Things I Like - Sciences

The U.S. Department of Energy was created by the signing of the Department of Energy Organization Act in 1977 during the Carter administration. Per the Wikipedia article, the DOE

...was originally developed to focus on energy production and regulation. During the 1980s, the emphasis shifted to development of technology for better, more efficient energy sources as well as education regarding energy. As the Cold War ended, the department's efforts were more often devoted to nuclear waste disposal and maintenance of environmental quality.

James R. Schlesinger was the first Secretary of Energy - he's been follwed by eleven more over the years with Dr. Steven Chu being sworn in as the latest Secretary of Energy last month. Before his appointment, Dr. Chu was Director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, a US DOE National Laboratory operated by the University of California, and is the co-winner of the 1997 Nobel Prize for physics. So he's got some science skills.

What does the scientific community think of this appointment? As might be expected, there is strong support. From Janet Raloff in Science News

"...he’ll come to Washington with a host of ideas — and a commitment to see that science will underpin DOE’s decision making and research priorities. Indeed, just three months ago Chu was stumping on the Hill about the need to bolster federal research investments in energy — investments that he said should be grounded on science. He’ll now get the unparalleled opportunity to try and practice what he preached."

One of the things I like about science vs. politics is that those in science deal with reality rather than what voters want to hear. While Sean at Discover thinks the appointment is 'fantastic news', he also cautions against pie in the sky dreams:

Let’s be clear: just because Chu is an accomplished physicist, this doesn’t mean that researchers should expect a bonanza of new funds ...the budget and the economy (are) in shambles, and nominating a Nobel Laureate to head DOE doesn’t magically bring new money into existence. But it means the hard choices that inevitably will be made will be made intelligently by people who understand the significance of what is going on. We can never ask for more than that.

Let's just hope that Mr. Chu also has developed some political skills to go along with his science - we're depending on him.