
34. John Holdren and Steven Chu
for putting cutting-edge science back into power.
white house science czar | Washington // Energy Secretary | physicist | Washington
George W. Bush wasn't known for his love of science. In the Obama age, however, the scientists are in charge. As energy secretary, Nobel Prize-winning physicist Chu has transformed his office into a bully pulpit, pushing for the creation of government incentives for private scientific research into alternative energy sources. In this way, he hopes to use the profit motive to encourage the development of the next generation of energy-saving technology, sparking what he calls a "new Industrial Revolution." Holdren, a nuclear physicist by training, directs the White House's Office of Science and Technology Policy and shares his boss's passion for arms control. He has aggressively supported a reduction of the United States' nuclear stockpiles and has said the elimination of nuclear weapons "is not only a practical but a legal and moral necessity."
John Holdren:
Reading List: Innovation Nation, by John Kao; A Life Decoded, by J. Craig Venter; Science, Truth, and Democracy, by Philip Kitcher; Unscientific America, by Chris Mooney and Sheril Kirshenbaum; Stirring It Up: How to Make Money and Save the World, by Gary Hirshberg.