Symposium participants examine what climate change, obesity, and personalized medicine mean for nutrition in the future

Formed earlier this month, the National Academies’ Standing Committee on Emerging Infectious Diseases and 21st Century Health Threats was assembled at the request of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The National Academies stand ready to convene America’s best minds in research, government, medicine, and private industry to marshal evidence-based insights and advice for confronting today’s pandemic and future crises.

In light of the present situation in the U.S., we believe that it is essential to explore a wide range of options for treating the increasing numbers of very ill patients with COVID-19 respiratory illness.

As the COVID-19 pandemic grips the nation and the world, policymakers and the public are counting on science, engineering, and medicine to discover how the virus infects humans, slow its spread, treat those infected, and provide solutions that lay the groundwork for recovery.

The recently formed National Academies Standing Committee on Emerging Infectious Diseases and 21st Century Health Threats, assembled at the request of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, has been providing rapid expert consultations on several topics, such as social distancing and severe illness in young adults.

More than 9.6 million children — or 13 percent of all children in the U.S. — live in families with annual incomes below the poverty line, according to data from 2015. As closures and restrictions related to COVID-19 begin to impact the U.S. economy, it’s clear many more families will be receiving fewer paychecks and less income in the coming months, putting more children at risk of falling below the poverty line.

The recently formed National Academies Standing Committee on Emerging Infectious Diseases and 21st Century Health Threats, assembled at the request of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, has been providing rapid expert consultations on several topics, such as social distancing and severe illness in young adults.

As the coronavirus outbreak has spread throughout the United States, social distancing measures have taken many forms — such as business and school closures, cancelled events, and everyone being urged to keep six feet apart.

A new rapid expert consultation from a standing committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine responds to questions from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) regarding survival of the COVID-19 virus in relation to temperature and humidity and potential for seasonal reduction and resurgence of cases.

As a novel coronavirus spreads throughout the world and the number of cases and deaths continues to rise, almost no country or community remains untouched by this rapidly evolving threat.

A new rapid expert consultation from a standing committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

A new rapid expert consultation from a standing committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine responds to questions from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) regarding the effectiveness of homemade fabric masks to protect others from the viral spread of COVID-19 from potentially contagious asymptomatic or presymptomatic individuals.

It is critical for the U.S. to continue its funding for the World Health Organization in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic given the WHO’s lead role in coordinating an international response, especially in developing countries.

Anthony Fauci and other panelists explored the status of the pandemic, research underway, and the key role of vaccines in bringing the pandemic to an end.

When it comes to COVID-19 testing, questions remain about which of the tests available are reliable, how much testing is needed, and how to ensure access to testing. The latest COVID-19 Conversations webinar explored the challenges ahead.

The 1.3 million nursing home residents in the U.S. make up less than 0.5 percent of the nation’s population, but represent approximately 15 percent of COVID-19 related deaths to date.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s plan to dilute and dispose of 34 metric tons of surplus plutonium in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in New Mexico is technically viable, provided that the plan’s implementation challenges and system vulnerabilities are resolved.

The novel coronavirus has been called “the great equalizer,” when in reality, it has only exacerbated health inequities that racial and ethnic minorities have experienced for decades.

Only about 4 million people live in the Arctic, but despite its relatively small population, the region is hugely consequential.

As the number of cases of COVID-19 reached about 4.5 million worldwide last week, an international virtual conference explored how science, technology, and innovation (STI) can respond to the global crisis – and continue to drive progress toward the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

This week the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted an above-normal 2020 hurricane season, with the possibility of three to six major hurricanes this summer looming over millions of Americans.

Alison Purvis has been promoted to chief development officer, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine announced today.

Federal agencies, including the National Science Foundation (NSF), the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the Office of Naval Research (ONR), and Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR), should better coordinate their activities in plasma science research if the United States is to remain a leader in plasma science and engineering (PSE), says a new decadal report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Many U.S. colleges and universities responded to the COVID-19 pandemic this spring by swiftly moving courses online, but they now face a range of longer-term quandaries, from weighing how to safely reopen campuses to navigating new financial challenges.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine announced today that, following a national search, Tina Bahadori will join the organization as the new executive director of its Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences on June 22, 2020.

Images of deserted streets, empty subway cars, and shuttered businesses paint a bleak picture of life during the COVID-19 pandemic. While health experts say a vaccine to prevent COVID-19 infection is needed to return to “normal,” several polls have indicated some Americans would be reluctant to receive a vaccine, citing safety concerns. The spread of disinformation on social media has only further complicated matters.

A video created as part of the Transportation Research Board’s centennial celebration has been named the winner of three 2020 Telly Awards, which annually showcase the best work created within television and across all types of video production.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine announced today that, following a national search, Elizabeth Eide has been named executive director of its Division on Earth and Life Studies (DELS).

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are currently conducting a study to review available data on the well-being of LGBTQI+ populations and future research needs for this community.

The COVID-19 pandemic has upended the lives and routines of people with disabilities in countless ways, said panelists during a recent National Academies webinar.

A new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine says using laboratory dogs in research at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is scientifically necessary for only a few areas of current biomedical research.

While the world waits for a vaccine to prevent COVID-19 infection, international and multigenerational teams of engineers have come together through the National Academy of Engineering’s COVID-19 Call for Engineering Action to find creative solutions to problems caused by the pandemic.

Black Americans are getting sick and dying from COVID-19 at higher rates than white Americans — the most recent manifestation of racial disparities in health that have long been evident in the United States.

Most U.S. colleges and universities are struggling to adjust to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Historically Black Colleges and Universities — known as HBCUs — are facing their own unique challenges.

Weighing the health risks of reopening K-12 schools in fall 2020 against the educational risks of providing no in-person instruction, school districts should prioritize reopening schools full time, especially for grades K-5 and students with special needs, according to a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

A new rapid expert consultation from the Societal Experts Action Network identifies promising strategies to make the adoption of protective behaviors against COVID-19, such as wearing a mask or regularly washing your hands, more likely.

A new rapid expert consultation from a standing committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine outlines considerations for clinical staffing needs during the implementation of Crisis Standards of Care (CSC), including adjusting staff responsibilities, providing “hazard pay” to staff, ensuring adequate time off, offering child care and other benefits, and leveraging health care coalitions to ensure appropriate transfer of patients between hospitals.

The COVID-19 pandemic is posing some entirely new challenges to U.S. research universities — the need to dramatically ramp up online education, for example, and to find ways to protect the health and safety of faculty, students, and staff.

To better understand the evolution, transmission patterns, and disease progression of SARS-CoV-2 — the virus that causes COVID-19 — genome sequence data should be integrated with patient clinical data and epidemiological data, says a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Six months into the COVID-19 pandemic, many hospitals are still faced with staffing shortages due to the sheer volume of patients, staff illnesses, and non-COVID care that cannot be delayed.

A review of the New York City Watershed Protection Program, released today by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, says the program has been largely successful in maintaining and enhancing water quality for New York City’s drinking water since its inception in 1997.

A new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine identifies promising strategies for reducing consumer food waste nationwide, including a national campaign to change consumer behavior, federal standardization of food date labeling, and changes to retailer marketing and food service practices, among other measures.

A new rapid expert consultation from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Societal Experts Action Network says strategies such as giving advance notice, partnering with trusted sources, and offering incentives can encourage individuals who have tested positive for COVID-19 to respond to health department contact tracing and share information about people they may have exposed to the virus.

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many businesses and government agencies to close or restructure to allow their employees to work remotely. However, the now-empty facilities still require some maintenance and engineering staff to remain on-site to ensure the basic operations of the buildings are running smoothly and safely. Keeping these employees safe during the pandemic so they can continue their essential duties is a priority.

Human embryos whose genomes have been edited should not be used to create a pregnancy until it is established that precise genomic changes can be made reliably without introducing undesired changes — a criterion that has not yet been met by any genome editing technology, says a new report by an international commission of the U.S. National Academy of Medicine, U.S. National Academy of Sciences, and the U.K.’s Royal Society.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine started work on a new study last month that will provide advice to policymakers, corrections officials, and public health officials on best practices for mitigating the spread of COVID-19 in correctional facilities through large-scale release and decarceration efforts.

The U.S.-based Transportation Research Board (TRB) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) has formed a cooperative understanding with the Colombia-based Sociedad Panamericana de Investigación en Transporte y Logística (Pan-American Society of Transportation Research, PANAMSTR).

The sustainability of the nation’s biological collections is under threat, says a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

A new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine provides a blueprint and eight overarching strategies for improving health care for the approximately 100,000 people in the United States living with sickle cell disease (SCD).