Testing for exposure to PFAS — chemicals used in a broad range of consumer products for decades — should be offered to patients who are likely to have a history of elevated exposure. A new report provides advice to the CDC on how clinicians can interpret test results and deliver follow-up care.

“Reports & Events” is a monthly tip sheet for the news media that highlights selected meetings of interest and reports from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

EPA should conduct an ecological risk assessment of ultraviolet filters used in sunscreens, given the evidence that aquatic ecosystems in the U.S. and possibly endangered species are exposed to these UV filters, and given the importance of these ingredients in skin cancer prevention.

Emission reduction goals, changing transportation patterns caused by COVID, an influx of infrastructure investments, and the need to support mobility for all residents together present a challenge for planners. A recent webinar explored how cities can support a transition to more equitable, lower-emissions urban transportation systems.

“Reports & Events” is a monthly tip sheet for the news media that highlights selected meetings of interest and reports from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

The Gulf Research Program (GRP) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine today announced awards totaling $1,090,463 to support six projects that engage underserved children and youth in place-based educational activities.

The Gulf Research Program is providing awards totaling nearly $900K to five universities for the creation of interdisciplinary architectural studio design courses that engage with the unique features of the Gulf of Mexico region, such as offshore energy safety, environmental protection and stewardship, and Gulf health and resilience.

“Reports & Events” is a monthly tip sheet for the news media that highlights selected meetings of interest and reports from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

To maintain U.S. global leadership in science and technology, federal agencies should pursue a coordinated risk-management approach that protects the United States’ own capacity to innovate, rather than emphasizing the protection of specific technologies from access by competitor nations.

In a new article, NAE members Robin Podmore and Anjan Bose make the case that engineers and businesspeople working or volunteering for professional associations and other organizations can have a significant impact on alleviating global poverty while creating a cooler planet.

Coeur d’Alene Lake in northern Idaho is beginning to recover from nearly a century of mining in its watershed. A new report finds metal concentrations are slowly declining and the lake is not currently at risk of anoxia.

As the U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP27) approaches, a new report recommends steps to improve the accuracy and usability of greenhouse gas emissions information for decision-makers, including creating a global information clearinghouse.

The Gulf Research Program (GRP) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine today announced its 2022 cohort of Early-Career Research Fellows in the Environmental Protection and Stewardship track.

This perspective paper is a product of the Action Collaborative on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. It is intended to identify and discuss a topic in need of research.

For decades the National Academies have provided objective, expert advice to help the nation understand issues related to maternal and reproductive health, unintended pregnancy, prenatal care, racial and ethnic disparities in health care, and abortion.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry should be optimized to be a user-friendly resource and focus on improving health care quality and access for veterans and providing two-way communication between veterans who participate and the VA.

The EPA’s current framework for evaluating the scientific evidence used to set national air quality standards is effective, reliable, and scientifically defensible, according to a new National Academies report.

Engineering impacts everyone. Diversifying the field is imperative if we want to build on engineering’s legacy of extraordinary impact.

Following a national search, Victoria Sheehan will join the National Academies on Dec. 5 as the new executive director of the Transportation Research Board. Sheehan comes to the organization from the New Hampshire Department of Transportation, which she has led as its commissioner for the past seven years.

Life cycle assessments of low-carbon transportation fuels — such as electricity, biofuels, or hydrogen — are valuable tools for measuring environmental impacts, but uncertainties remain in the models that are currently used, and further research should be conducted to strengthen their reliability.

At a recent symposium, leaders of U.S. academic and government research institutions, policymakers, the private sector, and philanthropy came together to explore the future of science and discuss the transformations that will be needed to address complex and global challenges such as pandemics.

The Triennial Conference of the InterAcademy Partnership and the Worldwide Meeting of Young Academies will take place Nov. 1-3. The conference will convene the world’s senior and young science academies to explore how to make research structures and processes more inclusive, effective, and sustainable.

With a $3 million donation from the Breakthrough Prize Foundation, a high-level, international coordinating group of scientific organizations has been established to take concrete steps to support Ukraine’s scientists and research community with the aim of rebuilding a successful global science and innovation system in Ukraine.

“Reports & Events” is a monthly tip sheet for the news media that highlights selected meetings of interest and reports from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

With renewed attention on mining gold at both new and historical sites in Virginia, the state’s regulations and practices should be updated to protect against the potential environmental and health impacts of gold mining — though the risk of adverse impacts cannot be eliminated completely, says a new report.

Congress should take action to facilitate the participation of all land-grant colleges and universities in multistate research projects, says a new report. Funding disparities have prevented many historically Black and tribal colleges and universities from fully collaborating with other land-grant institutions.

To reduce racial disparities in the U.S. criminal justice system, policymakers at all levels should explore ways to decrease police stops and searches, jail detention, prison admission, and long sentences through coordinated policy reforms.

A new report identifies research and possible action steps that governments, nongovernmental and philanthropic organizations, universities, and the private sector can take to operationalize the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

“Reports & Events” is a monthly tip sheet for the news media that highlights selected meetings of interest and reports from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

National Academy of Sciences President Marcia McNutt has been awarded an honorary doctorate from the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine for her “significant contributions to the development of science and international scientific collaboration.”

As part of the shift to a net-zero carbon emissions economy, industry and government should begin planning for the deployment of carbon dioxide utilization systems to turn captured CO2 into useful products, such as aviation fuel and aggregates for construction.

World leaders are gathering in Montreal for the U.N.’s COP15 global conference on biodiversity loss. The National Academies have identified opportunities for action that would help reduce the loss of critical species and lessen future climate change, discussed recently during an Academies webinar about the report “Biodiversity at Risk.”

The Transportation Research Board’s Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) has announced the winners of its annual Graduate Research Awards. The prestigious awards focus on applied research on airport and related aviation system issues to help the public sector continue to improve the quality, reliability, safety, and security of the U.S. civil aviation system.

Advanced manufacturing brings the potential for positive transformational change to a variety of areas, including the defense industry. It is essential that universities, companies, and the government take steps to better prepare the next generation of engineers to work with these emerging technologies.

The presidents of the U.S. National Academies warn that the Taliban’s decision to prevent Afghan women and girls from participating in higher education or attending secondary school ignores the scientific evidence on the benefits of education for women and could have “potentially disastrous consequences” for the future of Afghanistan.

“Reports & Events” is a monthly tip sheet for the news media that highlights selected meetings of interest and reports from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Confucius Institutes are Chinese government-funded language and culture centers located worldwide. A new report proposes a set of criteria for the U.S. Department of Defense to consider in developing a waiver process that would potentially allow U.S. institutions of higher education to receive DOD funding while hosting a Confucius Institute.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, wastewater surveillance has provided advance indications of community-level outbreaks, sometimes weeks before other indicators. A new report says that wastewater surveillance is worthy of investment and outlines a vision for the future of a national system.

The insufficient supply of seeds from native plants is a major barrier to ecological restoration and other revegetation projects across the U.S., especially as climate change increases the possibility of extreme weather events that can damage natural areas.

“Reports & Events” is a monthly tip sheet for the news media that highlights selected meetings of interest and reports from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology’s facilities should be modernized to ensure that the agency can continue to deliver measurement science and standards that advance U.S. innovation and competitiveness on national technology priorities. Substandard facilities brought about through lack of investment have created ongoing problems that affect research.

Higher education institutions and science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine organizations should go beyond a focus on simply increasing the numeric participation of minoritized racial and ethnic groups. To increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEMM fields, organizations of all sizes must act to change their cultures and environments.

As U.S. life expectancy falls and the nation struggles to achieve health outcomes on par with other high-income countries, the VA and HHS should collaborate to create a national Center for Whole Health Innovation to support, scale, and spread whole health care nationally across health systems.

As the one-year anniversary of the war in Ukraine approaches, NAS President Marcia McNutt and the presidents of the national science academies of Poland and Ukraine urge the scientific community around the world to continue helping scientists from and in Ukraine, and to plan for the post-war recovery of science there.

Pulling from research and institutional examples, the Remediation Working Group of the Action Collaborative on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education has published a paper that examines the types of power differentials in academia, how abuses of power can take the form of sexual harassment, and strategies for preventing and remediating such abuses.

The U.S. should renew its investments in high energy density science facilities and workforce capacity and improve collaboration, in order to achieve advances in areas such as fusion power and materials science and help address significant national needs.

National Academy of Sciences President Marcia McNutt will deliver a lecture on the future of the research enterprise this week at the AAAS Annual Meeting. The meeting will also feature sessions and presentations focused on National Academies reports and projects.

“Reports & Events” is a monthly tip sheet for the news media that highlights selected meetings of interest and reports from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti has been appointed as chair of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) Executive Committee by Marcia McNutt, president of the National Academy of Sciences. Her term begins March 4, 2023.

Today the science academies of the G-7 nations released statements calling on their governments to address systemic risks and improve decision-making related to climate change, restore and recover ocean biodiversity, and deliver better health and well-being for aging populations.