by Cheryl Rofer
It has been a joy to see that Barack Obama is making intelligence and experience the primary qualifications for his Cabinet and other high-level appointments. I keep breathing sighs of relief.
I sighed a great sigh of relief on reading that Steven Chu, a Nobel Laureate, is nominated for Secretary of Energy. And I sigh again to read that John Holdren has been chosen as presidential science adviser and Jane Lubchenco as head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Both are highly respected for their capability and integrity. What a change!
We won't be hearing from this government that schools should teach "both sides" of a nonexistent controversy over evolution. We also won't be hearing the nonsense that nobody really knows whether global warming is caused by human-produced carbon dioxide. (Well, at least not from the government.) We will not have to ponder whether a zygote has a soul. It looks like policy will be decided on facts, rather than someone's gut. Sigh of relief.
The news coverage has emphasized the global warming aspect of all three of these nominations. But there's a lot more to it than that. I've written about some of the challenges facing Steven Chu. Scientists are pleased that all three of these nominees are, well, scientists. But they're more than that. Holdren has held a number of organizational posts, including the chair of the Executive Committee of the Pugwash Council and the presidency of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the organization all us scientists belong to and publisher of Science magazine.
Holdren has been active in nuclear nonproliferation, as indicated by his involvement in the Pugwash Council. He was also co-chair of a joint project between the US and Russian academies of science on nonproliferation. I don't agree with his proposal of a nonproliferation "czar," but the fact of this sort of experience suggests a different approach to the Russians than the bear-poking that's been the standard under George Bush. Another big sigh.
Holdren has also done many energy systems studies of the kind that don't seem to be done any more. So he will be able to keep Obama informed on many fronts and will be able to present the alternatives intelligently.
We haven't heard about a replacement for the NASA head, who is further down the ladder. NASA has had a great deal of trouble keeping costs in line. We can hope that Obama's science team understands that this can be a political cudgel to keep the pointy-heads in line, but that it can also be a symptom of being too close to the contractors, and so it needs a smart solution, not just rhetoric and one-size-fits-all demands.
More about Steven Chu here. (Thanks to Frank Munger!)
Update (12/20/08): Here's Barack Obama's Saturday speech on his science team.