As the Nation's primary supporter of research in the physical sciences the DOE Office of Science led the way in creating a unique system of large-scale specialized often one-of-a-kind facilities for scientific discovery.

Since coming to Congress I have been advocating for increased resources for research in the physical sciences and for the Department of Energy Office of Science in particular.

I could write historical fiction or science fiction or a mystery but since I find it fascinating to research the clues of some little know period and develop a story based on that I will probably continue to do it.

I have to do more close research and fact checking for the science fiction. This is not however to say that writing good fantasy does not involve doing good research.

Life science research can be done on multiple platforms. Since we have a very small number of people flying into space the more people you have the better.

It's such a long mission and we get to spend so much time in space... we're doing such exciting research. And I don't want to overemphasize the life science research but as a physician the life science research that we're doing is extremely exciting.

At a time when science plays such a powerful role in the life of society when the destiny of the whole of mankind may hinge on the results of scientific research it is incumbent on all scientists to be fully conscious of that role and conduct themselves accordingly.

I got to spend all of my time every day at work reading and editing papers about cutting-edge technical research and getting paid for it. Then I'd go home at night and turn what I learned into science fiction stories.

Now Venus is an extremely hostile environment and as such presents a lot of challenges for a science fiction author who wants to create life there. However as I began to research it more thoroughly I found myself intrigued by the possibilities the world offers.

Science fiction has its own history its own legacy of what's been done what's been superseded what's so much part of the furniture it's practically part of the fabric now what's become no more than a joke... and so on. It's just plain foolish as well as comically arrogant to ignore all this to fail to do the most basic research.