“Nearly one billion travelers pass through U.S. airports each year,” writes Alicia L. Johnson, civic science postdoctoral associate. In a new commentary, she outlines how the CDC’s genomic surveillance program, which monitors airport wastewater for traces of infectious disease, must balance public health and privacy concerns.
The work of Katalin Karikó, 2023 Nobel Prize in Medicine recipient, laid a foundation for the development of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines that saved close to 20 million lives worldwide. But her discoveries almost did not happen, writes Alicia L. Johnson, a civic science postdoctoral associate at the Baker Institute Center for Health and Biosciences. Karikó’s story highlights the vital importance of supporting women in STEM.
President Kennedy’s dream for joint cooperation between nations was realized with the International Space Station. That dream should not be abandoned, writes George W.S. Abbey, former director of NASA Johnson Space Center.
Last month, China released its 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) for the energy sector. While clean and low-carbon may be the keywords on paper, in reality, Beijing will continue rely on coal to power its economy and energy transitions, writes the author. Read the post on the Baker Institute Blog.
On July 22, the nation and the world lost a leader who played a critical role in making the Apollo 11 moon landing a reality: Christopher Columbus Kraft. Kraft gained great fame for his creation of the Mission Control Center and as the nation’s first flight director, but this was only the beginning of his many and lasting contributions to the U.S. space program.
George Abbey, the institute’s senior fellow in space policy and the former director of the Johnson Space Center, reflects on the life and legacy of John Glenn, who died Dec. 8 at age 95. Baker Institute Blog: http://bit.ly/2hfRpra
Astronaut Scott Kelly's historic year-long mission at the International Space Station alongside Russian cosmonauts will yield better understanding of the impact of long-duration spaceflight on the human body. But it also serves as an important lesson on how two different nations can work together for the betterment of all humankind, space policy senior fellow George W.S. Abbey writes.
On Monday, three committees in Mexico’s senate — constitutional issues, energy and legislative studies — voted to bring an energy reform bill to the chamber’s floor for debate. The legislation would provide international oil companies the opportunity to participate in profit-sharing contracts and concession-like licenses for energy operations in Mexico, and it is expected to become law by the end of the legislative session Dec. 15.
