) member states will reform and change current fishing policies to make fishing Continue reading →

Sequestration impacts national park summer destinations

katie@esa.org (Katie Kline) — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 13:38:25 +0000

By Terence Houston, ESA Science Policy Analyst Planning a summer visit to a US national park this summer? The parks will be open, but the overall quality of the trip may be somewhat lessened due to the ongoing budget sequestration Continue reading →

ESA2013 Science Cafe Prize — call for submissions!

katie@esa.org (Katie Kline) — Sat, 01 Jun 2013 14:00:54 +0000

Have you ever wanted to escape the conference center during the ESA Annual Meeting and talk science with the locals? This August at the 98th Annual Meeting in Minneapolis, we are launching a Science Café – a chance to tell local pub-goers about your ecological passions in a casual environment. Continue reading →

ESA Policy News: May 31

katie@esa.org (Katie Kline) — Fri, 31 May 2013 19:21:22 +0000

Here are some highlights from the latest ESA Policy News by Science Policy Analyst Terence Houston. Read the full Policy News here. BUDGET SEQUESTRATION: COMMITTEE REPORT HIGHLIGHTS IMPACTS ON NATIONAL PARKS House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Edward Markey (D-MA) recently Continue reading →

“Race, Intelligence, and Genetics For Curious Dummies”

katie@esa.org (Katie Kline) — Thu, 23 May 2013 23:16:24 +0000

Last week, a cicada-like re-emergence of “Bell Curve” claims of a genetic determinacy between intelligence and race surfaced in a Heritage Foundation special report on immigration. The report drew on Jason Richwine’s Harvard dissertation, “IQ and Immigration Policy.” Amid Continue reading →

the drones are coming

katie@esa.org (Katie Kline) — Wed, 22 May 2013 01:03:34 +0000

Unmanned vehicles bring in the data By Liza Lester, ESA communications officer Earlier this month, a couple of environmental scientists from NOAA and WWF turned up at a symposium on drones in company with journalists, law & order types, Continue reading →