Weekly Advocacy News Roundup

McConnell Sets Vote on ‘Clean’ Funding Bill To Avoid Shutdown

September 22, 2016 | The Hill

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) scheduled a vote on what he says is a “clean” funding bill that would fund the government through December 9 and avoid a government shutdown on October 1. The continuing resolution keeps funding essentially flat, with .5% cuts across the board, and includes emergency Zika funding. Senate Democrats have stated the bill falls short as it does not address emergency funding for water infrastructure in Flint, MI.

• Read science-based questions submitted to both major party candidates by AAAS and other organizations at ScienceDebate.org.

Spain Joins Bandwagon for ‘Openness’ About Animal Research

September 21, 2016 | Science

Spanish universities, research centers, scientific societies, and companies adopted a set of standards on how research organizations should open up communication channels about their use of laboratory animals. The effort was launched by the Confederation of Spanish Scientific Societies and joins a growing European movement of transparency and openness about animals in research.

• Read frequently asked questions about the use of animals in research at SfN.org.

U.S. Toughens Rules for Clinical Trial Transparency

September 16, 2016 | Nature News

New rules released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and NIH  now require researchers report the design and results of all clinical trials, and empowers the government to enforce penalties for those that do not comply. NIH’s rules apply to work done through NIH grants, and NIH can withdraw funding if institutions don’t follow the new rules.

• Join the Advocacy Network to stay informed about issues related to neuroscience research at SfN.org.

Big Dreams Emerge for Big Brain Science Projects

September 20, 2016 | Science

Neuroscientists, government science counsels, private funders, and others met in New York to discuss the importance of transnational cooperation in studying the brain. This meeting, known as the Coordinating Global Brain Projects gathering was mandated by the U.S. Congress in a 2015 law funding the U.S. Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative and aims to discuss how to coordinate many international neuroscience efforts.

• Find information about global advocacy programs at SfN.org.

Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan Pledge $3 Billion to Fighting Disease

September 21, 2016 | The New York Times

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, and his wife, Priscilla Chan, announced that they will be investing $3 billion over the next decade toward preventing, curing, or managing all disease by the end of the century. The science work of this initiative will be led by neuroscientist Cori Bargmann of Rockefeller University who also leads the U.S. Brain Initiative Advisory Committee. 

• Learn more about U.S. science advocacy programs at SfN.org.

Q&A: NFL Medical Adviser Discusses League’s Plans for New Neuroscience Research

September 19, 2016 | Science

The National Football League’s first chief health and medical adviser Betsy Nabel discusses the league’s $40 million in new funding for medical research, primarily neuroscience related to repetitive head injuries. She discusses the goals of the new funding, how the NFL with work with NIH to fund research, and other topics relevant to the initiative in this Q&A with Science.

• Read articles about concussions and the injured brain on BrainFacts.org.

Brain Cancer Replaces Leukemia as the Leading Cause of Cancer Deaths in Kids

September 16, 2016 | The Washington Post

Brain cancer has replaced leukemia as the leading cause of cancer deaths among children and adolescents. Advances in leukemia treatment have helped lead to decreased death rates, while brain cancer remains difficult to treat due to the challenges of the blood-brain barrier and due to surgeons needing to avoid damaging healthy brain tissue.

• Learn more about brain tumors at BrainFacts.org.

Human Brain Map Gets a Bold New Update

September 16, 2016 | Scientific American

The Allen Institute for Brain Science has created a comprehensive, open-access digital atlas of the human brain. The map combines neuroimaging and tissue staining to offer an “unprecedented” level of resolution.

• Learn more about neuroanatomy at BrainFacts.org.

A Meeting of the Minds: International Collaboration on Brain Science Must be a Foreign Policy Priority

September 20, 2016 | Newsweek

Dr. Vaughan Turekian, Science and Technology Adviser to the U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, and Robert Conn is President and Chief Executive Officer of The Kavli Foundation, discuss how international collaboration is vital to increase understanding of the human brain. In addition, they state it should be a foreign policy priority due to the significant social and economic burdens derived from brain diseases, and that insufficient support for this field will negatively impact human health and economic growth.

• Learn more about worldwide neuroscience initiatives at SfN.org.

We Need Both Corporate Funding and Federal Funding

September 20, 2016 | The New York Times

As part of a series of opinion pieces about research funding, Rush Holt, CEO of AAAS, discusses how both corporate and federal funding are important for scientific research, and how government funding is important since it supports fundamental research that the private sector will not do. Additionally, it is important that governmental and independent oversight ensure all publically and privately funded research is held to high standards.

• Find science funding resources at SfN.org.