Lander sworn in, challenged to revamp U.S. science, tech policy

Vice President Kamala Harris Wednesday swore in Eric Lander as director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, a role President Joe Biden has elevated to cabinet status, endowing its director with political power and stature. Lander, the first representative of the life sciences to head the office, will also serve as Biden’s science adviser.

Biden has vowed to make science an organizing principle for his administration, and in selecting Lander explicitly referenced the first presidential science adviser, Vannevar Bush, the architect of U.S. post World War II government support for science. ...