[Sigiii-l] U.S. National Academies Provide Free Scientific Information toNational Academies Provide Free Scientific Information toU.S. National Academies Provide Free Scientific Information to Developing Nations

[Michel J. Menou]

Noted in Scidev news.
Michel

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National Academies

Date: April 5, 2004
Contacts: Vanee Vines, Media Relations Officer
Heather McDonald, Media Relations Assistant
Office of News and Public Information
202-334-2138; e-mail <news at nas.edu>

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The National Academies Provide Free Scientific Information to
Developing Nations

WASHINGTON – The National Academies now offer free online access in
more than 100 developing countries to the reports of the Academies, as
well as to journal articles from the Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences (PNAS). The goal is to help developing countries
tackle challenges such as disease, hunger, and economic transition
with enhanced scientific knowledge.

"Elevating global science and technology capacity is critical because
of a growing gap between industrialized nations and the developing
world in the formation and use of new technologies," said Bruce
Alberts, president of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. "As
industrialized nations with financial resources and a trained
scientific work force exploit new knowledge and technologies more
intensively, developing countries that lag in S&T capacity fall
further and further behind."

This National Academies initiative stems from heightened interest
among scientists around the world in the institution's work and in
scientific and technical information in general. The U.S. National
Academy of Sciences is a member of the InterAcademy Panel (IAP), a
worldwide network of 90 science academies that counsel governments and
everyday citizens on major global issues such as sustainable
development and infectious disease. The IAP has identified equitable
access to scientific information and bridging the "digital divide" as
major priorities. And it designated April as the time to begin setting
and implementing national science agendas that were recommended in a
major report issued by the IAP's InterAcademy Council in February at
the United Nations. The report, Inventing a Better Future: A Strategy
for Building Worldwide Capacities in Science and Technology, is
available online at <http://www.interacademycouncil.net/streport>.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences is a multidisciplinary
journal that covers the biological, physical, and social sciences. It
is printed weekly and publishes new content online each business day.
Ranked by the Institute for Scientific Information as one of the
world's most-cited scientific serials, PNAS Online receives more than
1 million hits each week. Since January 2002, PNAS has offered
developing countries free online access to the research articles,
commentaries, and reviews published in the journal, which are now
available free of charge in more than 130 countries, listed at
<http://www.pnas.org/misc/faq.shtml#developing>. This access allows
international scholars and others to benefit from this scientific
information immediately.

The National Academies Press (NAP) now allows readers in most
developing countries to obtain Academies reports free from the NAP Web
site in portable document format (PDF). Eligible nations are listed at
<http://www.nap.edu/info/faq dc pdf.html>. In the first two months of
this year, NAP gave away 15,600 books and 6,500 individual chapters to
people in these nations. In addition, NAP's site will soon feature
special "subject portals" on topics such as drought and water
sciences, which are of particular interest in the developing world.

Goverdhan Mehta -- co-chair of the InterAcademy Council,
president-elect of the International Council for Science, and former
president of the Indian National Science Academy -- considers the
National Academies' outreach efforts to be invaluable. "Developing
nations in particular cannot afford to be without access to credible,
independent scientific and technological information," he said.

The National Academies are private, nonprofit institutions that
provide science, technology, and health policy advice under a
congressional charter.