Office C of Science presents its first reports after three years of waiting

by time news

After a three-year wait since the Congress of Deputies gave the green light to its creation, the Congressional Office of Science and Technology of Deputies, known as ‘Office C’, presented its first four reports on Monday. Prepared by independent experts, the documents refer to such hot topics as green hydrogen, artificial intelligence and health, advances in cancer treatment and cybersecurity.

The President of the Congress of Deputies, Meritxell Batet, has been in charge of presiding over the act. «Science has always been a vector of our progress. The world is what it is regardless of what each one may believe about it, therefore, accessing the scientific knowledge available at all times is essential if we want the measures and actions promoted from politics to make more sense”, she pointed out. .

This was stated by Batet this Monday during his speech in the Lower House at the Science Week presentation ceremony, in which the first four reports prepared by Office C.

Office C, as Batet has explained, prepares reports that collect scientific evidence on “issues of interest” for Parliament. The result of an agreement with the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT), it aims to emulate the stable teams that are a tradition in more than twenty countries around the world. According to its creators, its most obvious inspiration is the UK Parliament POSTa group of experts who have been advising different projects for more than 30 years.

The proposal of topics comes from the advisory council of the Office, of which the main organizations and research centers in Spain are a part, and the Table of Congress determines from among the proposed topics those on which the reports will be made. «The objective is to connect two worlds that are often separated, that of politics and the scientific world». The deputies will be able to see “first-hand” how science works, but researchers will also have the opportunity to see first-hand the work of citizen representatives.

The first four reports presented this Monday address green hydrogen as a fuel; artificial intelligence and health; advances in cancer treatment; and cybersecurity.

Reports without concrete measures

The reports do not indicate specific measures, although some possible actions are outlined. For example, the report on green hydrogen talks about an “incipient” industry in which our country is in an advantageous position: “Spain has a large capacity for low-cost renewable energy generation, which favors its position as one of the European countries with the greatest potential producer and exporter of green hydrogen, “says the report.

In the document on ‘Advances in the treatment of cancer’, the incidence of this pathology in our country is noted and it is stated that “40% of tumors could be prevented if risk factors are reduced”. For its part, the report on artificial intelligence talks about the hopes that this technology will achieve in different areas, especially in health, although it acknowledges that “clinical implementation or in prevention and global health systems is still scarce due to social, technical and regulatory challenges.

Finally, the writing on cybersecurity indicates that it is a central and necessary issue “for the economic and social development of Spain and to defend the freedom and fundamental rights of citizens.”

«Progress is always the sum of science and politics, which is why it is so important that our parliaments are in the best conditions to integrate both. With Office C, the Congress of Deputies is in a better position to carry out its functions taking scientific evidence into account,” concluded Batet.

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