[[{"fid":"2161","view_mode":"full","fields":{"format":"full","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"A livestream of this event will appear here.","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":"A livestream of this event will appear here."},"link_text":null,"type":"media","field_deltas":{"1":{"format":"full","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"A livestream of this event will appear here.","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":"A livestream of this event will appear here."}},"attributes":{"alt":"A livestream of this event will appear here.","title":"A livestream of this event will appear here.","style":"height: 353px; width: 400px;","class":"media-element file-full","data-delta":"1"}}]] Hearing charter Witnesses: Dr. Jaime Carbonell, director, Language Technologies Institute, and Allen Newell Professor, School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University Dr. Tim Persons, chief scientist, GAO Mr. Greg Brockman, co-founder and chief technology officer, OpenAI Dr. Fei-Fei Li, chairperson of the board and co-founder, AI4ALL Read More

[[{"fid":"2161","view_mode":"full","fields":{"format":"full","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"A livestream of this event will appear here.","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":"A livestream of this event will appear here."},"link_text":null,"type":"media","field_deltas":{"1":{"format":"full","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"A livestream of this event will appear here.","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":"A livestream of this event will appear here."}},"attributes":{"alt":"A livestream of this event will appear here.","title":"A livestream of this event will appear here.","style":"height: 353px; width: 400px;","class":"media-element file-full","data-delta":"1"}}]] Witnesses: The Honorable Wilbur Ross, secretary of commerce, Department of Commerce The Honorable Jim Bridenstine, administrator, NASA General John Hyten, commander, U.S. Strategic Command Read More

[[{"fid":"2161","view_mode":"full","fields":{"format":"full","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"A livestream of this event will appear here.","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":"A livestream of this event will appear here."},"link_text":null,"type":"media","field_deltas":{"1":{"format":"full","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"A livestream of this event will appear here.","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":"A livestream of this event will appear here."}},"attributes":{"alt":"A livestream of this event will appear here.","title":"A livestream of this event will appear here.","style":"height: 353px; width: 400px;","class":"media-element file-full","data-delta":"1"}}]] Hearing charter  Witnesses: Ms. Diane Rath, executive director, Alamo Area Council of Governments Mr. Timothy Franquist, air quality division director, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality Dr. Elena Craft, senior health scientist, Environmental Defense Fund Mr. Gregory Stella, senior scientist, Alpine Geophysics Read More

The letter can be found here.  Read More

Hearing charter  Opening Statements: Full Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) Space Subcommittee Chairman Brian Babin (R-Texas) Witnesses:  Ms. Cristina T. Chaplain, director, Contracting and National Security Acquisitions, GAO [Truth in Testimony]  Mr. Stephen Jurczyk, associate administrator, NASA  [Truth in Testimony]  Mr. Paul K. Martin, inspector general, NASA [Truth in Testimony]  Mr. Daniel L. Dumbacher, executive director, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics [Truth in Testimony]  Read More

WASHINGTON - U.S. House Science, Space, and Technology Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) today announced his intent to introduce the National Quantum Initiative Act, which will position the U.S. as the global leader in Quantum Information Science (QIS). Smith is also hosting IBM’s 50-qubit quantum computer on Capitol Hill this week. This is the first demonstration and display of a quantum computer on Capitol Hill. Chairman Smith: “It’s an honor to have the 50-qubit quantum computer here on Capitol Hill since the Science Committee soon will consider the National Quantum Initiative Act. Quantum is poised to redefine the next generation of scientific breakthroughs. We must ensure that the United States does not fall behind other nations that are advancing quantum programs. “The National Quantum Initiative Act will accelerate quantum research and development. It will promote greater quantum research, standards, federal coordination, and collaboration among the key quantum players – laboratories, industry and universities. Quantum computing could work up to millions of times faster than our conventional computing systems and solve problems we thought were unsolvable. The United States must get there first. IBM’s 50-qubit quantum computer is just one example of American ingenuity, as U.S. technology companies are leading the way in developing quantum technologies. I thank IBM for arranging this demonstration. The National Quantum Initiative takes advantage of the best of government, industry and academia to maintain strong U.S. leadership in the field. This bill will be a quantum leap in the right direction.”  The National Quantum Initiative Act will: Bring a whole of government approach to moving QIS to the next level of research and development Establish a National Quantum Coordination Office within the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy to oversee interagency coordination, provide strategic planning support, serve as a central point of contact for stakeholders, conduct outreach, and promote commercialization of federal research by the private sector Support basic QIS research and standards development at the National Institute for Standards and Technology, support Energy Department basic research and establish Energy Department national research centers, and support National Science Foundation basic research and academic multidisciplinary quantum research and education centers Encourage U.S. high-tech companies, which are investing heavily in quantum research, and a wave of quantum technology start-ups, to contribute their knowledge and resources to a national effort Address fundamental research gaps, create a stronger workforce pipeline, and take the lead in developing quantum standards and measures for global use and thereby give U.S. companies and workers an enduring competitive advantage Click here for a one-pager on the bill. On display in 2318 Rayburn this week is a prototype of IBM's 50-qubit quantum computer. Announced in 2017, it is the world's first 50-qubit system, which was a major step toward machines that can tackle problems beyond the scope of classical computation. Through IBM Q Experience, the world’s first publicly available quantum computers, more than 75,000 users have run more than 2.5 million quantum experiments. Read More

WASHINGTON – U.S. House Science, Space, and Technology Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) issued the following statement regarding NASA’s Curiosity rover’s groundbreaking discovery on Mars. Chairman Smith: “Congratulations to NASA on Curiosity’s finding of incredible new evidence on Mars, including ancient organic molecules and atmospheric methane, that suggests the Red Planet may have supported ancient life. When NASA successfully landed the rover, it was one of the agency’s most challenging and complex missions, and today that success is paying dividends. We are one step closer to understanding our neighbor planet’s history, and I look forward to all this mission will continue to find.” Read More

Hearing charter Opening Statements: Full Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) Energy Subcommittee Chairman Randy Weber (R-Texas) Witnesses:  The Honorable Bruce J. Walker, assistant secretary, Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability, Department of Energy; acting assistant secretary, Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response, DOE [Truth in Testimony]  Dr. John Sarrao, principal associate director, Science, Technology, and Engineering Directorate, Los Alamos National Laboratory [Truth in Testimony]  Mr. Robert Gramlich, president, Grid Strategies, LLC. [Truth in Testimony]  Dr. Joseph A. Heppert, vice president for research, Texas Tech University [Truth in Testimony]  Read More

WASHINGTON – U.S. House Science, Space, and Technology Committee leaders today sent a letter to Dr. Elisabete Weiderpass, newly elected director of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), detailing previous oversight into the IARC Monograph Programme and requesting Dr. Weiderpass’ testimony at a committee hearing. Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas), Vice Chairman Frank Lucas (R-Okla.), Environment Subcommittee Chairman Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) and Rep. Neil Dunn (R-Fla.) reiterated to Dr. Weiderpass the issues the committee has found with the IARC Monograph Programme, as well as the inadequate responses received from previous IARC Director Christopher Wild. Today’s letter reads in part: In the course of this process, we have written several letters to IARC outlining concerns with the agency and have held a hearing to examine the flaws in the science and procedures of the Monograph Programme. In order to better understand how you will manage the IARC Monograph Programme, the Committee requests your testimony at a hearing in July 2018. The Monograph Programme has been a recipient of significant criticism from a wide range of individuals and establishments, including scientists, judges, and Members of the U.S. Congress.  Unfortunately, given the information collected and evaluated by the Committee, the way the Monograph Programme operated under Director Christopher Wild was an affront to scientific integrity and bred distrust and confusion in the marketplace and amongst government regulators. In its most recent oversight, the Committee has discovered that serious flaws existed in the glyphosate Monograph study and that despite these issues, Monograph participants used the study to influence policymakers in both Europe and the United States. The full text of the letter can be found here. Background: On November 1, Chairman Smith and Environment Subcommittee Chairman Biggs sent a letter to IARC Director Wild expressing concerns about the scientific integrity of IARC’s Monograph Programme. On November 20, Wild responded to the committee’s letter and refused to provide witnesses. On December 8, Smith, Biggs, and Lucas sent Director Wild an additional letter warning that the committee will consider cutting funding if IARC refuses to be transparent with the American people regarding its Monograph Programme. The House Science, Space, and Technology Committee has jurisdiction over environmental and scientific programs. Read More

The letter can be found here.  Read More