National Academy Research Articles

PSLBI-4 Influence of gender on animal science research funding from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture

Abstract According to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, females and males in science disciplines obtain bachelor’s degrees at or near parity, yet females are not equally represented in academic faculty positions. This is true for agricultural fields including the animal sciences. The USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) administers the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI), a flagship competitive grants program that funds research, education, and extension efforts with a total appropriation of $445 million in 2024. Our objective was to determine the difference between genders for submission rates (i.e., number of standard and seed grant applications submitted), peer reviewers of grant applications, and success rates (i.e., number of grant awards/number of applications submitted) in the main animal related AFRI program area priorities. All applications submitted to AFRI programs in animal genomics, reproduction, health, nutrition and growth, and welfare during yr 2013-2022 were evaluated. Gender was assigned to Project Directors (PD) and peer reviewers using first names as input into Gender API software (Gender-API.com; Passau, Germany) with ≥ 95% accuracy and ≥ 20 database occurrences used as quality filters and binary outcomes only (i.e., male or female). Effect of gender on submission rates, peer review panel compositions, and success rates were then analyzed using Pearson’s Chi-squared tests with P ≤ 0.05 considered significant. Results: A total of 3,757 applications were submitted, of which 2,761 (73%) PD genders were assigned and analyzed further. Overall, the proportional submission rate for females was 28% and for males was 72%. Submission rates for females increased (P = 0.0614) over time ranging from 22% in 2013 to 33% in 2021. Submission rates differed by gender across programs (P < 0.0001) and ranged from 23% female in animal reproduction to 48% female in animal welfare. Across 48 panels, 41% of panelists were female; no differences were identified for the proportion of female panelists over time (P = 0.9509) or by program (P = 0.9298). Overall, the funding success rate for females was 23% and for males was 22%. Success rates did not differ between genders over time (P = 0.9080) or by program (P = 0.9094). Females submitted less than one-half as many applications as did males, but the proportion of submissions by females increased over time. This trend remained consistent despite challenges of relocation of NIFA and COVID-19 during this time. Overall, the proportion of NIFA panelists who were female exceeded the proportion of applications submitted by females. Funding success rates did not differ by gender and increased for both genders over time. These results indicate that although differences in gender existed for application submission rate and panel composition, these differences did not impact funding success rate of applications in animal science programs at NIFA, which did not differ between genders.

63 Impacts of protein supplementation frequency on animal performance, rumen fermentation and methane emission from growing beef cattle

Abstract Nutrient supplementation is one of largest expenditure in forage-based beef production systems, especially when forage quality is poor or limited. Decreasing supplementation frequency may have a role in improving sustainability by increasing animal performance and minimizing cost of labor and fuel. This study evaluated the impacts of protein supplementation frequency (canola meal pellet; CMP) on animal performance, rumen fermentation, and enteric methane production from beef cattle fed forage-based diet. A total of 60 crossbred backgrounding steers [body weight (BW) = 278 ± 10 kg) was randomly assigned to one of the three treatments (n = 20/treatment): i) control (no CMP supplementation), ii) control + everyday CMP supplementation (0.83 kg/d per steer), and iii) control + every other day supplementation of CMP. The study was comprised of 21 d of adaptation followed by three 21-d periods, with enteric methane measured for 7 d per period. Animals were fed grass hay-based diets once a day at 0800 h and remained on their respective diets throughout the 63-d study. Diets were formulated considering animal BW, feed nutrient density and environmental condition in accordance with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine. Each treatment group was assigned to a pen, with the cattle and diets rotated among pens weekly to allow the animals to access the GreenFeed system stationed in one of the pens for enteric methane measurement. For measurement of rumen fermentation products, three ruminally canulated steers (BW = 350 ± 20 kg) were allocated to the three treatments using a 3 x 3 Latin Square Design with 21-d periods so that one animal received all the treatments over the three experimental periods. Animals were adapted to the treatments for 17 d and rumen samples were collected between d 19 and 21 at 0700 h, 1000h, 1300 h, 1600 h and 1900 h. Data were analyzed using the Mixed procedure of SAS. Relative to the control treatment (9.9 kg/d), DM intake was 4 to 5% greater (P < 0.001) following CMP supplementation regardless of supplementation frequency. Similarly, average daily gain was greater (7 to 11%, P = 0.01) for CPM supplemented treatments as compared with control (1.04 kg/d) irrespective of supplantation frequency. Rumen fermentation was affected by treatments. Total VFA concentration was greater (P = 0.01) for the every other day supplementation of CMP as compared with control and daily supplementation treatments. Conversely, rumen ammonia concentration was not affected by treatments. The control group had greater acetate and reduced propionate molar proportions that resulted in a 5 to 6% greater acetate:propionate ratio (P < 0.01) as compared with the CMP supplemented groups. Enteric methane production (g/d) was greater for the daily CMP supplementation (P = 0.02) while yield (g/kg daily weight gain) was not affected by treatment. Our results indicated that reduction of protein supplementation frequency improved animal performance without negatively impacting rumen fermentation.

Taking flight!

Understanding the origins of novel complex traits, the evolutionary transitions they enabled, and how those shaped the subsequent course of evolution, are all foundational objectives of evolutionary biology. Yet how developmental systems may transform to yield the first eye, limb, or placenta remains poorly understood. Seminal work by Courtney Clark-Hachtel, David Linz, and Yoshinori Tomoyasu published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in 2013 used the origins of insect wings - one of the most impactful innovations of animal life on Earth - to provide both a case study and a new way of thinking of how novel complex traits may come into being. This paradigm-setting study not only transformed the way we view insect wings, their origins, and their affinities to other morphological structures; even more importantly, it created entryways to envision innovation as emerging gradually, not somehow divorced from ancestral homology, but through it via the differential modification, fusion, and elaboration of ancestral component parts. In a conceptual universe of descent with modification, where everything new must ultimately emerge from the old, this work thereby established a powerful bridge connecting ancestral homology and novelty through a gradual process of innovation, sparking much creative and groundbreaking work to follow since its publication just a little over a decade ago.

350 Awardee Talk: Beef cattle mineral nutrition: What do we know and where do we go from here

Abstract Trace minerals are pivotal in enhancing cattle growth and ensuring profitability in beef production. Historically, supplementation strategies have aimed at preventing deficiencies, significantly improving growth and reproductive performance. However, as cattle breeding has evolved to achieve remarkable growth rates, the challenges related to health and stress during the feeding period have intensified. This presentation explores refined trace mineral recommendations, focusing on zinc’s “stress requirement” for cattle undergoing transit and health challenges, and its impact on performance. The segmented nature of the beef industry, necessitating multiple transports, induces physiological stress and oxidative stress, highlighting the need for tailored mineral supplementation. Further, when recognizing feedlot cattle as the high-performing athletes they are, the potential benefits of adjusted trace mineral concentrations become apparent. Preliminary findings suggest that optimal zinc concentrations may exceed current National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) 2016 recommendations, whereas for other minerals like copper and manganese, the existing guidelines remain appropriate. This presentation will explore the differential effects of increasing dietary zinc and copper in conjunction with various growth-promoting technologies. Preliminary data indicates that increasing zinc concentrations can linearly enhance average daily gain (ADG) and hot carcass weight (HCW), especially when using potent anabolic implants, while the response to increased copper concentrations exhibits a more quadratic relationship with performance. Building upon the foundational work of pioneering researchers in the field of mineral nutrition, this presentation advocates for the continuous refinement and optimization of trace mineral supplementation strategies. By integrating cutting-edge technologies and fostering collaborative research efforts, we aim to further enhance the sustainability of the beef industry. A deeper understanding of trace mineral requirements in the face of modern production challenges will pave the way for more precise and effective nutritional strategies.

Development, validation, and clinical assessment of a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry serum assay for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) recommended by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM)

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are widely used in industry, residential, and consumer products. Studies have shown associations between high PFAS exposure and adverse health effects. In 2022, the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) published Guidance on PFAS Exposure, Testing, and Clinical Follow-up providing laboratory and clinical direction. The Guidance suggests nine PFAS should be measured in serum or plasma specimens and summed to provide a total PFAS concentration using a NASEM-recommended method. Follow-up clinical recommendations are based on the calculated PFAS NASEM summation. We developed and validated a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) method in accordance with NASEM recommendations but distinguished by the ability to separate closely related structural isomers. As part of our validation, PFAS prevalence was evaluated in a population survey comprised of clinical donor and remnant specimens (n = 1023 in total). In this study, 82.2% of the specimens had PFAS NASEM summations of 2 to < 20 ng/mL and 2.5% had a summation ≥ 20 ng/mL. The median PFAS NASEM summation was 4.65 ng/mL in this study, lower than the 7.74 ng/mL median observed in the 2017–2020 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (n = 3072). This lower median PFAS NASEM summation may reflect a decline in PFAS population levels over time or sample population exposure differences.Graphical

LACTIC ACID BACTERIA CONTRIBUTING TO UPGRADE FODDER QUALITY

A solid nutrition stock lays the basis for contemporary animal husbandry. Application of lactic acid bacteria and their metabolites to raise the standards of feed rations as ingredients of pre- and probiotic additives, is an evolutionarily grounded basic microecological technique to uphold health status and realize genetic potential of superproductive farm animals. Throughout several decades the studies are under way at the Institute of Microbiology of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus on isolation of lactic acid bacterial strains from various natural sources, investigation of their properties, characterization of produced bioactive agents and elaboration of the derived technologies of manufacturing diverse microbial preparations for various purposes. Specially selected lactic acid bacteria isolated from various plant sources in Belarus and adapted to local ecological environment are distinguished by intense growth, capacity to compete with other microbial species, active acidogenesis, rapid acidification of substrates down to pH 4.2 or even lower, acid resistance, a broad spectrum of fermented carbohydrates (ability to utilize hexoses, pentoses, oligo- and polysaccharides) and they served as appropriate constituents of liquid biocompositions (Lacsil, Lacsil-M), dry preparation Lacsil-MS designed to improve quality of ensiled vegetable materials. Lacsil-MS2 concentrate includes homo- and heterofermentative lactic acid bacteria consuming a wide range of carbohydrates: hexoses, pentoses, oligo- and polysaccharides, including major reserve polysaccharides of cereals and legume grasses (starch, polyfructosides). Supply of fastly growing coccoid forms of lactic acid bacteria enables to intensify the process of lactic acid fermentation at the earliest stages and swiftly reduce pH of vegetable mass. Addition of strains with elevated antagonistic activity ensures the suppression of growth of microorganisms responsible for spoilage of fodder. Upgrading consortium composition with heterofermentative lactic acid bacteria and propionic acid bacteria prevents spoilage of fodder caused by air access in the course of feeding procedure. Production by the selected microbial cultures of a set of enzymes (amylase, α-galactosidase, β-glucanase, pectinase, etc.) capable to hydrolyze hardly digestible oligosaccharides, starch-containing and non-starchy polysaccharides of plant substrates, promotes enhanced bioaccess, better assimilation, increased alimentary and energy value of feed rations. Evaluation of technology of producing feed additive based on lactic acid bacteria possessing high α-galactosidase activity acquired top relevance due to the need to eliminate deficit of fodder protein in farm rations by replenishing the share of legumes (alfalfa, lupine, soy, peas, etc.). Introduction of such feed additive incorporating lactic acid bacteria, fermenting recalcitrant oligo- and polysaccharides with α(1→6) glycoside bonds allows to raise digestibility and assimilation of proteins and carbohydrates, to increase the input ratio of legume components into composite fodder formulas, to rule out intestinal disorders (gut meteorism), contributing thereby to farm stock productivity. It was found that application of preparations comprising selected lactic acid bacteria resulted in economy of fodder expense up to 20% per each kilo of live weight increment, to augment average daily body gains by 9-12%, to increase productivity of lactating cows by 5-10%, and to diminish by 5.0% losses of digestible protein as compared with imported product analogues.

Abstracts from the 44th Annual National Academy of Neuropsychology Conference

Abstract GRAND ROUNDS SCHEDULE Adult Grand Rounds: Thursday, November 7, 1:45 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. Pediatric Grand Rounds: Friday, November 8, 12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. PAPER SESSIONS SCHEDULE Paper Session: Professional Issues: Friday, November 8, 12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. Paper Session: Neurological Disorders: Friday, November 8, 12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. POSTER SESSIONS SCHEDULE Poster Session A: Wednesday, November 6, 6:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. Poster Session B: Thursday, November 7, 6:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. AWARDS SCHEDULE Student &amp; Diversity Poster Awards: Wednesday, November 6, 5:30 p.m. The abstracts published in this special edition are provided as a service to the membership of the National Academy of Neuropsychology, the conference attendees, and the field of clinical neuropsychology. Abstracts in this issue have been reviewed by the Poster Committee for the 44th Annual Conference of the National Academy of Neuropsychology. They have not undergone the standard peer-reviewed process for papers published in Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology. The Conference Poster Chair and the Editor-in-Chief of Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology request that the following method be used in citing published abstracts based upon a poster presentation at the Annual Conference of the National Academy of Neuropsychology. Author 1 &amp; Author 2 (2024) [Abstract published in Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, vol, page number]. Abstract Title. Based upon poster presented at the 44th Annual Conference of the National Academy of Neuropsychology, Austin, TX. National Academy of Neuropsychology Abstracts from the 44th Annual Conference November 6–9, 2024 Conference Abstracts Accepted under the Guest Editorship of Christian LoBue, Ph.D., Poster Chair. Members of the 2024 NAN Poster Program Review Committee: Breton Asken Talin Babikian Anne Carlew Noelle Carlozzi Douglas Cooper Alison Datoc Jennifer Davis Jeremy Davis Victor Del Bene Gabrielle Hromas Brian Ivins Katherine Kane Rael Lange Sara Lippa Seth Margolis Victoria Merritt Kyle Noll Kevin O’Brien Dede O’Shea Surabhi Patwardhan Gavin Sanders Matthew Thornton Brittany Walls Amy Werry-McFarlin Bethany Williams Holly Winiarski Steven Woods

Development of Lung Cancer Risk Prediction Machine Learning Models for Equitable Learning Health System: Retrospective Study.

A significant proportion of young at-risk patients and nonsmokers are excluded by the current guidelines for lung cancer (LC) screening, resulting in low-screening adoption. The vision of the US National Academy of Medicine to transform health systems into learning health systems (LHS) holds promise for bringing necessary structural changes to health care, thereby addressing the exclusivity and adoption issues of LC screening. This study aims to realize the LHS vision by designing an equitable, machine learning (ML)-enabled LHS unit for LC screening. It focuses on developing an inclusive and practical LC risk prediction model, suitable for initializing the ML-enabled LHS (ML-LHS) unit. This model aims to empower primary physicians in a clinical research network, linking central hospitals and rural clinics, to routinely deliver risk-based screening for enhancing LC early detection in broader populations. We created a standardized data set of health factors from 1397 patients with LC and 1448 control patients, all aged 30 years and older, including both smokers and nonsmokers, from a hospital's electronic medical record system. Initially, a data-centric ML approach was used to create inclusive ML models for risk prediction from all available health factors. Subsequently, a quantitative distribution of LC health factors was used in feature engineering to refine the models into a more practical model with fewer variables. The initial inclusive 250-variable XGBoost model for LC risk prediction achieved performance metrics of 0.86 recall, 0.90 precision, and 0.89 accuracy. Post feature refinement, a practical 29-variable XGBoost model was developed, displaying performance metrics of 0.80 recall, 0.82 precision, and 0.82 accuracy. This model met the criteria for initializing the ML-LHS unit for risk-based, inclusive LC screening within clinical research networks. This study designed an innovative ML-LHS unit for a clinical research network, aiming to sustainably provide inclusive LC screening to all at-risk populations. It developed an inclusive and practical XGBoost model from hospital electronic medical record data, capable of initializing such an ML-LHS unit for community and rural clinics. The anticipated deployment of this ML-LHS unit is expected to significantly improve LC-screening rates and early detection among broader populations, including those typically overlooked by existing screening guidelines.

Academician V. H. Serheiev – Control System Designer, Founder of the Scientific and Design School, Honored Citizen of Kharkiv (on His 110th Birthday)

March 5, 2024 marks the 110th birthday of Volodymyr Hryhorovych Serheiev, an outstanding scientist, chief designer of control systems for strategic combat missiles, launch vehicles, spacecraft and transport modules of orbital complexes, Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine and an Honored Citizen of Kharkiv. Despite his significant scientific achievements in the field of rocket and space engineering, the silhouette of V. H. Serheiev is hardly reflected in the modern history of science. Based on representative sources, the article highlights the main achievements of the scientist in the field of dynamics of automatic control systems and the design of rocket and space engineering control systems. The summary of the most prominent space projects is based on the memories of witnesses and direct participants. The personal qualities of V. H. Serheiev as the head of the Special Design Office No. 692 are noted. The historical retrospective describes technical developments and inventions meant to improve the control systems of intercontinental ballistic missiles R-16, R-16У, R-36, R-36П, R-36 orbital, R-36М, R-36М UTTH, UR-100N, UR-100HU, and R-36М2. At the initiative of V. H. Serheiev, complex stands were developed, which worked non-stop in all modes of operation of the necessary equipment and solved complex scientific and technical problems of creating an on-board digital computer. V. H. Serheiev was the chief control system designer of space launch vehicles Kosmos, Kosmos-2, Cyclone-2, and Cyclone-3 and Tselina series spacecraft. The article features innovative solutions implemented under Serheiev’s leadership during the creation of the Energia launch vehicle, supply vehicles of the Almaz space rocket system and target orbital modules of the Saliut and Myr space stations, and international launch vehicles Dnipro, Rokit and Strila. The article considers the issues of V. H. Serheiev’s direct participation in the organization of the training system for scientific personnel in the relevant specialties at Ukraine’s higher education institutions, as well as the development of international cooperation. It is substantiated that the scientist created one of the leading science and construction schools for the development of control systems for rocket and space technology, which is internationally recognized. The authors emphasize that V. H. Serheiev devoted a lot of attention to people. At his initiative and with his support, a district named after the founder of aerodynamics, M. Y. Zhukovskyi, was created in Kharkiv for the employees of “Hartron” enterprise. The district was not far from the enterprise and had a well-developed infrastructure, such as kindergartens, schools, shops, a swimming pool and a complex of residential buildings.

Determining research priorities using machine learning

We summarize our exploratory investigation into whether Machine Learning (ML) techniques applied to publicly available professional text can substantially augment strategic planning for astronomy. We find that an approach based on Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) using content drawn from astronomy journal papers can be used to infer high-priority research areas. While the LDA models are challenging to interpret, we find that they may be strongly associated with meaningful keywords and scientific papers which allow for human interpretation of the topic models.Significant correlation is found between the results of applying these models to the previous decade of astronomical research (“1998–2010” corpus) and the contents of the Science Frontier Panels report which contains high-priority research areas identified by the 2010 National Academies’ Astronomy and Astrophysics Decadal Survey (“DS2010” corpus). Significant correlations also exist between model results of the 1998–2010 corpus and the submitted whitepapers to the Decadal Survey (“whitepapers” corpus). Importantly, we derive predictive metrics based on these results which can provide leading indicators of which content modeled by the topic models will become highly cited in the future. Using these identified metrics and the associations between papers and topic models it is possible to identify important papers for planners to consider.A preliminary version of our work was presented by Thronson et al. (2021) and Thomas et al. (2022).

Creating an Integrated System of Data and Statistics on Household Income, Consumption, and Wealth

The nation's disparate federal statistics makes it difficult to accurately measure income and wealth inequality and other aspects of economic well-being for the nation's households and families. This report provides the recommendations from a panel appointed by The Committee on National Statistics (CNSTAT) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The report reviews the major income, consumption, and wealth statistics currently produced by U.S. statistical agencies, provides guidance for modernizing and integrating the information to better inform policy and research, and builds on the current effort at CNSTAT to create a 21st Century Data Infrastructure to use blended data from multiple sources. In addition to providing guidance on the appropriate definitions of household, family, and individual income, consumption, and wealth, and variations in definitions that would be useful for particular purposes, the report provides suggestions for pathways forward using multiple data sources to construct a data infrastructure for income, consumption and wealth for households. The report highlights new statistics that help in measuring the disparities in income, consumption and wealth and the changes over time in both levels and inequalities, always stressing that the disparities occur both across socio-demographic characteristics and geography. The report highlights the potential for blending multiple data sources and modeling across data sources, including surveys, tax records, state and federal administrative records, and commercial data, and documents the legal and administrative barriers to creating integrated, high-quality estimates and a data infrastructure for researchers to evaluate the impacts of public policy.

Ending Unequal Treatment and Achieving Optimal Health for All

This Viewpoint discusses the findings of a recent National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine report suggesting that current health care delivery and accountability structures perpetuate, rather than reduce, health inequities and details several changes needed to address these structural problems.

Radical Interpretations of Iconic works for Percussion

The artistic development project Radical Interpretations investigates two iconic works for solo percussion and re-composes these. The goal of the project was to develop new creative and transdisciplinary research in interpretation of musical works. Participants: percussionist Kjell Tore Innervik, Norwegian Academy of Music (NMH), composer Ivar Frounberg, NMH, designer Maziar Raein, Oslo National Academy of the Arts, experience designer Ståle Stenslie, The Oslo School of Architecture and Design, and music recording producer Morten Lindberg. During the 3 years project, the team engaged with the music of Morton Feldman and Iannis Xenakis. The solo percussion pieces The King of Denmark and Psappha were the point of departure. The cd [UTOPIAS ](http://www.2l.no/pages/album/141.html)(2L) contains the pure audio version of the pieces in high definition and immersive sound.-&gt;&lt;- On this site you will find other interpretations and iterations of the music made by the team.

Assessment of sociodemographic and psychiatric characteristics of transgender adults seen at a Midwest tertiary medical center.

The National Academy of Medicine has formally identified transgender adults as an understudied population in critical need of health research. While national surveys, like the US Transgender survey, have characterized higher rates of depression, anxiety, suicidality and socioeconomic need in the transgender community, studies have not examined the impact of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics on mental health related outcomes. To describe the sociodemographic and mental health characteristics of transgender adults seen at a large Midwest transgender clinic and to determine factors associated with self-reported mental health conditions. Descriptive, retrospective, cross-sectional study of new transgender patients 18 years and older seen at a large Midwest transgender clinic between December 2019 and June 2022. A total of 482 charts were reviewed. During their initial evaluation, 11.6% (56/482) reported having a history of suicide attempt and 81.3% (392/482) reported a mental health diagnosis with the most common being depression, anxiety, attention deficit disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Multivariable logistic regression results show no single factor was significantly associated with mental health diagnosis after adjusting for the effect of age and race. Patients who were new to gender affirming hormone therapy (54%, 254/468) are 2.0 (95% CI 1.4-2.9) times more likely to report having a mental health care provider than patients who were seen for continuation of therapy (46%, 214/468). Ten records with race not disclosed, 3 records with gender identity "other" and 2 records with gender identity not disclosed were excluded from analysis. This study reinforces the finding that transgender adults have an increased lifetime prevalence of mental health conditions. The higher prevalence of mental health conditions in our clinic was not associated with sociodemographic factors included in the study. Furthermore, transgender patients are less likely to have seen mental healthcare providers after initiation of gender affirming hormone therapy.

A Grand Challenge: Education and Advocacy in the New Energy World

_ This is the final article in a series of six on SPE’s Grand Challenges in Energy, formulated as the output of a 2023 workshop held by the SPE Research and Development Technical Section in Austin, Texas. Described in a JPT article last year, each of the challenges are discussed separately in this series: geothermal energy; net-zero operations; improving recovery from tight/shale resources; digital transformation; carbon capture, utilization, and storage; and education and advocacy. _ We have our work cut out for us… but then, we always have in our industry. Following the crippling effects of the oil embargo in 1973, the price of crude oil climbed high and fast to the top of the charts. That increase in crude oil value brought students to petroleum engineering programs in droves around the world. It was not just the crude; it was the value of the degree program. Students rightly saw an opportunity to work in an industry that fueled the engine of the global economy, lit their homes, warmed their food, and moved people around the continents, all reliably and affordably. The post-embargo peak in enrollment was only topped by the peak following the shale boom of the mid-2000s. After the post-embargo boom in the 1980s came the bust. Similarly, many of us were not left standing when the mid-2000 boom busted. The price of oil is climbing again; natural gas and crude oil use is up and consistently so, but the petroleum engineering enrollments are not (Fig. 1). Depending on where you started along the x-axis in your career (Fig. 1), you may already know this story. What’s different now in an industry known to be cyclical, where we’ve seen this before? If higher crude oil prices and concomitant salaries are not bringing in the students, what will? The demand for STEM graduates is high across industries, and it’s particularly acute in the oil and gas sector. The US faces a significant shortage of STEM graduates to meet the needs of critical industries. This scarcity raises concerns about our ability to fill specialized roles, such as petroleum engineering, which are crucial for the energy sector’s development over the next century. If we struggle to produce enough STEM graduates overall, how can we expect to meet the specific demands of the oil and gas industry in the coming decades? There are a few reasons for this new trend. More than half of Americans say that STEM studies are too hard and nearly a quarter believe that STEM studies are not useful for a career. The National Academies have been sounding the alarm for more than 20 years about where we are going technologically, as a nation, and who is going to get us there. Second, within STEM degrees in general, there are fewer petroleum engineering, or equivalent graduates. While additional energy types in the mix have been growing for years, the sharp move toward renewable energy and simultaneously painting hydrocarbons as undesirable is recent.

Overt Scientific Bias and Clandestine Acts by Trusted Scientists: The Flawed Application of the Linear No-threshold Model.

The Health Physics Society (HPS) released a video documentary on the history of the linear no-threshold (LNT) model in April 2022. It exposed many scientific and ethical failings of many leaders, influential scientists, and organizations that have resulted in the current system of radiological protection. Since then, the society received many comments; most were supportive, while a few criticized the video documentary as delivering an anti-LNT message. Shortly thereafter, many emails discovered via an independent Freedom of Information Act request revealed multiple layers of coordination between prominent people in the field of radiation protection to coopt the leadership within the HPS and suppress information they perceived or assumed to be contrary to a pro-LNT message. Many of these emails were published by JunkScience.com, an independent organization that exposes faulty scientific data and analyses used to advance special interests and hidden agendas. This Forum article is intended to document in the peer-reviewed literature the JunkScience.com findings of clandestine acts by trusted scientists within the radiation protection community. The emails exposed strong personal biases, actions taken by leaders within the National Commission on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP) to "save the Society" from its "downward spiral," and actions taken by NCRP and HPS members serving on a National Academies of Sciences committee to suppress scientific information relevant to the debate about health effects in low-dose environments. These anti-science actions harm our entire profession and the trust that Congress bestows on our scientific organizations expecting to receive objective recommendations based on sound science. It is important that these events are recorded in the scientific literature from a historical perspective. The radiation protection community will be judged not by what is revealed in this article but by what actions are taken from here.

Properties of W–Ta Materials of the Neutron-Producing Target of the Subcritical Assembly at the National Scientific Centre ‘Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology’ of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine

The works in the field of radiation materials science of target materials of neutron sources based on the subcritical assemblies controlled by linear accelerators of electrons or protons, so-called accelerator driven systems (ADS), are reviewed. Now, electronuclear ADS systems are the prototype of safe nuclear reactors of the 5th generation. In connection with the physical start-up of the neutron source facility of the National Scientific Centre ‘Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology’ of the N.A.S. of Ukraine (NSC ‘KhIPT’ NASU), the target of which is fabricated from powdered tungsten covered with tantalum, the issues of preparation technology, construction, and physical and mechanical properties of W–Ta materials of targets in non-irradiated and irradiated states are considered. The nuclear-physical processes of radiation damage to the target during co-irradiation of it with both neutrons of a subcritical assembly and high-energy e- and γ-beams are analyzed. The target resources of ADS systems are estimated. As noted, the difficulty of predicting the ‘survivability’ of the W–Ta target also relates to the fact that, except for the works carried out at the NSC ‘KhIPT’ NASU in 70–90th of the last century, there are no experimental works in the world on the radiation damage of reactor materials by high-energy electrons with an energy of 100 MeV and above.

Current Status of School Culture According to the Concept of Learning Organization at Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics

The school culture of Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics has both common features and unique characteristics of “Party School Culture”. The cultural levels of the Academy according to the concept of a learning organization are expressed through tangible factors: working environment, landscape, declared value system, development strategy and policy, etc. Correctly identifying the level of response of the elements belonging to school culture according to the concept of learning organization at Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics is an important basis to help the school assess the strengths and weaknesses of the current school culture, thereby having measures to build school culture according to the concept of learning organization in a scientific, appropriate and comprehensive manner.

Tillage influence on agrophysical soil properties and crop productivity in the irrigated conditions of the steppe zone of Ukraine

The main goal of the study was to establish the influence of various tillage systems on the agrophysical properties of dark-chestnut soil under short-grain crop rotation in the irrigated conditions of southern Ukraine. The research was carried out during 2021-2022 in a stationary experiment on a four-field crop rotation: grain maize – winter rapeseed – winter wheat – soybeans. The experimental field was in the semi-arid steppe climate zone at the Institute of Climate-Smart Agriculture of the National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine. Three tillage systems were studied for their influence on soil bulk density, porosity, and water permeability, namely: mouldboard-differentiated ploughing tillage; differentiated chisel tillage; and differentiated ploughless tillage with soil slitting. Soil bulk density was determined using the core method. Soil porosity was calculated as the ratio of total bulk density to solid fraction bulk density. Water infiltration rates, established through the water absorption test method, were used to measure soil water permeability. The results of the study were statistically analysed using the common ANOVA procedure with Fisher’s least significant difference test at P&lt;0.05. In addition to the agrophysical parameters of the soil, the energy output of the crop rotation was assessed. It was established that mouldboard tillage did not provide significant benefits in terms of bulk density and soil porosity. However, ploughing showed the best results for soil water permeability across all crops in the rotation. The highest energy output of crop rotation (119.1 GJ/ha) was recorded for the ploughless-differentiated tillage system with soil slitting, whereas the mouldboard ploughing and chisel tillage systems produced somewhat lower energy yields of 112.0 and 108.6 GJ/ha, respectively. Therefore, ploughless-differentiated tillage with soil slitting is the most effective option for short-grain crop rotations in irrigated conditions of southern Ukraine, in terms of creating optimal soil agrophysical properties and achieving the highest crop productivity

ПОЛИТИЧЕСКИЕ АСПЕКТЫ ВОДНЫХ РЕСУРСОВ В ЦЕНТРАЛЬНОЙ АЗИИ

It is well known that recently the topic of water resources not only in Central Asia, but also throughout the world has been gaining its relevance. The problems of shortage of drinking water, melting glaciers, drying up of lakes, and climate change on a global scale have been on the main agendas at the main platforms of the UN for many years as the main threats. If you do not start solving the water problem today, then tomorrow it will be too late. We are witnessing how conflicts are already occurring in the world over water, which are escalating into armed clashes, riots, rallies, protests and others. Unfortunately, such phenomena occur not overseas, but before our eyes in Kyrgyzstan, and throughout Central Asia. We believe that today in the water sector there is a great demand for improving the quality of knowledge of hydro-specialists and the assistance of the Institute of Water Problems of the National Academy of Sciences of the Kyrgyz Republic. Everyone knows that recently water resources not only in Central Asia, but also throughout the world have been gaining their relevance. Lack of drinking water, melting glaciers, drying up lakes, and climate change on a global scale have been heard for several years at the main rostrum of the global international organization of the United Nations as one of the main threats. If you do not start solving the water problem today, then tomorrow it will be too late. Because of water, conflicts occur in the world, which escalate into armed clashes, riots, rallies, protests and others. This problem is not happening overseas, but before our eyes in Kyrgyzstan and in Central Asia as a whole. We think that today in the water sector it is very important to improve the quality of knowledge of hydro- specialists and assistance from the Institute of Water Problems of the National Academy of Sciences of the Kyrgyz Republic.