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Oregon House Passes Preemptive Health Reform Bills
The Oregon House of Representatives passed two health reform bills that a leading Democratic lawmakers says will help Oregon "fit into whatever happens on the national scale," the Portland Oregonian reports. One bill would tax insurers and hospitals more than $300 million over two years to provide coverage to an additional 115,000 Oregonians. These funds would "leverage nearly $1 billion in federal Medicaid matching money." The second measure would create an Oregon Health Authority to replace an existing Department of Human Services, but with a broader mandate to track health care claims data and harness consolidated purchasing power to "pressure insurers and hospitals to use evidence based care." State officials say the measure "would create an estimated 3,600 high-paying jobs in hospitals, medical clinics and other areas" (Graves, 6/8).

American Society Of Hematology Awards Grants To Encourage Novel Medical Training Programs
The American Society of Hematology (ASH) announces that Ellis J. Neufeld, MD, PhD, of Harvard Medical School, Thomas Shea, MD, of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Alvin Schmaier, MD, of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, will each receive ASH"s Alternative Training Pathway Grant this July. The grant is awarded to selected training program directors to encourage the development and implementation of novel hematology-related training programs in recognition of the need for more clinicians and clinical/translational researchers in hematology-related disciplines.
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Opinion Pieces React To Obama's Nomination Of Sotomayor To Supreme Court
Several newspapers on Wednesday included editorials and opinion pieces on President Obama"s nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. Summaries appear below. ~New York Times: Obama "seems to have made an inspired choice" in selecting Sotomayor as his nominee because she "has an impressive judicial record, a stellar academic background and a compelling life story," a Times editorial states. According to the editorial, "Based on what we know now, the Senate should confirm her so she can join the court when it begins its new term in October." The editorial notes that, "Conservative activists have already begun trying to paint Judge Sotomayor as a liberal ideologue, but her carefully reasoned, fact-based decisions indicate otherwise." The editorial continues, "If Judge Sotomayor joins the court, it will be a special point of pride for Hispanic-Americans," and "will also bring the paltry number of female justices back to two." It adds, "Judge Sotomayor, though, is more than just a distinguished member of two underrepresented groups. She is an accomplished lawyer and judge, who could become an extraordinary Supreme Court Justice" (New York Times, 5/27).~Gerard Magliocca, New York Times: In addition to sharing Obama"s "experience and intellect," Sotomayor "also mirror"s the president"s measured temperament," Magliocca, a law professor at Indiana University, writes in a Times opinion piece. Magliocca writes that he has known Sotomayor for 13 years and notes that although he is a conservative and has at times been "at odds with" Sotomayor professionally, he does not dispute her qualifications. According to Magliocca, "For those of us who think that intellectual rigor and fairness are the crucial factors" to be a Supreme Court justice, "no matter which party the president hails from, there is no question that Judge Sotomayor should be confirmed" (Magliocca, New York Times, 5/27).~USA Today: Upon hearing that Sotomayor was Obama"s nominee, Republican critics "quickly insisted that the Senate assure itself that Sotomayor would not make rulings based on her "personal politics, feelings and preferences,"" a USA Today editorial states. According to the editorial, "To some extent, the entire argument is overblown. People inevitably are the product of their experiences, and they can hardly shed their history and character at the courthouse door." The editorial continues, "That is why the court is enriched by having an eclectic mix of justices who can bring differing perspectives to bear on the case at hand." The editorial concludes, "Sotomayor"s education and experience make her far more than a political twofer who allowed Obama to check the "female" and "Hispanic" boxes. But there"s a limit to the application of empathy and heritage to the law, and her confirmation hearings will be an opportunity for her to spell out exactly where she believes that line falls," (USA Today, 5/27).~ Steven Waldman, Wall Street Journal: "Everyone seems to assume" that Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor is "ardently for abortion rights," but there is "stunningly little information about her abortion views -- and what we do know hardly paints her as a pro-choice activist," Waldman, president and editor-in-chief of Beliefnet.com and author of "Founding Faith," writes in a Journal opinion piece. He continues that Sotomayor has ruled only on three cases "indirectly related to abortion," and each time ruled in a way preferred by abortion-rights opponents, "albeit for reasons unrelated to the merits of abortion." Although Sotomayor"s decisions in the cases were related "to matters of constitutional law and criminal procedure, ... at a minimum, it showed that whatever her abortion views, it didn"t produce some powerful inclination against the pro-life position," according to Waldman. "Now all of this might not mean anything. She may prove to be a strong advocate of Roe v. Wade. But it"s telling that the abortion interest groups took sides without knowing anything about her abortion
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Algebra Adds Value To Mathematical Biology Education

As mathematics continues to become an increasingly important component in undergraduate biology programs, a more comprehensive understanding of the use of algebraic models is needed by the next generation of biologists to facilitate new advances in the life sciences, according to researchers at Sweet Briar College and the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute (VBI) at Virginia Tech. In the paper, "Mathematical Biology Education: Beyond Calculus," which is featured in the July 31, 2009 issue of Science, VBI Professor Reinhard Laubenbacher and Sweet Briar College Mathematical Sciences Professor Raina Robeva highlight algebraic models as one of the diverse mathematical tools needed in the professional development of up-and-coming life scientists. Despite this critical need, the authors explain, algebraic models have played a less substantial role in undergraduate curricula than other methods. Future generations of biologists will routinely use mathematical and computational approaches to develop and frame hypotheses, design experiments, and analyze results. Sound mathematical models are essential for this purpose and are currently used in the field of systems biology to understand complex biological networks. Two types of mathematical models, in particular, have been successfully used in biology to reproduce network structure and dynamics: Continuous-time models derived from differential equations (DE models) focus on the kinetics of biochemical reactions, while discrete-time algebraic models built from functions of finite-state variables focus on the logic of the connections of network variables. According to Laubenbacher and Robeva, while DE models have been included more often in undergraduate curricula integrating mathematics and biology, algebraic models should also be viewed as an important training component for students at all education levels. "Discrete-time algebraic models created from finite-state variables, such as Boolean networks, are increasingly being used to model a variety of biochemical networks, including metabolic, gene regulatory, and signal transduction networks," says Laubenbacher. "Often, researchers do not have enough of the information required to build detailed quantitative models. Algebraic models need less information about the system to be modeled, making them useful for instances where quantitative information may be missing. All the work that goes into building them can then be used to construct detailed kinetic models, when additional information becomes available. In addition, algebraic models are much more intuitive than differential equations models, which makes them more easily accessible to life scientists." Using algebraic models is a relatively quick, easy and reliable way for students to integrate mathematical modeling into their life sciences coursework. Creating algebraic models of biochemical networks requires only a modest mathematical background, which is usually provided in a college algebra course. Without the complexities involved in teaching students how to construct more complicated models, algebraic models make the introduction of mathematical modeling into life sciences courses more accessible for faculty members as well. According to Robeva, "The exciting thing about algebraic models from an educational perspective is that they highlight aspects of modern-day biology and can easily fit in both the biology and mathematics curricula. At the introductory level, they provide a quick path for introducing biology students to constructing and using mathematical models in the context of contemporary problems such as gene regulation. At the more advanced level, the general study and analysis of such models often require sophisticated mathematical theories. This makes them perfect for inclusion into mathematics courses, where the biology can provide a meaningful framework for many of the abstract structures. As educators, we should actively be looking for the best ways to seize this opportunity for advancing mathematical biology." Susan Bland Virginia Tech


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