Over the last decade, national and international scientific organizations
have become increasingly engaged in considering how to respond to the
biosecurity implications of developments in the life sciences and in assessing
trends in science and technology (S&T) relevant to biological and chemical
weapons nonproliferation. The latest example is an international workshop,
Trends in Science and Technology Relevant to the Biological Weapons
Convention, held October 31 - November 3, 2010 at the Institute of
Biophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing.
Life Sciences and Related Fields summarizes the workshop, plenary, and
breakout discussion sessions held during this convention. Given the immense
diversity of current research and development, the report is only able to
provide an overview of the areas of science and technology the committee
believes are potentially relevant to the future of the Biological and Toxic
Weapons Convention (BWC), although there is an effort to identify areas that
seemed particularly ripe for further exploration and analysis. The report offers
findings and conclusions organized around three fundamental and frequently cited
trends in S&T that affect the scope and operation of the convention
- The rapid pace of change in the life sciences and related fields;
- The increasing diffusion of life sciences research capacity and its applications, both internationally and beyond traditional research institutions; and
- The extent to which additional scientific and technical disciplines beyond biology are increasingly involved in life sciences research.
The report does not make recommendations about policy options to respond to
the implications of the identified trends. The choice of such responses rests
with the 164 States Parties to the Convention, who must take into account
multiple factors beyond the project's focus on the state of the science.
Committee on Trends in Science and Technology Relevant to the Biological Weapons
Convention: An International Workshop; National Research Council; in cooperation
with Chinese Academy of Sciences, IAP The Global Network of Science Academies;
International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; International Union
of Microbiological Sciences
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