CCST Newsroom

A team of scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) in La Jolla have succeeded in engineering a life form whose genetic material includes an added pair of DNA bases not found in nature. The specially designed bacterium has demonstrated the ability to replicate the artificial DNA bases normally, marking the first known departure from […]

Advanced biofuels have the potential to provide California with economic opportunities while reducing greenhouse gas emissions consistent with the state’s climate and clean air policies. However, the state may not have sufficient incentives in place to attract the private investment to rapidly scale up production, according to a new report by the California Council on […]

A report from the California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) released today envisions a path toward a sustainable water future for California achieved through a system management approach utilizing innovations in science, technology and management. Such an approach would rely on currently available and new science and technology, yielding greater efficiencies and opening new […]

A project which began 13 years ago as an idea conceived by scientists at Caltech and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory has led to the first direct evidence of gravitational waves from ‘cosmic inflation’ in the moments following the Big Bang. It is the strongest confirmation yet of theories describing the universe’s initial period of growth. […]

The California Teacher Advisory Council (Cal TAC) has released the latest in a series of papers discussing the efficacy of digitally enhanced education, exploring what works, for whom, and under what conditions in classroom settings. A CalTAC convened symposium, one in a series supported by the Stephen D. Bechtel Jr. Foundation and the Stuart Foundation, […]

CCST Senior Fellow and former Board member Arthur Bienenstock, Stanford Professor of Applied Physics, Materials Science and Engineering, and Presidential Advisor, has signed on to work with enterprise start-up Morf Media Inc., a company specializing in mobile simulation training. “In many ways, the process of learning really hasn’t changed all that much since the days […]

Stanford University will be partnering with the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in the creation of a new Center for Excellence in Stem Cell Genomics, thanks to a $40 million grant from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM). The center will serve as a focus for collaborative efforts between multiple partner institutions, including UC […]

The California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) begins its 26th year with the addition of four new Council members, bringing new perspective and expertise from academia, the federal research lab, and the private high-tech sector. CCST is an independent, nonpartisan organization dedicated to providing California with sound analyses and reports on science and technology […]

  The fifth class of the California Science and Technology Policy Fellowship Program has begun work in Sacramento, and the program is planning for the next five years. “We are very proud of the legacy this program is building,” said CCST Executive Director Susan Hackwood. “The Science and Technology Policy Fellows are a resource unique […]

The California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) is beginning 2014 with new leadership in both the Board and Council. Effective on January 1, Charles F. Kennel, distinguished professor of Atmospheric Science at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, became CCST Board Chair, and Corey Goodman, managing partner and co-founder of venBio, became Council Chair. “CCST is […]

At the request of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) is conducting an independent scientific review of oil and gas development technologies in California. On Thursday, January 16th at 9am PST, CCST will host a public webinar (instructions for joining the webinar are below). During the webinar, […]

A collaborative high-tech business incubator in Fresno is opening the door for water and energy technology startups in the San Joaquin Valley, working to build a “Blue Tech” community of water-related companies with a national presence similar to Silicon Valley. The Water, Energy and Technology (WET) Center, located at Fresno State University, includes resources such […]

A large collection of NASA climate and Earth science satellite data are being made available through the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud in a novel partnership designed to enhance research and educational opportunities nationwide. To date, several terabytes of data from three satellite and computer modeling datasets have been uploaded to the AWS platform: a […]

Effective this month, the California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) has a new deputy director. Dr. Amber Mace, associate director of the UC Davis Policy Institute for Energy, Environment and the Economy, will bring her experience and expertise leading effective science-policy organizations to the CCST team. In addition to providing strategic advice to the […]

The California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) has released the first report in a new series which analyzes how California can effectively construct a policy framework to help the state meet its ambitious greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction goals over the coming years. The California’s Energy Future – Policy (CEF-P) project follows on CCST’s landmark […]

Four faculty members from California institutions have joined the ranks of Nobel Laureates in 2013, sharing prizes in Medicine and Chemistry. Randy W. Schekman (UC Berkeley) and Thomas Südhof (Stanford University) shared the 2013 Nobel Prize in Medicine with James E. Rothman of Yale University for their research on protein transport in cells, and how […]

The California Legislature has unanimously approved a resolution honoring the California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) for its first 25 years of service to California. Assembly Concurrent Resolution 75 (ACR 75) honors CCST for having “successfully represented California’s science and technology professions at the highest level and providing independent and objective analyses to the […]

Cal TAC brought together education leaders from around California last week to discuss what current research says about the effect of digital teaching and learning platforms, tools, programs and resources. “The role of information technology has shifted from that of an enabler to that of a transforming culture,” said keynote speaker CCST Senior Fellow Mohammad […]

Art Chester has years of experience both as a research scientist and as a manager in a major private research facility. His experience in both the research and research management communities has helped shape an understanding of the importance of bridging the communications gap between specialists and the general community. Chester is using this experience […]

The California Business Roundtable announced the launch of a new interactive online resource for accessing and filtering state-specific economic data. The California Center for Jobs and the Economy (www.centerforjobs.org) allows users to access employment data by region as well as by demographics and industry sectors. “The factual data that the Center distributes is going to […]

California’s Department of Water Resources (DWR) has turned to a trial partnership with NASA to assist in monitoring the vast stretches of levees protecting the Sacramento Delta. The project, “Monitoring Levees and Subsidence in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta”, demonstrated over a three-year period that an airborne radar system is capable of accurately detecting movement and […]