In advance of the National Academy of Medicine’s annual meeting on Oct. 17-18, NAM President Victor Dzau sat down to talk about the compounding crises of COVID-19, climate change, and systemic racism — and how health and medicine can help respond to these threats.

When communicating with parents about getting their children vaccinated against COVID-19, emphasize the safety and efficacy of the vaccines, encourage them to talk with their family doctor, and leverage parents’ social networks.

National Academy of Sciences President Marcia McNutt discusses science and solutions to climate change ahead of the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26), which begins Oct. 31, 2021.

Despite legal protections for health care workers in combat zones, attacks on them are a continuing problem. From 2016 to 2020 there were more than 4,000 violent incidents against health care workers and facilities. A recent webinar explored what’s driving the violence and steps that should be taken to stop it.

In many university departments, graduate students may be wholly dependent on their advisers for funding and academic support — a difference in power that raises the risk of sexual harassment. At a recent summit of the Action Collaborative on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education, speakers explored how to diffuse those power differences.

A new decadal survey presents a visionary plan for the fields of astronomy and astrophysics, identifying scientific priorities and opportunities, and recommending an ambitious program of investment to strengthen the profession and achieve new capabilities.

Seasonal influenza and the next influenza pandemic could emerge at any time. Four new reports examine lessons learned from COVID-19 that can improve preparedness for an influenza pandemic, including vaccine R&D, supply chain resilience, and non-vaccine public health measures.

A new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine makes recommendations for how federal agencies can improve the transparency and reproducibility of federal statistics — such as education, labor, health, income, and justice statistics.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) should make changes to its integrated risk information system (IRIS) assessments handbook to ensure it provides clear operational instructions for those conducting assessments, and transparency regarding the assessment process, says a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

During Nobel Week 2021, ceremonial presentations of Nobel Prize medals and diplomas to 2021 laureates who are based in the United States will take place at the National Academy of Sciences.

The United States should create a national strategy by end of 2022 to reduce its outsized and increasing contribution to plastic waste in the world’s oceans.

The U.S. should undertake a new research program to better understand the potential risks and benefits of ocean-based interventions to remove or sequester carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and learn how these methods could be used to mitigate the impacts of climate change.

A range of organizations across the tech ecosystem — tech companies, colleges and universities, professional societies, and government agencies — should take steps to improve the representation of women of color in tech fields and careers.

The U.S. Coast Guard should issue a range of new guidelines and requirements to ensure the safety of passengers and crew on DUKWs or “duck boats”— those familiar amphibious vehicles often used for touring the streets and waters of many cities.

A new National Academies consultation outlines strategies that decision-makers could use to address long-standing challenges and mitigate the effects of COVID-19 in the early child care and education sector.

Following a national search, Carlotta M. Arthur will join the National Academies as the new executive director of the Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education on Feb. 14.

Six scientists have been selected for the Offshore Energy Safety track of the Early-Career Research Fellowship (ECRF), announced the Gulf Research Program of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

The National Academies are partnering with the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative to administer a new funding opportunity that aims to recognize and further the leadership and scientific accomplishments of excellent biomedical researchers who — through outreach, mentoring, and teaching — have a record of promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in their fields.

Biodiversity — the rich variety of living things that support and sustain life on Earth — is facing grave threats. A new booklet provides an easy-to-read overview, examining the causes of biodiversity loss and presenting actions that can be taken to stop this decline.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine released a final report today reviewing the second draft of a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) monograph, The Economic Impact and Cost Effectiveness of Service Dogs for Veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, which assesses the economic impact and cost-effectiveness of programs involving trained service dogs or emotional support dogs and veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Every year, nearly 5 million Americans are evaluated for traumatic brain injury (TBI). But many individuals and their caregivers don’t get needed follow-up support after initial injury. A new report recommends structural changes to improve TBI research and care over the next decade.

COVID-19 has offered several lessons about improving diagnosis — from expanding testing availability, to making at-home testing easier, to empowering people with data. At a recent workshop, experts discussed how to apply these lessons to the diagnosis of other health conditions.

As the omicron variant of the coronavirus sweeps through the U.S. and other parts of the world — and with the possibility of emerging new variants looming — building confidence in vaccines has become even more important. How can knowledge from the social sciences inform effective communication around vaccines?

To maintain U.S. global leadership and meet societal challenges — including generating medical advances, furthering the energy transition, and making food and water safer and more sustainable — new investments, collaborations, and educational practices in the chemical engineering field are needed.

The COVID-19 pandemic and more frequent wildfires have highlighted the need for respiratory protection for the public and all types of workers, including essential and gig economy workers. A new report recommends frameworks to ensure both groups receive timely access to appropriate respiratory protective devices and guidance on their effective use.

A new report says wind turbine generators used in offshore wind farms can interfere with navigational radar used by ships to avoid collisions, posing challenges for safe maritime navigation.

The new Eric and Wendy Schmidt Awards for Excellence in Science Communication aim to recognize and develop excellence in science communication by research scientists and by early career, local, and freelance science journalists. The program will provide winners with cash awards as well as training and resources to further expand their communications skills.

Almost 110,000 Americans are waiting for organ transplants, but there are significant inequities in who gets access to the waiting list and an eventual transplant. A new report recommends several policy changes to create a more fair, equitable, and patient-focused system for organ allocation.

A new report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warns the increasingly numerous and widespread impacts of climate change may soon overcome our ability to adapt, unless action is taken to reduce emissions.

Rapid advances in small satellite technology and associated launch and production capabilities have transformed the space industry. A new report recommends ways the government can partner with commercial entities to enhance national missions and make transformative science advancements.

The presidents of the U.S. National Academies issued a statement condemning the “horrific and unprovoked” Russian invasion of Ukraine. “We stand in solidarity with the scientists, engineers, health care workers, and other colleagues in the research community of Ukraine, who like all Ukrainians, are doing their best to survive and resist.”

The National Institutes of Health should adopt new practices and standardized language to collect data about sex, gender identity, and sexual orientation from survey respondents or research participants. Better measurements will improve data quality, as well as NIH’s ability to identify and understand LGBTQI+ populations.

The emergence of biological physics as a field has had an impact on artificial intelligence, synthetic biology, the global response to COVID-19, and more. A new report outlines research directions and recommends ways federal agencies and universities can help strengthen the field’s future.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress — which produces the “Nation’s Report Card” and other critical education data — should make changes to understand and reduce its costs and open the door to innovation.

Vaccination mandates and requirements can be effective in increasing COVID-19 vaccination rates, but their success depends on being targeted and on building trust, says a new rapid expert consultation, which also outlines considerations for using incentives to promote booster uptake.

With a $1 million donation, the Breakthrough Prize Foundation joins a growing number of individuals and institutions that are supporting an NAS effort to help displaced Ukrainian researchers relocate, continue their work, and stay connected to the international scientific community.

The Institute of Education Sciences should make changes to research activities at the National Center for Education Research and National Center for Special Education Research to meet new priorities in education, including improving equity and the usefulness of research.

Assessing the success of ecological restoration efforts since the Deepwater Horizon platform explosion and oil spill in 2010 will require continued improvements in data analysis and coordination across the Gulf of Mexico region.

To provide high-quality care for all nursing home residents, the U.S. must strengthen the nursing home workforce, improve emergency preparedness, and increase the transparency and accountability of nursing homes’ finances and operations, among other actions.

The National Center for Education Statistics should make strategic changes to meet new education data needs by investing in a culture of innovation, new types of data, and expanded data access services, says the final report in a series written for the Institute of Education Sciences.

The Action Collaborative on Preventing Sexual Harassment in Higher Education today released three new individually authored publications to serve as resources for higher education institutions as they work to prevent sexual harassment and mitigate the damage it causes.

This description of practice summarizes the development and implementation of a policy by the University of Wisconsin (UW) System to prevent “passing the harasser,” a term that denotes a known harasser transitioning from one institution to another without (1) the new employer’s knowledge of previous violations of sexual harassment policy or ongoing investigations of such violations, and/or (2) facing disciplinary action.

Our new visual identity is here. Drawing on the rich history and visual heritage of the National Academies, our new identity supports the work of the scientists, engineers, and health care professionals who work with us to offer their best advice to the nation.

A new report examines how the U.S. Department of Defense can increase the capacity of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and other minority institutions to conduct defense and national security research.

To modernize the consumer price index — the most widely used measure of inflation in the U.S. — the Bureau of Labor Statistics should accelerate its use of new sources of data and develop price indexes based on different income levels, says a new report.

Automated research workflows — which integrate computation, laboratory automation, and tools from artificial intelligence — have the potential to increase the speed of research activities and accelerate scientific discovery. A new report recommends ways to advance their development.

To enhance and coordinate its research on autoimmune diseases, the National Institutes of Health should create an Office of Autoimmune Disease/Autoimmunity Research and a plan that spans all institutes and centers to provide an overall NIH strategy for autoimmune disease research.

The Gulf Research Program of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine today announced grant awards totaling $8.6 million for 11 new projects supporting health equity and community resilience.

Lack of representation in research is compounding disparities in health outcomes, with serious consequences for underrepresented groups and the nation as a whole. Urgent actions are needed by NIH, FDA, and others to boost representation of racial and ethnic minority groups and other underrepresented populations in clinical trials and research.

To meet its diversity and inclusion goals for competed mission leadership, NASA should invest in STEM career pathways, partner with historically Black colleges and universities and minority-serving institutions, and expand training and mentorship opportunities, among other actions.