NEWS | IN BRIEF
sciencemag.org SCIENCE 462 30 JANUARY 2015 • VOL 347 ISSUE 6221
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this crucial time period.
Researchers also think it
could represent the population of
modern humans that soon afterward
swept across Europe and Asia.
Bill to revamp medical treatment
WASHINGTON, D.C. | A U.S. House of
Representatives panel this week released a
widely anticipated, bipartisan proposal for
speeding the develop-
ment of new medical
treatments. The 393-
page draft bill, dubbed
the 21st Century
Cures Act, has been
under development
by Fred Upton (R–MI)
and Diana DeGette (D–
CO) of the House Energy
and Commerce Committee
since April. The provisions aim to
involve patients in drug development;
speed clinical trials; streamline regula-
tions; modernize manufacturing facilities;
and encourage personalized treatments
while also expanding support for young
scientists at the National Institutes of
Health. The bill is a discussion document,
said Upton, who invited comments via
the Twitter handle #Cures2015: “Some
things may be dropped, some items may
be added, but everything is on the table as
we hope to trigger a thoughtful discussion
toward a more polished product.”
http://scim.ag/21centcure
NEWSMAKERS
Corruption case snares scientist
A prominent cancer researcher has
become entangled in a high-profile corruption case in New York state. Robert Taub,
former director of the Columbia University
Mesothelioma Center, has been named
as the “Doctor-1” described in a criminal
complaint that accuses Democratic state
Representative Sheldon Silver, the speaker
of the New York State Assembly, of arranging bribes and kickbacks that netted Silver
millions of dollars. The complaint alleges
that Silver steered $500,000 from a state
health care research fund to Taub; in
exchange, Taub referred patients suffering
from asbestos-related disease to Silver’s
law firm, investigators allege. Doctor-1 is
cooperating with federal investigators,
according to the complaint, and will not
be charged with any crime. However,
Columbia University noted in a statement
on 23 January that “Dr. Taub no longer
serves as” the center’s director.
http://scim.ag/Taubcase
New head of NOAA research
Attorney Craig McLean, a veteran of
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), will be the
new head of its research division, the
agency announced on 21 January. A
deputy chief of NOAA’s Office of Oceanic
and Atmospheric Research since 2006,
McLean served as the first director of
NOAA’s Office of Ocean Exploration and
Research. He’s also been a top deputy
at the National Ocean Service and the
National Marine Sanctuaries Program and
was a NOAA Corps officer for more than
2 decades. McLean “understands how to
move ocean information out of the laboratory and into operations”—a transition
that NOAA has struggled with, says Scott
Rayder, a former chief of staff at NOAA
and now a senior adviser at the University
Corporation for Atmospheric Research
in Boulder, Colorado. “He’s a huge asset
to the community. It’s a clear signal that
NOAA is placing a premium [on this].”
Asia’s newest synchrotron sees first light
Taiwan’s scientists will shortly have a new research tool for use in biology, nanotechnology, and materials science in the new Taiwan Photon Source at the National Synchrotron Radiation Research Center (NSRRC) in Hsinchu. After nearly 5 years of construction and testing, the facility achieved first light on 31 December. The 518-meter-circumference storage ring is designed to accelerate electrons to 3 gigaelectronvolts. NSRRC claims it will be one of the world’s
brightest synchrotron x-ray sources. Envisioned uses include protein microcrystallog-raphy, studies of protein interactions with other biomolecules, and the development of
new materials. Phase one of the project includes the construction of seven beamlines.
The facility will become available to users by the end of this year.
The National Synchrotron
Radiation Research Center
in Hsinchu.
A 55,000-year-old
modern human
skull found in an
Israeli cave.
