National Medal of Science

8 responses to “National Medal of Science”

1. 

   Kevin Baird

   Oct 7, 2009 at 6:51 pm

   This is great. I’ve seen him speak at UCSD, and have a few friends who work at Synthetic Genomics. Amazing stuff.

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2. 

   tifotter

   Oct 7, 2009 at 7:24 pm

   How cool is that? Awesome.

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3. 

   Duncan Rawlinson – Duncan.co

   Oct 7, 2009 at 7:45 pm

   Nice that science is respected and honored by the current administration!

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4. 

   jurvetson

   Oct 8, 2009 at 4:09 pm

   Yes! I’ll be having dinner with him tonight. Happy times!

   The full text of Obama’s comments are now online:

   this nation owes all of you an enormous debt of gratitude far greater than any medal can bestow. And we recognize your contributions, but we also celebrate the incredible contributions of the scientific endeavor itself. We see the promise — not just for our economy but for our health and well-being — in the human capacity for creativity and ingenuity. And we are reminded of the power of free and open inquiry, which is not only at the heart of all of your work, but at the heart of this experiment we call America.

   Science is more essential for our prosperity, our security, and our health, and our way of life than it has ever been.

   And as part of this effort, we’re putting in place policies that will move us from the middle to the top of the pack in math and science education over the next decade.

   Beyond the classroom, the Recovery Act that we passed is funding the largest single boost to biomedical research in history. My budget makes the research and experimentation tax credit permanent to help companies afford the often high cost of innovation. I’ve proposed eliminating the capital gains tax for investments in startups and small companies — because countless big ideas begin in small businesses.

   For at our best, this nation has never feared the future. We’ve shaped the future. Even when we’ve endured terrible storms, we haven’t given up or turned back — we’ve remain fixed on that brighter horizon. That’s how we’ve led in the pursuit of scientific discovery; and in turn that’s how science has helped us lead the world.

   At root, science forces us to reckon with the truth as best as we can ascertain it, and to reckon with the power that comes from this knowledge — for good and for ill. With each new discovery brings new responsibility to move past our differences and to address our shared problems; to embrace a sense of wonder, and our common humanity.

   Carl Sagan, who helped broaden the reach of science to millions of people, once described his enthusiasm for discovery in very simple terms. He said, "Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known."

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5. 

   Duncan Rawlinson – Duncan.co

   Oct 8, 2009 at 10:17 pm

   Lucky guy! *jealous…

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6. 

   PhOtOnQuAnTiQuE

   Oct 9, 2009 at 2:11 pm

   Giving one…Getting one A surprising Nobel Peace Price … =)

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7. 

   2HandzUp1913

   Oct 25, 2009 at 5:13 pm

   thank you for sharing this story.

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8. 

   jgury

   Nov 14, 2011 at 1:17 pm

   " And we are reminded of the power of free and open inquiry, which is not only at the heart of all of your work, but at the heart of this experiment we call America."
   Obama was never a patent lawyer I think is safe to say.
   "Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known." but you might not really want to know it.
   Indeed:
   Det. Thorn: It’s people. Soylent Green is made out of people. They’re making our food out of people. Next thing they’ll be breeding us like cattle for food. You’ve gotta tell them. You’ve gotta tell them!
   Hatcher: I promise, Tiger. I promise. I’ll tell the exchange.
   Det. Thorn: You tell everybody. Listen to me, Hatcher. You’ve gotta tell them! Soylent Green is people! We’ve gotta stop them somehow!

   Reply