US government has recently created a President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST), and this council includes some high-profile people such as AMD CEO Dr. Lisa Su joins NVIDIA Chief Scientist Dr. William Dally, Microsoft Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Eric Horvitz, & Google Cloud Chief Information Security Officer Phil Venables. The council’s major task is to help advise the president “on policy matters where the understanding of science, technology, and innovation is key.”
Drawing from the nation’s most talented and accomplished individuals, President Biden’s PCAST includes 20 elected members of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, five MacArthur “Genius” Fellows, two former Cabinet secretaries, and two Nobel laureates. Its members include experts in astrophysics and agriculture, biochemistry and computer engineering, ecology and entrepreneurship, immunology and nanotechnology, neuroscience and national security, social science and cybersecurity, and more.
The members represent the most diverse PCAST in U.S. history. PCAST is traditionally co-chaired by the President’s Science Advisor and 1-2 external co-chairs; since its inception in 1957, no women have ever served as co-chairs. President Biden’s PCAST has two women co-chairs. And, this PCAST reflects the President’s commitment to building an Administration that truly looks like America: for the first time, women make up half of PCAST, and people of color and immigrants make up more than one-third of PCAST. Its diversity will help the council bring to bear a wide range of perspectives to address the nation’s most pressing opportunities and challenges, so that science, technology, and engineering benefit all Americans.
The President’s Council on Advisors of Science and Technology is lead by California Institute of Technology’s Dr. Frances Arnold, MIT’s Dr. Maria Zuber, and White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Dr. Eric Lander.
AMD’s CEO, Dr. Lisa Su, along with 30 other members from various organizations, companies, and leading universities about the fields of science and technology, will be responsible for providing US President Biden with advice that will help the country with key scientific discussions, including:
What can we learn from the pandemic about what is possible—or what ought to be possible— to address the widest range of needs related to our public health?
- How can breakthroughs in science and technology create powerful new solutions to address climate change—propelling market-driven change, jump-starting economic growth, improving health, and growing jobs, especially in communities that have been left behind?
- How can the United States ensure that it is the world leader in the technologies and industries of the future that will be critical to our economic prosperity and national security, especially in competition with China?
- How can we guarantee that the fruits of science and technology are fully shared across America and among all Americans?
- How can we ensure the long-term health of science and technology in our nation?
The PCAST announcement also states that the council members are appointees of the President, and will be “reimbursed only for travel, meals, and accommodations following government regulations,” meaning that no council member will be able to profit off of the designated position that they are held.
As we know, President Biden joined the oval office at a time where the country was facing severe effects from the pandemic, and the president has also had to fight against problems like a global pandemic, continued chip shortages affecting all industries, cryptocurrency rules, and regulations, and continued latent hostility with China.
