Science Panel Urges Review of Research Terrorists Could Use

["Hamaker, Chuck" <cahamake@email.uncc.edu>]

Science Panel Urges Review of Research Terrorists Could Use
By NICHOLAS WADE
NY TIMES
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/10/09/science/09RESE.html
Published: October 9, 2003

Despite scientists' general distaste for any constraints on research, a
panel of the National Academy of Sciences yesterday recommended prior
review, at the university and federal levels, of experiments that could
help terrorists or hostile nations make biological weapons.

The panel's work was initiated by the academy, the leading scientific body
in the nation, and represents an attempt by biologists to put their own
review systems in place before others might do so for them.

But Dr. John H. Marburger, science adviser to President Bush, suggested
that the report might not go far enough. Though it was "a very positive
move by the scientific community, I am sure there are other things that
will happen in the future," he said.

"So it isn't as if this is a magic bullet that will bring an end to all
discussion of the issue," Dr. Marburger said. Asked what further measures
might be necessary, he said only that this was the first time biologists
had defined areas of concern and that the proposed list of seven fields
needed more discussion.

Dr. Marburger said the administration had not yet decided whether or how
to act on the proposal.

Though physicists have long lived with the fact that certain areas of
research are classified and cannot be discussed openly, biologists are
relatively new to security concerns. Apart from biological defense
research, done mostly at military institutions, academic biology is
focused on medicine and conducted without security restraints.

***