Our Views: LSU research makes news
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When Discover Magazine published its 2008 list of the Top 100 science stories of the year, two LSU researchers were featured in the tally.
That attention underscores the promise of Louisiana’s flagship university as a center of internationally recognized research, but the news comes as state budget cuts threaten to diminish LSU’s ability to compete in the global marketplace of ideas.
Brent Christner and Mark Batzer, both of whom are expert researchers in the field of biological sciences, conducted research recognized in Discover Magazine’s annual listings.
Christner’s research on rain-making bacteria came in at No. 88. His seminal work in this area has been attracting international attention since February, when he first published an article on the subject in Science, a scientific journal.
“These new findings are changing the way scientists view the role of biology in atmospheric processes,” Christner said. “This adds yet another layer of complexity to what is known about our climate system.”
Batzer made the list at No. 90 for his role in the sequencing and analysis of the platypus genome, which determined the platypus has bird, reptile and mammal ancestors.
Both Batzer and Christner are faculty members in the College of Basic Sciences, which is known for its high level of research productivity.
“Dr. Christner’s and Dr. Batzer’s research is of the highest caliber, and I am particularly pleased that their work is being recognized in this fashion,” the college’s dean, Kevin Carman, said of the faculty members who landed on Discover’s list. “Such a distinction illustrates that they are addressing research questions that are at the leading edge of science, and that their work has relevance to society. I hope I’m stating the obvious in noting that inclusion in such a list is tangible evidence that LSU research is among the best in the world.”
The best way to attract and retain research scientists such as Christner and Batzer is to provide them the resources and facilities they need to perform their work most effectively.
If Louisiana doesn’t invest in its universities — in both good times and bad times — then we risk losing academic brainpower to other states that have made intellectual capital a priority.
That attention underscores the promise of Louisiana’s flagship university as a center of internationally recognized research, but the news comes as state budget cuts threaten to diminish LSU’s ability to compete in the global marketplace of ideas.
Brent Christner and Mark Batzer, both of whom are expert researchers in the field of biological sciences, conducted research recognized in Discover Magazine’s annual listings.
Christner’s research on rain-making bacteria came in at No. 88. His seminal work in this area has been attracting international attention since February, when he first published an article on the subject in Science, a scientific journal.
“These new findings are changing the way scientists view the role of biology in atmospheric processes,” Christner said. “This adds yet another layer of complexity to what is known about our climate system.”
Batzer made the list at No. 90 for his role in the sequencing and analysis of the platypus genome, which determined the platypus has bird, reptile and mammal ancestors.
Both Batzer and Christner are faculty members in the College of Basic Sciences, which is known for its high level of research productivity.
“Dr. Christner’s and Dr. Batzer’s research is of the highest caliber, and I am particularly pleased that their work is being recognized in this fashion,” the college’s dean, Kevin Carman, said of the faculty members who landed on Discover’s list. “Such a distinction illustrates that they are addressing research questions that are at the leading edge of science, and that their work has relevance to society. I hope I’m stating the obvious in noting that inclusion in such a list is tangible evidence that LSU research is among the best in the world.”
The best way to attract and retain research scientists such as Christner and Batzer is to provide them the resources and facilities they need to perform their work most effectively.
If Louisiana doesn’t invest in its universities — in both good times and bad times — then we risk losing academic brainpower to other states that have made intellectual capital a priority.
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