George "Jay" Keyworth never fit the traditional mold of the modern presidential science adviser. Except for his background as a physicist, the young,
straight-talking conservative who served President Ronald Reagan was a far cry from the seasoned, blend-into-the-background men (there's never been a woman
in the job) who held the portfolio for Democratic Presidents Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama.
This week, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) invited four past and present presidential science advisers to explore the challenges of communicating
science to their bosses, peers, politicians, and the public. The 2-day symposium was the
first public event held in the renovated National Academies’ headquarters across from the National Mall in downtown Washington, D.C.
But Keyworth wasn't on stage. Instead, the panel consisted of only Democrats—current occupant John Holdren, Frank Press (who served President Carter),
and John Gibbons and Neal Lane (who both served President Clinton). And while the 90-minute conversation had its moments,
one might wonder if Keyworth's absence was related to his politics.
NAS President Ralph Cicerone insists that ideology played no role in choosing members of the panel, which he moderated. "We would have loved to have had
Jack participate," says Cicerone, referring to the late John Marburger, science adviser to President George W. Bush, who died last summer. But when pressed
to explain why the academy didn’t aim for a more bipartisan tone by reaching back to Keyworth and the Reagan Administration (President George H. W. Bush’s
science adviser, D. Allan Bromley, died in 2005) Cicerone demurred.
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