Biophysical Society Bulletin | November 2019

President’s Message

Officers President

David W. Piston President-Elect Catherine Royer Past-President Angela Gronenborn Secretary Erin Sheets Treasurer Kalina Hristova Council Zev Bryant Linda Columbus Michelle A. Digman Marta Filizola Teresa Giraldez Ruben Gonzalez, Jr. Joseph A. Mindell Anna Moroni Marina Ramirez-Alvarado Jennifer Ross David Stokes Pernilla Wittung-Stafeshede Biophysical Journal Jane Dyson Editor-in-Chief The Biophysicist Sam Safran Editor-in-Chief

to reach consensus almost always arises from different perceptions of feasibility and risk. The fact that different reviewers have different risk tolerance in their evaluations should be a strength of the review process, but by report- ing only average results, this potential strength is lost. To increase the proportion of grant funding that supports innovative, high-risk research, we should use all the information the review- ers are already providing. This would mean awarding some grants based on impact score distributions rather than solely on the aver- age. I wish that I could present a statistical

argument about how best to accomplish this, but the data needed to do so are not freely available from NIH. This would include widths of distributions, the frequency of non-normal distributions, and feedback from review panel chairs and the NIH Scientific Review Officers regarding the perceived risk and innovation of grants with broad and/or non-normal distributions. I hope that we can begin an evidenced-based dialog with the NIH and other funding agencies around the world towards encouraging innovation and risk in our research. — David W. Piston

NOWACCEPTING SUBMISSIONS Accepted articles will be published at no charge if submitted prior to January 1, 2020. For additional information about article types, Instructions to Authors, and to submit, visit www.thebiophysicist.org.

Society Office Jennifer Pesanelli Executive Officer Newsletter Executive Editor Jennifer Pesanelli Managing Editor Beth Staehle

Production Catie Curry Ray Wolfe Proofreader/Copy Editor Laura Phelan The Biophysical Society Newsletter (ISSN 0006-3495) is published eleven times per year, January-December, by the Biophysical Society, 5515 Security Lane, Suite 1110, Rockville, Maryland 20852. Distributed to USA members and other countries at no cost. Cana- dian GST No. 898477062. Postmaster: Send address changes to Biophysical Society, 5515 Security Lane, Suite 1110, Rockville, MD 20852. Copyright © 2019 by the Biophysical Society. Printed in the United States of America. All rights reserved.

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November 2019

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