News Analyses in 1999

The failure of the Mars Polar Lander may have been the result of NASA's high demands. But aiming lower could mean cancelling missions.

The US Food and Drug Administration is holding public meetings to listen to critics of genetically modified food. Some fear the move may backfire.

Commercial publishers plan to link up their journals, stealing the thunder of free repositories for life-science papers — and protecting their revenues.

Researchers presented data that supports signing the test ban treaty, but they found that most politicians had already made up their minds.

Australia's main research agency has responded to the prospects of continuing budgetary stringency by redefining its strategic approach.

Research in Portugal has grown apace over the past decade, and the government is reviewing its achievements, problems and prospects.

Lake Vostok, isolated from the rest of the biosphere for at least a million years, could be the subject of an international initiative to plumb its secrets.

American farmers have warmly embraced biotechnology. But resistance abroad and regulation at home are threatening to turn the affair sour.

Despite moves to boost funding, US biologists are struggling to pay for the instruments they need to remain competitive.

By correcting for atmospheric distortion, adaptive optics — despite some birth pains — gives telescopes a far clearer view of the Universe.

washington

The National Institutes of Health says it will put $18 million into improving two major synchrotron facilities whose base funding comes from the Department of Energy.

After years of budget cuts and internal division, things are looking up for US fusion research. At a recent meeting,the community began work on a common agenda, and tried to present a united front to funding agencies.

With the arrival of devolved governments in Scotland and Wales, British science has an opportunity to build on past experience and experiment with new ways of implementing science advice.

washington

The United States is seeking to integrate research into two rival approaches to fusion power: magnetic and inertial confinement.

With the rapidly burgeoning numbers of mouse mutants being produced, Europe's need for a repository and distribution centre has become urgent. The announcement that its mouse archive is to open is thus welcome.

More than two thirds of Europe's young scientists say they are not given full credit for their research achievements. A survey commissioned jointly by Nature and the European Science Foundation reveals the countries with the best — and the worst — postdoc working conditions.

The European Science Foundation warned last week that a proposed European Union directive, intended to ensure that copyright owners receive full legal protection when their work is distributed in digital form, could weaken the ‘fair use’ arrangements enjoyed by scientists.

Nature's correspondents describe the increasing attention being paid to bridging the ‘knowledge gap’ between rich and poor countries.

MUNICH

European donor countries are becoming more receptive to funding research in developing countries, believing it to be a fundamental component of economic success.

PARIS

Despite initial pessimism, the Internet promises to help spur a renaissance of science and technology in poorer countries.