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Sci on the Fly
April 6, 2026
Surviving and Thriving during the AAAS STPF Executive Branch Finalist Week
Congratulations on making it to finalist week! Finalist week can be very busy and hectic, particularly as you request and navigate interviews with host offices you are interested in. My goal with this post is not to overwhelm you, but to offer several strategies for starting finalist week off on the...
Sci on the Fly
December 17, 2018
Advances In Science Propel Optimism
This blog highlights excerpts from Dr. Sutyajeet Soneja’s 20x20 presentation at the AAAS Visualizing Science Policy Summit on October 17, 2018. Reflecting upon my time as a 2016 to 2018 AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellow, I have come away with a renewed...
Sci on the Fly
January 9, 2019
1.5 to Stay Alive!
With much fanfare, in 2015, under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), The 21st Convention of Parties (COP21) adopted The Paris Agreement as a plan for global action to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and to adapt to the unavoidable...
Sci on the Fly
February 12, 2019
Blockchain: What is it really?
Blockchain. Blockchain. Blockchain. You've probably heard this term thrown around quite a bit over the last year. And before that, you likely heard about Bitcoin, the best known cryptocurrency -- digital bits of information used by people as money -- and all...
Sci on the Fly
March 13, 2019
Increasing participation of women in computing fields: A data science perspective
We live in an age when everyone understands the importance and pervasiveness of data—the pictures we take, the activities we track, the transactions we make, and the websites we visit. Data can often be contentious in terms of ownership and access. Today...
Sci on the Fly
April 4, 2019
Do No Harm: An Ethical Data Life Cycle
Ethics generally works on the principles of do no harm. Although research protocols to protect human beings have been in place for a while now, the pervasiveness of multiple types of data and their use make it less clear where the impact on human beings is in...
Sci on the Fly
April 16, 2019
Consent in the context of genetic information: Does it really only belong to you?
“Genetics isn’t just about you. It’s about your family, too.” -- 23andMe Remember the Cambridge Analytica scandal, when Facebook allowed some people’s personal data to be passed to an app called “This Is Your Digital Life” without their consent? Were you one...
Sci on the Fly
April 16, 2019
Living with Environmental Change
Science has the capacity to bring together people, ideas, and solutions across borders, disciplines, sectors, ideologies, and traditions. This was the theme of the 2019 Annual AAAS meeting, with over 120 scientific sessions, lectures, and workshops centered...
Sci on the Fly
August 16, 2019
Tips for the First 90 Days of Your STPF Fellowship
Along with the excitement of starting a new position, comes the anxiety of starting over and “proving yourself”. Whether a seasoned professional or a fresh graduate, we all wonder how to make the most of this new endeavor. The First 90 Days by Michael D...
Sci on the Fly
September 9, 2019
Solving Global Policy Challenges: Five Lessons in Multilateral Negotiation
Editor's note: A version of this blog was also published on the Everyday Matters blog of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Your community, business, or organization is facing a monumental policy challenge requiring a solution. Maybe it is a new regulatory need...
Sci on the Fly
October 2, 2019
Scientists “Ask Not”
This article was originally published on Medium at https://medium.com/@STPF/scientists-ask-not-1be97df04237 (September 25, 2019). It’s been almost 60 years since President John F. Kennedy called on America’s youth to pick up the torch and enter public service...
