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Capitol Comment
by Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison
A State of Innovation
January 5, 2007
Texans embrace competition, and the desire to be the best has made our state a national leader. Texas scientists share this spirit, and in recent years our brightest minds have embraced collaboration to advance our state and national interests. By combining their efforts, they have accelerated the pace of innovation in the Lone Star State.
When The Academy of Medicine, Engineering and Science of Texas, or TAMEST, convened this month in Austin for its fourth annual meeting, the top academic researchers from across the state came together in pursuit of a common goal — enhancing Texas’ reputation as a scientific powerhouse.
The academy’s 244 members heard presentations highlighting research in Texas, including our knowledge of the universe, cardiovascular engineering and the biology of inflammation. One of the conference’s keynote speakers was Norman Augustine, chairman of the National Academies committee that produced the report “Rising Above the Gathering Storm” and retired chairman and CEO of Lockheed Martin.
The prosperity our nation has enjoyed for the past 50 years reflects our investment in science and technology. However, our lead in the hard sciences is eroding, and many scientists believe our efforts regarding science and innovation have stalled or are in decline. “Rising Above the Gathering Storm” offers 20 recommendations for federal policymakers to reverse this trend and help America maintain its competitive advantage.
Many of the report’s findings are startling. Fewer than 30 percent of our fourth- and eighth-graders perform at a “proficient” level or higher in mathematics. Of the 20 nations assessed in advanced mathematics and physics, none scored significantly lower than did the United States in either subject. We rank 20th among all nations in the proportion of 24-year-olds with degrees in science or engineering. And barely 50 percent of our math and engineering degrees are awarded to U.S. citizens.
In response to “Rising Above the Gathering Storm,” TAMEST formed an education committee chaired by Dr. William Brinkley, dean of the Baylor College of Medicine’s Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. The panel has been studying ways to improve science and technology education in Texas, and it released its report during this year’s conference.
Texas institutions of higher learning have long been on the cutting edge of scientific research. But I saw Texas was not in the top three states in federal research backing. Several years ago, I began working with the heads of Texas’ top research universities to foster greater use of federal dollars. During one of these summits, Dr. Neil Lane, Rice University professor and past director of the National Science Foundation, suggested that Texas researchers could collaborate more if they were more familiar with the research being done outside their own institutions.
For many years, our best researchers independently pursued solutions to science’s most vexing problems. Often the only time they would interact was during the annual meeting of the prestigious National Academies, which includes the Institute of Medicine, the National Academy of Engineering and the National Academy of Sciences. We soon established an advisory committee headed by two of Texas’ Nobel laureates, Dr. Michael Brown and the late Dr. Richard Smalley, to form TAMEST, a Texas-version of the National Academies.
The academy continues to grow in size and stature, as more Texas scientists are recognized by their peers and elected to the National Academies. Part of the academy’s mission is encouraging the next generation of Texas scientists. Each academy member can invite a young researcher to the group’s annual meeting to learn from those nationally recognized as the best in their fields. This was also the second year the academy presented the Edith and Peter O'Donnell Awards, $25,000 honorariums created to recognize a deserving young researcher in the fields of medicine, engineering and science.
Does it make a difference? Texas is now among the top three states in research and development expenditures at our universities and medical schools. Almost $3 billion is added to the Texas economy each year. Our scientists collaborate more frequently and, as a result, their work is seen as among the finest in the world.
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