The Art and Power of Policy

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The Art and Power of Policy
Melody Brown Burkins, Ph.D. Associate
Dean College of Engineering and Mathematical
Sciences University of Vermont EMERGEneering 2008
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the policy system
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• What You Want
• To influence or inform
• Existing policy
• Future policy

• Why
• Correct existing bias or disadvantage
• Create opportunity
• Develop or incentivize new markets

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fundamentals
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relationships
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Professionalism and Responsiveness
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Good Information
Professionalism and Responsiveness
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Respect
Good Information
Professionalism and Responsiveness
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Trust
Respect
Good Information
Professionalism and Responsiveness
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Good Information
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clear
concise
technically excellent
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good information
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contextualized information
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Cardinal Rules

• Convey That You Understand Something about
  Congress

• Understand Fundamentals of the Congressional
  Decision-making System

• Don't Convey Negative Attitudes about Politics
  and Politicians

www.aaas.org

• Keep the "Bottom Line" in Mind

• Make It Easy for Those in Congress to Help You

• Do Your Homework on the Issue or Problem
• It's obvious that you should know the technical
  side of your issue. Not as obvious, perhaps, is
  the importance of translating your message into
  terms relevant to Congress

• Timing Is Vital

• Don't Underestimate the Role of Staff in Congress

• Remember that Members and Staff Are Mostly
  Generalists

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legislative context
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www.thomas.loc.gov
wind
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authorization
states eligible for up to 50m in grants for
wind power if and when funding is made available
appropriation
states will receive up to 50m in grants for
wind power in the next fiscal year
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House
Senate
law
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House
Senate
Conference
Executive
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Wind Energy and the Grid
Vermonts Economy Needs HR 1772

• Sponsor Name
• Committee Name Chair
• Likely Timing
• Authorization or Appropriation
• Congressional cosponsors
• In-state supportive groups (public and private)
• Out-of-state supportive groups (public and
  private)
• Economic value to local interests
• Economic value to national interests
• Cost of legislation
• Connection to other supported initiatives
• Estimated costs of inaction

Ipsum dolorata wind power sept rondil gen libera
calep exce indo walum ger. Memo soldit gravi
emba lamri sog. Ipsum dolorata wind power sept
rondil gen libera calep exce indo walum ger.
Memo soldit gravi emba lamri sog
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information advantage
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Vermonts Economy Needs HR 1772

• Sponsor Name
• Committee Name Chair
• Likely Timing
• Authorization or Appropriation
• Congressional cosponsors

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21st 22nd century policies
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October 17, 2008 AAAS This Week in Science
e-Newsletter Toward Biological Manipulation What
if one could make and program molecule-sized
machines that could process information within a
living cell without relying on any cell-specific
machinery? The applications in medicine alone
seem vast. Win and Smolke (p. 456 see the
Perspective by Shapiro and Gil) accomplish a step
in this direction by building modular devices out
of RNA that can perform basic Boolean logic
functions. They used RNA aptamers
(oligonucleotide molecules that bind a particular
target molecule with high affinity)--which acted
as sensors -- combined with a ribozyme component
(a catalytically active RNA molecule)--which
controlled gene expression by cleaving mRNA
transcripts. The device was then tethered to the
3 untranslated region of a target gene and
expressed in yeast cells. The RNA molecules can
form distinct stem and loop structures that
determine whether the ribozyme, and hence
transcription of a target gene, is activated.
The authors constructed logic gates, for
example, an "AND" gate that activates
transcription only when two stimuli are present,
but not when one or neither stimulus is detected.
Because the machines are made of molecules with
naturally occurring counterparts in cells, the
authors propose that it might be possible to use
them to manipulate biological systems.
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adaptive networks
privacy
self-aware machines
freedom of expression
social and economic challenge and opportunity of
instantaneous information
self-assembling biomaterials
dataveillance
unintended consequences of prediction
contagion
federal RD investments
www accountability
innovation and competitiveness
computing infrastructure economics
ethics and protocols
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holistic science engineering approach
contextualized information informed by complex
systems
more informed and effective policies