HARVARD GAZETTE ARCHIVES

New Science Research Web Site Opens

By William J. Cromie

Gazette Staff

Next Tuesday evening, those interested in the search for life on Mars and the future of human spaceflight can talk, via a new Internet site, with scientists and an astronaut involved in these pursuits.

The interactive chat, from 9 to 11 p.m. EST, celebrates the launch of a new Web site at www.sciencecoalition.org. The site is sponsored by the Science Coalition, an alliance of more than 400 universities, scientific societies, and other organizations dedicated to sustaining the federal government's support of university-based science research.

"Harvard organized the Science Coalition in 1994," notes Kevin Casey, Harvard's director of federal and state government relations. "The Coalition's Web site is the latest attempt to help those interested in university-based research learn what is happening in Congress and, hopefully, involve themselves in the process."

The Oct. 7 event features Peggy Whitson, an astronaut and scientist who will answer questions about research on manned spaceflight. Thanasis Economou of the University of Chicago and Peter Smith of the University of Arizona will join her and discuss the Pathfinder mission, now operating on the Martian surface.

"We want to find out if life developed on Mars," Economou says. "But we won't be able to answer that question until we bring back [rock] samples to examine. Before that happens, we have to learn as much as we can about Mars and figure out what kind of samples we should bring back."

This is the first in a series of online forums planned for the Web site. They appear as part of a "Science Café," designed to let experts and enthusiasts talk about scientific breakthroughs that have come from university-based research. Future forums will tap the knowledge of scientists, policymakers, politicians, and business leaders

The new Web site also includes information about the latest discoveries from university laboratories around the country, federal legislative and budget updates, trends in research and development funding, and breaking news from academic institutions.

A Web site section called "On Campus," provides details of research at specific universities. Harvard will debut in this slot on Oct. 13 with information about its latest research advances. The site will be a research profile of the University, including science stories from the Harvard News Office Web page, a list of Nobel Prize winners, and links to other University Web pages that cover everything from the search for intelligent life on other worlds to AIDS research, to advances in computer technology.