NEAL LANE

With the nation on the verge of elections, physicist, college administrator and former National Science Foundation Director Neal Lane spoke on Monday, October 6, on "Why Science Matters: A Message for Our Future President." The talk was part of Florida State University's Pathways of Excellence Distinguished Lecture Series.

Lane's lecture focused on the reality that, in the words of Norman R. Augustine, former head of Lockheed Martin Corporation, "The solution to many of America's, and the world's, greatest challenges depends on advancements in science and technology--including providing energy, preserving the environment, supplying food and water, ensuring physical security, providing health care, and improving the global standard of living."

Lane was director of the National Science Foundation and a member (ex officio) of the National Science Board from October 1993 to August 1998. He subsequently served as Assistant to the President for Science and Technology and director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy from August 1998 to January 2001.

Lane is the Malcolm Gillis University Professor and a senior fellow of the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University in Houston. He was trained as a physicist at the University of Oklahoma. The bulk of his career was spent at Rice, where he rose through the ranks from assistant professor to provost of the university.

He also has written and lectured extensively in the areas of theoretical atomic and molecular physics, as well as science and technology policy.

According to W. Ross Ellington, associate vice president for research and Greenberg professor of biological science, who heads the Pathways initiative, Lane's lecture was aimed at the broader university community because innovations in science and technology dramatically impact national competitiveness and our ability to invest in improving the quality of life in this country.

"We are excited that we could host Neal Lane as our second Pathways of Excellence Distinguished Lecturer," Ellington said. "Through hiring new faculty members in interdisciplinary clusters, investing in new facilities and enhancing our graduate programs, Pathways of Excellence is dedicated to building Florida State's standing as one of the country's top research and graduate education initiatives.

"Dr. Lane's lecture reflected the importance of our approach, which emphasizes enhancements to science and technology disciplines while at the same time contributing to our traditional strengths in the arts, humanities and social sciences."