^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ AWG E-MAIL NEWS 20001-19, 21 JUNE 2001 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ CONTENTS: 1) AGI GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS PROGRAM SPECIAL UPDATE: 6-19-01 2) 2001 AWG WINIFRED GOLDRING AWARD 3) CHAPTER NEWS 4) EARTHWATCH STUDENT CHALLENGE AWARDS-Grant proposals DUE September 3, 2001 5) WHAT TO DO IF YOU LOSE YOUR PURSE OR WALLET: 6) SUBMISSION, ADVERTISING & MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 1) AGI GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS PROGRAM SPECIAL UPDATE: 6-19-01 *** Evolution Opponents on the Offensive in Senate, House *** IN A NUTSHELL: A day before the Senate completed action on a comprehensive education bill that it had debated for six weeks, Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) introduced a two-sentence amendment drafted by evolution opponents. The amendment, presented in the form of a Senate resolution, defines "good science education" and encourages teaching the "controversy" surrounding biological evolution. Amidst a flurry of other amendments, the Senate voted 91-8 in favor of the provision on its way to passing the entire bill by the same margin. Earlier, a group of conservative representatives had stripped a science testing provision out of the House counterpart bill in part because of concerns that the tests would include evolution-related questions. Differences between the two bills will be worked out in a House-Senate conference likely to take place in early July. **************** Last summer, proponents of intelligent design creationism held a Capitol Hill briefing to educate congressional members and staff on the failures of Darwinism and their alternative proposals (see a summary at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/id_update.html). They also lectured their audience on the moral decay that the teaching of Darwinism had wrought on society. A panel discussion was moderated by David DeWolf, a law professor at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington and author of a legal brief on how to get intelligent design into public school curriculum. Like most of the other speakers at the briefing, DeWolf is a senior fellow at the Seattle-based Discovery Institute's Center for the Renewal of Science and Culture, a conservative think tank dedicated to promulgating intelligent design as an alternative theory to evolution. Up until that briefing took place, the political debate over the teaching of evolution in public schools had taken place at the state and local level, but the briefing appeared to be a disturbing expansion of anti-evolution efforts into the federal legislature. That appearance is now reality with DeWolf and briefing speaker Phillip Johnson, a law professor at the University of California at Berkeley and CRSC senior fellow, taking center stage. *** K-12 Education Bill Used as Vehicle Education was a campaign priority for President Bush, and the first bills introduced this year in both the House and Senate (H.R.1 and S.1, respectively) are comprehensive overhauls of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, which covers most federal aid programs for states and local school districts. S.1, entitled the Better Education for Students and Teachers Act, was passed by the Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee in March, having been introduced by the committee's then-chairman Jim Jeffords (now I-VT). The full Senate took it up in May with hundreds of amendments being offered and considered. After the Memorial Day recess and Jeffords' departure from the Republican Party, debate on the floor resumed in June with new HELP chairman Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA) managing the debate. On the morning of June 13th, Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) rose to speak on his amendment #799, which he handed in the previous evening. It is a non-binding "Sense of the Senate" resolution, a common tactic used to put the Senate on record about a given subject without worrying about statutory implications. According to Santorum, his amendment dealt "with the subject of intellectual freedom with respect to the teaching of science in the classroom, in primary and secondary education. It is a sense of the Senate that does not try to dictate curriculum to anybody; quite the contrary, it says there should be freedom to discuss and air good scientific debate within the classroom. In fact, students will do better and will learn more if there is this intellectual freedom to discuss." He then stated that the amendment was "simply two sentences--frankly, two rather innocuous sentences." The amendment reads: "It is the sense of the Senate that-- "(1) good science education should prepare students to distinguish the data or testable theories of science from philosophical or religious claims that are made in the name of science; and "(2) where biological evolution is taught, the curriculum should help students to understand why this subject generates so much continuing controversy, and should prepare the students to be informed participants in public discussions regarding the subject." Santorum then went on to read an extended passage by DeWolf lauding the benefits of "a more open discussion of biological origins in the science classroom." Although most amendments, especially non-binding ones, are simply added by unanimous consent or withdrawn without a vote, Santorum called for a roll call vote to put the Senate on record. Kennedy, the floor manager, then expressed his support for the amendment. With nobody speaking against it, the amendment passed by a 91-8 vote. All Democrats voted for it (except Sen. Chris Dodd, D-CT, who was absent). The eight Republicans who voted against the amendment (Chafee, RI; Cochran, MS; Collins, ME; DeWine, OH; Enzi, WY; Hagel, NE; Stevens, AK; Thompson, TN) were opposed on the grounds that it was an unnecessary federal intrusion in a state and local matter. The full text of Santorum's remarks from the Congressional Record are available at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/R?r107:FLD001:S06148 on pages S6147-48, Kennedy's remarks are on S6150, and supporting statements by Brownback, R-KS, and Byrd, D-WV, are at S6152. Whether or not one views the specific language of the amendment as innocuous or unobjectionable, this vote has become a public relations bonanza for the intelligent design creationists. The Discovery Institute put out a press release stating: "Undoubtedly this will change the face of the debate over the theories of evolution and intelligent design in America. From now on the evidence will be free to speak for itself. It also seems that the Darwinian monopoly on public science education, and perhaps on the biological sciences in general, is ending." The Senate vote is also being portrayed as a vindication of the 1999 decision by the Kansas Board of Education to remove evolution from state tests (a vote subsequently overturned when several of the school board members were defeated in the 2000 elections). Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) told the Washington Times (6-18-01) that it "cleared the record." In a speech supporting Santorum's amendment, he argued: "The great and bold statement that the Kansas School Board made was … simply that we observe micro-evolution and therefore it is scientific fact; and that it is impossible to observe macro-evolution, it is scientific assumption....[Santorum] clarifies the opinion of the Senate that the debate of scientific fact versus scientific assumption is an important debate to embrace." How did this amendment come about? In the same Washington Times article, Phillip Johnson took credit for helping to frame the amendment's language: "I offered some language to Senator Santorum, after he had decided to propose a resolution of this sort." According to his web site, Johnson visited a number of Capitol Hill offices early in June to meet with senators and representatives. Johnson is the author of several anti-evolution books, including "Darwin on Trial," and speaks widely on this subject. *** A Broader Offensive Evolution also came up as an issue in the House education bill, H.R. 1. As passed by the House Education and the Workforce Committee, H.R. 1 included a provision mandating that students be tested on science in addition to the reading and math testing provisions called for in the original bill -- a presidential priority. Scientific societies pushed for the testing provision lest science lose attention as resources are concentrated on tested subjects. Before any bill can be considered on the House floor, it must pass through the Rules Committee, which decides how much debate will be allowed, which amendments will be in order, and other procedural matters. The committee can also amend the bill so that what is considered on the floor is different from what was passed in committee earlier. In response to concerns raised by a group of conservative lawmakers, the committee (chaired by Rep. David Dreier, R-CA) removed the science testing provision in this manner. Sources report that a major reason for the opposition was that testing might include evolution-related questions. Although Rep. Vern Ehlers (R-MI) was assured that he would be given the opportunity to propose a floor amendment restoring the science testing provision, he was never allowed to do so despite support for his amendment from Education and the Workforce Committee chairman John Boehner (R- OH). *** The Next Step A House-Senate conference committee must work out differences in the two bills -- both bodies must vote on an identical measure before it goes to the president for his signature, which is expected. Conferees have yet to be named but will surely include senior members of the Senate HELP Committee and the House Education and the Workforce Committee. Senators Kennedy and Judd Gregg (R-NH), the senior Republican on the HELP Committee, will certainly be on it as perhaps will S. 1 author Jeffords. On the House side, Boehner and ranking Democrat Rep. George Miller (D-CA) will be on it. In addition to efforts to restore science testing provisions, scientific societies including AGI are considering options for how to address the Santorum amendment. Given the clear public rejection of the 1999 Kansas school board's action, it does not seem likely that the majority of the senators who voted for the amendment share Brownback's opinion of its implications or agree with the Discovery Institute that their purpose was to "change the face of the debate over the theories of evolution and intelligent design in America." Indeed, faced with such rhetoric, they might just decide that Santorum presented his "innocuous" amendment to them as something other than the anti-evolution stalking horse that it truly is. --Special update prepared by David Applegate, AGI Government Affairs Program 22222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222 2) 2001 AWG WINIFRED GOLDRING AWARD AWG is pleased to announce the 2001 Winifred Goldring Award competition. The award, which consists of a one-year mem-bership in both the Paleontological Society and AWG, will be presented to an out-standing female student interested in pursu-ing a career in paleontology. The award is named for Winifred Goldring, a pioneering woman paleontologist, who became State Paleontologist of New York State in 1939 and the first female president of the Pal-eontological Society in 1949. Applicants may be either undergraduate or graduate students; the recipient must be enrolled as a student during the period of the award, and proof of student status (photocopy of student ID, current official class schedule, or transcript) is required. To apply, the student should submit a concise, one-page statement discussing her interests in paleontology, career plans, and any pertinent extracurricular activities (e.g., research projects, educational out- reach, museum volunteerism) related to the realization of her goals. A letter of re-commendation from a faculty member is al-so required. Evaluation is not based solely on scholastic ability, but on the applicant's motivation and professional potential. There is no application form. Deadline for receipt of applications is October 1, 2001. The award recipient will be announced at the Paleontological Society luncheon at the Geological Society of America annual meet-ing in Boston in November. Applicant's statement, faculty recommendation, and proof of student status should be sent to: Dr. Joanne Kluessendorf Weis Earth Science Museum 1478 Midway Road Menasha, WI 54952 For information, please e-mail: jkluesse@uwc.edu ***Please pass this announcement on to your colleagues and qualified students 33333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333 3) CHAPTER NEWS We would like to publish Chapter news in Gaea, including items such as officer elections, professional member news, special events reports, and science fair winners. Please send the editorany appropriate information via email (editor@awg.org). It is also a good idea to put the editor on your newletter mailing list. Let other members know what your chapter is up to! 44444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444 4) Earthwatch Student Challenge Awards-Grant proposals DUE September 3, 2001 Dear Colleagues, Dee Robbins at Earthwatch Institute sent me the following Request for Proposals (see below) for grants from the Student Challenge Awards Program (SCAP). I wanted to alert you to this RFP and opportunity for research support and mentoring talented high school students. I encourage you to review the SCAP information and proposal guidelines on Earthwatch Institute's SCAP web pages: http://www.earthwatch.org/cfr/CFRdurfee.html, and to call or send an email to Dee Robbins if you're interested in this program. It's best to assess the sponsor's potential interest in your research and project ideas before submitting a proposal. In addition, I'd be happy to talk with you about my experience as a PI in this program. Last summer, I participated as a principal investigator in Earthwatch Institute's Student Challenge Awards Program (SCAP). I took eight high school students to Big Bend National Park, Texas to do paleontological field work. Their team-work was the best I've ever seen: under very hot and strenuous conditions, they had consistently good spirits, motivation, and interest. The students were mature and trustworthy, and their teenage sense of fun brought a level of light-heartedness to the field work. Sincerely, Julia T.Sankey, Ph.D. Haslem Fellow/Assistant Professor Museum of Geology and Dept. of Geology and Geological Engineering South Dakota School of Mines and Technology 501 E. Saint Joseph St. Rapid City, SD 57701-3995 605-394-2469 (fax: 2469) julia.sankey@sdsmt.edu http://www.hpcnet.org/sdsmt/personnel/jsankey http://www.hpcnet.org/sdsmt/geologymuseum REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS STUDENT CHALLENGE AWARDS PROGRAM GRANTS In the summer of 2002, Earthwatch Institute and The Durfee Foundation will sponsor 10 research projects through the Student Challenge Awards Program. Scientists with research projects amenable to the participation of talented high school students are invited to apply for grants of $8,000 to $14,000. These grants cover the expenses of giving 6 to 8 high school students the opportunity to work alongside scientists at research sites in North America, Hawaii, or the Caribbean. Students with interest in science and demonstrated talent in the arts and humanities are recruited through a nationwide search and highly competitive selection process. Earthwatch Institute assigns the students to research sites. This program aims to support the research and education initiatives of scientists by providing mentoring opportunities, research grants, and the assistance of talented high school students. By connecting students with scientists, we aim to excite the imagination and expand the potential of gifted students, and to stimulate the students' curiosity about science and technology. Student Challenge Awards projects are fielded between 20 June and 15 August and run for 12 to 18 days. September 3, 2001 is the proposal deadline for SCAP projects fielded in the summer of 2002. We welcome proposals for: * research projects that expose students to new scientific technologies and enable nonspecialists to make a tangible contribution to science * laboratory, observatory, or field research * research in the life sciences, physical sciences, or archaeology * research conducted in North America, Hawaii, or The Caribbean * research conducted by principal investigators and research institutions committed to the scientific education and personal growth of talented youth * projects that include graduate student mentors and/or other staff who can help provide 24 hour supervision for one's team. For a program overview, project structure, and grant application information, please go to: http://www.earthwatch.org/cfr/CFRdurfee.html. For links to web sites created by SCAP teams and information about nominating students for an award please go to: http://www.earthwatch.org/ed/scdurfee.html. Contact Dee Robbins, SCAP Program Director, for more information: E-mail: drobbins@earthwatch.org * Telephone: 978-461-0081, ext.109 Address: Earthwatch Institute * 3 Clocktower Place, Suite 100 * P.O. Box 75 * Maynard, MA 01754-0075 2001 STUDENT CHALLENGE AWARDS PROJECTS Dr. Donald Casperson, Dr. Galen Gisler, Dr. Todd Haines, Los Alamos National Laboratory: Transient Phenomena in Astrophysics. Fenton Hill Observatory and Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico, June 17 - July 1, 2001 Dr. Douglas A. Eifler, Haskell Indian Nations University: Ecology of the Desert Grassland Whiptail Lizard: Landscape Influences. Southwestern Research Station, near Portal, Arizona, July 3 - 22, 2001 Dr. Sara Helms Cahan, University of Lausanne, Dr. Steven Rissing, Ohio State University, and Dr. Laurent Keller, University of Lausanne: Fate of Hybrids in an Ant Hybrid Zone. Southwestern Research Center, near Portal, Arizona, June 21 - July 8, 2001 Dr. Dean Hendrickson, Texas Memorial Museum, University of Texas- Austin, Dr. Francisco Garcia de León, Instituto Tecnológico de Cd. Victoria, Mexico: Evolution and Conservation of the Endemic Fishes of Cuatro Ciénegas. Cuatro Ciénegas Natural Protected Area, Coahuila, México, July 22 - August 6, 2001 Dr. William Koshak, NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center: Lightning Detection from Space. NASA/MSFC, Huntsville, Alabama, July 8 - 21, 2001 Dr. Michael Loik, University of California Santa Cruz: Plant Responses to Climate Change in the Western United States. White Mountains, Owens Valley, and Sierra Nevada, California, June 23 - July 7, 2001 Dr. Jose Victor Lopez, Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, Dr. Luther Brown, Delta Center for Culture and Learning, and Danyelle Townsend, University of Virginia Medical School: Molecular Studies of Marine Biodiversity. Bahamas Environmental Research Center, Andros Island, Commonwealth of the Bahamas, June 17 - July 1, 2001 Dr. Jeffrey Niemitz, Dickinson College: Hydrogeology and Water Resource Management on San Salvador Island. Bahamian Field Station, San Salvador Island, Commonwealth of the Bahamas, June 18 - July 3, 2001 Dr. Barbara Schrader, Oregon State University, and Dr. Dave Shaw, Wind River Canopy Crane Research Facility, University of Washington: Integrated Research in a Threatened Ecosystem: The Willamette Valley Oak Woodlands. Bald Hill Reserve, near Corvallis, Oregon, July 14 - 28, 2001 Dr. David Westmoreland, United States Air Force Academy: The Paradox of the Easter Bunny: Understanding Bird Egg Coloration. Tahoe National Forest, California, June 26 - July 7, 2001 55555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555 5) WHAT TO DO IF YOU LOSE YOUR PURSE OR WALLET: We've all heard horror stories about fraud that's committed using your name, address, SS#, credit, etc. Unfortunately I (author of this piece) have first hand knowledge, because my wallet was stolen last month and; within a week the thieve(s) ordered an expensive monthly cell phone package, applied for a VISA credit card, had a credit line approved to buy a Gateway computer, received a PIN number from DMV to change my driving record information online, and more. But here's some critical information to limit the damage in case this happens to you or someone you know. As everyone always advises, cancel your credit cards immediately, but the key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call. Keep those where you can find them easily (having to hunt for them is additional stress you WON'T need at that point)! On a personal note, I remember loosing a MC and until I got the toll free number from information, etc. I was a wreck. File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where it was stolen, this proves to credit providers you were diligent, and is a first step toward an investigation (if there ever is one). But here's what is perhaps most important: I never ever thought to do this. Call the three (3) national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name and SS#. I had never heard of doing that until advised by a bank that called to tell me an application for credit was made over the Internet in my name. The alert means any company that checks your credit knows your information was stolen and they have to contact you by phone to authorize new credit. By the time I was advised to do this-almost 2 weeks after the theft the damage had been done (there are records of all the credit checks initiated by the thieves' purchases, none of which I knew about before placing the alert). Since then, no additional damage has been done, and the thieves threw my wallet away this weekend (someone turned it in). It seems to have stopped them in their tracks. The numbers are: Equifax 1-800 525-6285 Experian (formerly TRW) 1-800-301-7195 Trans Union 1-800-680-7289 Social Security Administration also has a fraud line at 1-800-269-0271 We pass along jokes, we pass along just about everything....do think about passing this information along 66666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666666 6) SUBMISSION, ADVERTISING & MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION ***Thanks to everyone who contributed to this issue of AWG E-Mail News. For submissions to AWG E-Mail News, contact Editor Joanne Kluessendorf at editor@awg.org. For advertising, contact the Ad Editor at ads@awg.org. PLEASE SEND AD COPY OR OTHER SUBMISSIONS AS RTF FILES OR AS PART OF AN E-MAIL MESSAGE ***For membership information or to join AWG, visit our website at www.awg.org or contact our business office at office@awg.org