Climate change is occurring, is caused largely by human activities, and poses significant risks for–and in many cases is already affecting–a broad range of human and natural systems. The compelling case for these conclusions is provided in Advancing the…

Across the United States, impacts of climate change are already evident. Heat waves have become more frequent and intense, cold extremes have become less frequent, and patterns of rainfall are likely changing. The proportion of precipitation that falls as…

Climate change, driven by the increasing concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, poses serious, wide-ranging threats to human societies and natural ecosystems around the world. The largest overall source of greenhouse gas emissions is the burning…

Global climate change is one of America’s most significant long-term policy challenges. Human activity–especially the use of fossil fuels, industrial processes, livestock production, waste disposal, and land use change–is affecting global average…

This book presents a summary of the Workshop on Public Response to Alerts and Warnings on Mobile Devices: Current Knowledge and Research Gaps, held April 13 and 14, 2010, in Washington, D.C., under the auspices of the National Research Council’s Committee on…

TRB Special Report 304: How We Travel: A Sustainable National Program for Travel Data assesses the current state of travel data at the federal, state, and local levels and defines an achievable and sustainable travel data system that could…

High school graduation and dropout rates have long been used as indicators of educational system productivity and effectiveness and of social and economic well being. While determining these rates may seem like a straightforward task, their calculation is in…

Formaldehyde is ubiquitous in indoor and outdoor air, and everyone is exposed to formaldehyde at some concentration daily. Formaldehyde is used to produce a wide array of products, particularly building materials; it is emitted from many sources, including…

Problems contacting emergency services and delayed assistance are not unusual when incidents occur in rural areas, and the consequences can be devastating, particularly with mass casualty incidents. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) Forum on Medical and Public Health Preparedness…

The intelligence community (IC) plays an essential role in the national security of the United States. Decision makers rely on IC analyses and predictions to reduce uncertainty and to provide warnings about everything from international diplomatic relations…

Natural disasters–including hurricanes, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and floods–caused over 220,000 deaths worldwide in the first half of 2010 and wreaked havoc on homes, buildings, and the environment. To withstand and recover from natural and…

Thirty years ago federal policy underwent a major change through the Bayh-Dole Act of 1980, which fostered greater uniformity in the way research agencies treat inventions arising from the work they sponsor. Before the Act, if government agencies funded…

For the past three decades, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued a national agenda aimed at improving the health of all Americans over each 10-year span. Under each of these Healthy People initiatives…

Climate change is occurring. It is very likely caused primarily by the emission of greenhouse gases from human activities, and poses significant risks for a range of human and natural systems. And these emissions continue to increase, which will result in…

Practitioners in informal science settings–museums, after-school programs, science and
technology centers, media enterprises, libraries, aquariums, zoos, and botanical gardens–are interested in finding out what learning looks like, how to measure it, and what they can do to ensure that people of all ages and from different backgrounds and cultures have a positive learning experience. Read this report free online.

As people, organizations, and governments move to limit the magnitude of climate change and respond to its impacts, demand for information to support climate-related decisions has grown rapidly.This panel report calls on the federal government to take the lead in coordinating climate-related information dissemination and management.

Across the United States, the impacts of climate change are already in evidence and projected future impacts will have significant consequences.The panel report calls for a national adaptation strategy to support and coordinate a decentralized network of adaptation efforts.

Pants on Fire: How can we know for certain when someone is up to no good? Most people will say, give them a lie detector test. But, is it truly the best, most reliable means? This podcast reviews the reality of the lie detector test based on the conclusions of the report, The Polygraph and Lie Detection.

Show Me the (Fake) Money: The rapid pace at which digital printing is advancing is posing a very serious challenge to the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Bureau of Printing (BEP). The BEP needs to stay ahead of the evolving counterfeiting threats to U.S. currency. This podcast explores both the history of counterfeiting and the threat it poses today.

Thirsty for Energy: Biofuels and Water: Because of a strong U.S. national interest in greater energy independence, biofuels have become important liquid transportation fuels and are likely to remain so for the foreseeable future. This podcast explores the reality of biofuels, including their effect on our water supply.

This report summarizes some of the more than 230 studies completed by the Academies in 2010. In every study, our expert panels and peer reviewers provide unbiased, fact-based advice.

Outbreaks of foodborne illness caused by ground beef have made headlines in the past few years but it’s likely that many of these illnesses could have been avoided by using safe food-handling practices. This fact sheet explains the dangers of ground beef and outlines how to make sure it is safe to eat.

Emissions of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels have ushered in a new epoch during which human activities will largely determine the evolution of Earth’s climate. This booklet, based on the National Research Council’s report Climate Stabilization Targets outlines the scientific information that makes it clear that emission reductions today matter in determining impacts that will be experienced over the next few decades and into the coming centuries and millennia.

Reflecting recent scientific developments and new regulations, a new edition of Prudent Practices provides updated guidelines for the safe handling, storage and disposal of hazardous chemicals in the laboratory. Read more in this 4-page report-in-brief.