American Association for the Advancment of Science

Session : AAAS1501
Scientists Communicating Challenging Issues
Conference : 2015 Annual Meeting
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Moderator: Susanne C. Moser, Susanne Moser Research and Consulting & Stanford University, Center for Ocean Solutions

Speakers: Noah S. Diffenbaugh, Stanford University Noah Diffenbaugh Kathleen Hall Jamieson, University of Pennsylvania Using Visual Digests to Overcome Audience Biases Lisa Krieger, San Jose Mercury News Lisa Krieger

What makes a scientific issue particularly prone to public controversy? Explore insights from social science research on how and why scientific research can trigger societal tension. Learn practical tips for communicating challenging issues and hear how scientists navigate these issues. Climate change will be used as a case study, but the discussion will address many topics.

Session : AAAS1502
Public Engagement for Scientists: Realities, Risks, and Rewards
Conference : 2015 Annual Meeting
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Moderator: Bruce V. Lewenstein, Cornell University

Speakers: Elizabeth Babcock, California Academy of Sciences Creating an Active and Very Public Zone for Science at the California Academy of Sciences Heidi Ballard, , University of California Engaging the Public through Participation in Scientific Research Anthony Dudo, The University of Texas at Austin Insights from Recent Scientist Surveys Nalini M. Nadkarni, University of Utah Synergistic Public Engagement by Scientists: The STEM Ambassador Program

Scientists involved in public engagement activitiessuch as participation in public communication, citizen science projects, or social mediamay experience a tension between their academic and public engagement identities. Learn practical, research-based insights to understand the realities, risks, and rewards for scientists participating in public engagement.

Session : AAAS1503
Graduate Science Education in Flux: Alternate Pathways to Science Careers
Conference : 2015 Annual Meeting
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Organizer: Daryl E. Chubin, Independent Consultant Co-Organizer: Marilyn J. Suiter, National Science Foundation Moderator: Marilyn J. Suiter, National Science Foundation Discussant: Daryl E. Chubin, Independent Consultant

Speakers: Michael S. Teitelbaum, Labor and Worklife Program Incremental Adjustments To Stabilize a Productive but Unstable System Myles Boylan, National Science Foundation Modernizing Graduate Education To Mesh with 21st Century Realities Sheila Tobias, Co-author, Rethinking Science as a Career The New Science Master's and Alternate Career Pathways

The U.S. science and technology workforce reflects changing realities in research and graduate education: constrained federal budgets, higher student debt, uncertain career prospects, and new ways to prepare science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workers. Post-baccalaureate professional degrees have joined the Ph.D. as a credential for entry into the workforce. Innovative degree programs integrate graduate science training with subjects such as management, finance, ethics, and regulatory affairs to prepare students for a wide range of nonacademic, science-based careers. Moving beyond the overproduction of doctoral scientists to improved utilization, this symposium asks: Are there too many research-oriented scientists? How does student debt deter pursuit of advanced STEM degrees? What programs have helped to develop alternate career pathways? How do degrees other than the Ph.D. increase science workforce participation? How do career opportunities differ by gender, race, ethnicity, and disability? Which sectors and STEM disciplines are in greatest demand and why? What new policy options should be considered? This session examines the STEM workforce landscape, addressing the questions above, and focusing especially on degree programs (e.g., Science Master's) designed as alternatives to traditional doctoral and postdoctoral training.

Session : AAAS1504
Our Computational Foundation Crisis and Life Beyond
Conference : 2015 Annual Meeting
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Organizer: Jon Candelaria, Semiconductor Research Corp. Co-Organizer: Larry A. Nagahara, National Cancer Institute Moderator: John Hollar, Computer History Museum

Speakers: Jeffrey J. Welser, IBM Almaden Research Center The New Era of Cognitive Supercomputing Peter Norvig, Google Inc. Artificial Intelligence: Dealing With an Uncertain, Changing Future Charles Bergan, Qualcomm Inc. Pervasive Computing in the Mobile Era: Digital Sixth Sense and the Augmentation of Human Ability

In the recent Department of Energy workshop report Architectures and Technology for Extreme Scale Computing, the following summary statements were made: The challenges and projected trends "will make it increasingly difficult for a broad range of computational scientists to use the most powerful computing systems. This suggests that computational scientists and computer architects must sit down together to understand the complete range of trade-offs possible for each of them and then co-design their codes and systems to maximize scientific throughput." This dramatic statement represents a very real crisis that has been building for the last decade with still no clear solution. This session includes a history of how computers were created and for what purposes, technical challenges that define the crisis being faced, and visions of the possibilities that lie ahead. A critical part of this session will be an open panel involving frank dialogue between speakers and the scientific and computer community represented in the audience. Beyond educating the audience about the crisis and opening this critical dialogue, the session aims to draft a list of category designations that could describe the full range of problems projected to be faced in the future and to accelerate discussion and responsive activities.

Session : AAAS1505
Visualizing the Experience and Use of Space in the Built Environment
Conference : 2015 Annual Meeting
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Organizer: Katja Meinke, European Research Council Co-Organizer: Annekathrin Jaeger, European Research Council

Speakers: Ann Heylighen, University of Leuven Challenging Prevailing Ways of Understanding and Visualizing Space Yehuda Kalay, Israel Institute of Technology Simulating Human Behavior in Built Environments Steven Vertovec, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity The Diversification of Migration: Visualization Across Scales

Human activity and the built environment interact in complex ways. We design buildings and public spaces to accommodate our actions and movements; at the same time, the built environment has a defining role in how we use it. Advances in the methods of data collection and analysis, modeling, and visualization of research results increase our capacity to assess spatial experiences in an interdisciplinary way and improve the design process. These experiences may happen at different scales: the individual building and the neighborhood. This session discusses progress in simulating socio-cultural use of buildings in building models that architects use during the design process. It moreover builds on knowledge on the spatial experience of disabled people, introducing a consulting service aimed at inspiring architects' creativity and enhancing their understanding of the sensory qualities of space that go beyond visual traits and the user experience in general. The use of public space at the neighborhood scale in diversifying neighborhoods is analyzed with visual anthropological and geographic referencing methods. Together, they enable new modes of social scientific analysis and furnish important cues for architects and urban planners. Insights into the anthropology of the design process, architecture, and urban public spaces lead pathways to technical, social, and policy innovation.

Session : AAAS1506
Chronic Pain: No Longer an Invisible Disease
Conference : 2015 Annual Meeting
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Organizer: Linda Koffmar, Uppsala University

Speakers: Torsten Gordh, Uppsala University Measuring Peripheral Tissue Activation in Patients with Chronic Pain Clas Linnman, Harvard Medical School Functional and Molecular Imaging of the Brain in Pain Teshamae Monteith, University of Miami Migraine, White Matter Hyperintensities, and Subclinical Brain Infarction

What if your doctor could actually see where it hurts? Pain is the leading cause for emergency room visits as well as for long-term sick leave and disability, yet pain is still measured by subjective self-report. To adequately address the pain epidemic, there is a dire need to develop innovative imaging markers that will enhance translational pain research and improve clinical care. The research presented in this symposium shows objective correlates to pain-generating processes in peripheral tissue in patients suffering from chronic pain. Imaging studies using positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) scanning reveal specific patterns of peripheral muscle tissue uptake in sites corresponding to the pain localizations experienced by the patients. Researchers will present novel findings of objective changes in the neck in patients with chronic whiplash associated pain, corresponding to the painful sites described by the patients. Imaging can also provide new insights about headaches. Results from a study on a Manhattan population using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) show that the participants who suffered from migraine had double the odds of silent brain infarctions compared to those reporting no migraine. The new data may stimulate new ways of understanding chronic pain and give possibilities for new diagnostic tools in the evaluation of chronic pain patients.

Session : AAAS1507
Visualization Insights from Big Data: Envisioning Science, Engineering, and Innovation
Conference : 2015 Annual Meeting
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Organizer: Katy Borner, Indiana University Co-Organizer: Joseph E. Sabol, Chemical Consultant

Speakers: Alan Aspuru-Guzik, Harvard University Billions and Billions of Molecules: Exploring Chemical Space for New Energy Materials Kei Koizumi, U.S. Office of Science and Technology Policy Utilizing Visual Insights in Science and Technology Policymaking Donna Cox, National Center for Supercomputing Applications The Art of Visualizing Big Data

Advanced data mining and visualization techniques can be used to extract patterns and trends from large and complex datasets. Resulting visualizations help manage, navigate, and understand vast amounts of information; support new discoveries and questions; and are a great tool to communicate science to a general audience. This interdisciplinary session brings together experts from chemistry, engineering, science policy, and art to showcase visual solutions that are instrumental in achieving high return on investment; science mapmakers who use visual analytics to identify emerging areas of research and innovation, calculate the impact of science policy interventions, and predict science and technology trends; and visual techniques that render the abstract into the concrete using computer graphics and cinematic approaches. This session will be extremely visual to highlight novel information mining and imaging techniques that enhance understanding and improve daily decision-making.

Session : AAAS1508
Active SETI: Is It Time To Start Transmitting to the Cosmos?
Conference : 2015 Annual Meeting
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Organizer: Jill C. Tarter, SETI Institute Co-Organizer: David C. Black, SETI Institute Moderator: David C. Black, SETI Institute

Speakers: Douglas A. Vakoch, SETI Institute Active SETI: The Next Step for Humanity David Brin, Futures Unlimited Active SETI: Not Yet David H. Grinspoon, Planetary Science Institute Setting the Stage: Astrobiology David S. Tatel, U.S. Court of Appeals Setting the Stage: Policy and the Law Seth Shostak, SETI Institute Setting the Stage: Terrestrial and Cosmic Physics

Since 1960, scientists have attempted to detect evidence of extraterrestrial technologies by using radio, and later, optical telescopes to listen and look in a passive, exploratory science called SETI (the search for extraterrestrial intelligence). To date, no credible evidence has been detected. It has been argued that it is also necessary to transmit actively, and a few messages have been sent. Whether transmission represents a reasonable evolutionary step in our quest to understand our place in the cosmos, or a significant risk to all humanity, the topic deserves a thoughtful discussion involving as many participants as possible. During an episode of the TV series "Into the Universe," Stephen Hawking argued from analogy with Christopher Columbus and cautioned against transmission, saying that it didnt turn out very well for the Native Americans. Does this analogy even make sense? Who and how shall we decide about active SETI? This symposium will present a debate on the pros and cons of transmission, and a role for social media to enable a global conversation on the topic. This will be followed by a moderated panel discussion by experts on astrophysics, astrobiology, and policy, who will reflect on the points raised during debate and answer audience questions. The session will launch a global conversation to be continued by meetings in other scholarly and public venues and online in homes, classrooms, and offices.

Session : AAAS1509
Scientific Visualization: Collaborations Between Museums and Scientists
Conference : 2015 Annual Meeting
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Organizer: Erika C. Shugart, American Society for Microbiology

Speakers: Carol Lynn Alpert, Museum of Science Embedded in Research: Artists, Dramatists, Filmmakers, Jugglers, and Storytellers Toshi Komatsu, Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California, Berkeley Optimizing Scientific Visualizations: Bridging Science and Public Understanding Julie Urban, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences Blurred Lines: Research, Exhibits, and Education Merge in the Public Eye

Science museums have always played an important role in helping the public understand and visualize science, whether it is reconstructions of fossilized dinosaurs or hands-on experiments with the properties of light. In recent years, museums have been taking new approaches to partnering with scientists to explore ways to visualize science together. These partnerships have brought visualization professionals out of the museum and into research centers and brought research centers inside the museum walls. The speakers in this session will share some of their institutions' recent partnerships to visualize science, suggesting models that could be explored at other institutions.

Session : AAAS1510
Making Sense of Chaos: A Path to Understanding Environmental Chemicals and Health
Conference : 2015 Annual Meeting
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Organizer: Louis J. D'Amico, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Co-organizers: Kacee Deener, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Samantha J. Jones, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Moderator: Louis J. D'Amico, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Discussant: Samantha J. Jones, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Speakers: Ana Navas-Acien, Johns Hopkins University Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses: The Road from Medicine to Environmental Health Tracey Woodruff, University of California The Navigation Guide: Evidence-Based Medicine Meets Environmental Health Jennifer McPartland, Environmental Defense Fund A Public Interest Perspective on Systematic Review for Chemical Health Assessments

Numerous scientific and clinical professional societies have recognized the need to address health risks from exposure to environmental chemicals. Yet, action is hampered by lack of methods for translating the scientific literature on these chemicals into summaries of the strength of evidence. Clinical medicine faced this same problem more than 30 years ago and demonstrated that systematic reviews provided a robust and transparent approach to clinical decision-making. The environmental health field is now improving methods for synthesizing scientific information through the application of systematic review methodology. This approach ensures that relevant scientific information is identified and accounts for quality and biases and their implications on the interpretation of results. These attributes are important for governmental organizations such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, so that policymakers will have the best available scientific information for decisions. In this symposium, panelists will provide a history of the impetus for adopting systematic review methods, along with how the application of systematic review in environmental health differs from that in medicine. Policy implications for applying systematic review in chemical health assessments will be discussed, and panelists will highlight scientific challenges and the advantages of these reviews in developing timely assessments that facilitate decisions to protect public health.