February 4, 2002
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Editor: Josh Chamot
Contents of this News Tip:
NSF'S Fiscal
2003 Budget Called Blueprint for the Future
In announcing the National Science Foundation's (NSF)
budget request for fiscal 2003, NSF Director Rita
Colwell called the request "not just a balance sheet…(but
a) blueprint for our nation's future." The NSF 2003
request was announced on February 4, along with the
rest of the Administration's federal budget. NSF is
requesting $5 billion -- $240 million (or five percent)
over the previous year, "to enrich Americans' health,
security, environment, economy and general well-being,"
Colwell explained.
"For the United States to stay on the leading edge
of discovery and innovation, we cannot do less," said
Colwell. In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks
on Sept. 11, the stakes could not be higher, she emphasized.
"The future of our nation - indeed, the future of
our world - are more dependent than ever before upon
advances in science and technology. An inspired American
scientific community is now focused on ensuring not
just our security, but our very quality of life."
[Mary Hanson]
For details on the NSF budget request for FY03, see:
http://www.nsf.gov/od/lpa/news/02/ps0201.htm
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"Shakezone"
Exhibit Marks Anniversary of Northridge Earthquake
ShakeZone, an interactive earthquake exhibit that is
the first of its kind, has opened at the Riverside
County, California, Youth Museum. Funded, in part,
by NSF through the Southern California Earthquake
Center in Los Angeles, it marks the eighth anniversary
of the January 1994, Northridge Earthquake.
"The exhibit is designed to reach all people in the
local community with positive messages about studying
the Earth, and preparing our buildings and ourselves
for future damaging earthquakes," says Jim Whitcomb,
deputy director of NSF's division of earth sciences.
Visitors to the museum will become seismic sleuths,
scientists, emergency planners, and engineers. Visitors
are on a mission to learn as much as possible to help
their families prepare for an earthquake; taking personal
responsibility for safety is the lesson. Exhibit components
include interactive displays such as a Northridge
apartment complex diorama; a venue to make earthquake
preparedness kits; and a kiosk with computer simulations,
real-time earthquake data and information, and educational
videos. [Cheryl Dybas]
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Research Shows
Why More Species Are Better for Ecosystems
A common water insect has helped NSF-funded researchers
show that the health of an ecosystem depends on the
variety of species that inhabit it, a discovery that
could revolutionize how scientists look at the effects
of species extinction.
University of Maryland biologist Margaret Palmer and
doctoral student Bradley Cardinale have shown that
when several species of caddisfly larvae live together
in a stream, they can capture more food. As a result,
the larvae are likely to be more productive than when
only a single species inhabits the same area. The
study is one of the first in the growing controversy
over biodiversity loss to look at aquatic species
and the potential importance of conserving different
species in an ecosystem.
"Our research supports findings from other studies
that show when you decrease the diversity of species
in an ecosystem, the ecosystem becomes less productive,"
said Palmer. "What's really exciting about our work
is that we were able to show why this happens. We
found that species sometimes help each other capture
food. When you lose a species, the others may eat
less and become less productive." [Cheryl Dybas]
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