Biofuel producers in Western Canada will soon be able to purify and convert raw glycerol more cost-effectively thanks to an investment of $538,542, announced recently by the Honourable Michelle Rempel, Minister of State for Western Economic Diversification.

Problem: A variety of factors can result in obsolete laboratory equipment and R&D devices. Project
completion, equipment upgrade, lab closure, and downsizing all create surplus pharmaceutical assets
no longer required in the same capacity—or at all. Given budget restrictions and the importance placed
on environmentally-sound business practices, organizations can’t afford to allow surplus assets to lie
idle or dispose of them without thought to the process. Surplus requires an innovative and sustainable
process that supports strategic business goals.

$2.2B spent on medical, science, engineering research in FY2013.

When looking at best practices for running a lab, things as seemingly diverse as staff development and retention, inventory management, procurement, and efficient use of training spends, need to be looked at together. After all, equipment is only as good as the staff who uses it and your staff is only as good as their training.

The flow of federal research funding to Brown University is only now starting to recover from the 2013 federal sequestration. As a result of the sequester, the total pool of research funds at the University decreased by 13.7 percent between 2013 and 2014, said Vice President for Research David Savitz, but funding for new research proposals in the first half of fiscal year 2015 is up significantly — about 30 percent — from 2014.

Federal research dollars are needlessly wasted as scientists spend more and more of their time trying to recoup operational costs.

The folks from M2 Scientifics share some tips, in no particular order, for maximizing your lab's budget.

Good news for laboratory supervisors–their position has made CNN Money’s top 10 list of quickest-growing jobs in America, released Jan. 27.

The University of Wisonsin-Madison said in a statement that the lab was not closed due to animal rights activists.

Melvin Gordon, longtime CEO of Chicago-based Tootsie Roll Industries, died this week at the age of 95. He ran the candy maker for more than 50 years and never technically retired, becoming the oldest serving CEO of any business listed on either U.S. stock exchange. 

Clemson University researchers Alex Feltus and Kuang-Ching Wang are part of a team of scientists that received a $1.4 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to help meet the growing needs of the data-driven genomic science community.

With Republicans now at the helm, Congress is gearing up to pursue a legislative agenda with potentially profound implications for science and how it informs policies on the environment, energy, health and agriculture.