"I'm really pleased that they're planning to do this," she said.

Branscomb cited the "sharply falling number" of women and minorities involved in science and technology, and emphasized that the reason for this decline, while frequently debated, is not yet known.

"The fact that it's not easy to explain tells me that we don't really understand the issue of why science is not more diverse in its participants," he said.

Branscomb, along with other members of the group's coordinating committee, is a well-known pioneer of research efforts involving diversity in science and technology.

Gerhard Sonnert, a physics research assistant and a member of the working group's coordinating committee, said he was excited by the opportunity to discuss issues like "Jeffersonian science," a combination of research science and social awareness.

One of the theory's most interesting applications, Sonnert said, is its impact on women and minorities, who appear to be detached from the world of science not because of a lack of ability but because "to women and minorities, the image of science is an ivory tower pursuit that has nothing to do with real life."

Jeffersonian science, however, calls for a broader approach to basic research science which also encompasses social objectives, and thus might be more enticing to women and minorities, he said.