[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 181 (Friday, December 16, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1720]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   RECOGNIZING SOUTHERN RESEARCH FOR 75 YEARS OF SERVING OUR NATION 
                     THROUGH SCIENCE AND INNOVATION

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. TERRI A. SEWELL

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, December 16, 2016

  Ms. SEWELL of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, today I am proud to recognize 
Southern Research, a crown jewel of scientific and engineering research 
and innovation headquartered in the 7th District of Alabama, on its 
75th Anniversary.
   Throughout its 75-year history, Southern Research's scientists and 
researchers have been extraordinary stewards of the federal and private 
funds they have earned to solve our nation's most pressing challenges, 
including finding cancer cures, fighting infectious diseases, 
supporting our nation's defense, protecting our environment, and 
creating clean energy technologies, among many others.
   Since 1941, the researchers and scientists at Southern Research have 
performed work on behalf of countless private and government 
organizations, including the National Cancer Institute, National 
Institutes of Health, the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. 
Department of Commerce, the U.S. Department of Energy, NASA, and others 
in the healthcare, aerospace, and utility industries, in seeking to 
resolve the world's greatest challenges.
   Southern Research is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama and today, 
hires nearly 500 scientists and engineers working in laboratories and 
offices in Wilsonville and Huntsville, Alabama; Frederick, Maryland; 
Durham, North Carolina; Houston, Texas; and Cartersville, Georgia.
   Southern Research's drug development record, particularly for FDA-
approved anticancer drugs, rivals any other nonprofit research 
organization in the United States. Today, Southern Research is 
developing 18 drugs to combat various forms of cancer, ALS, 
Alzheimer's, diabetes, kidney disease, Parkinson's and tuberculosis, 
among others. The drug development division also has an outstanding and 
notable record of achievement in infectious diseases and vaccine 
development, particularly work in HIV/AIDS, and mosquito borne viruses, 
such as Zika.
   Southern Research has evaluated roughly half of the 200 FDA-approved 
cancer drugs on the market today and has successfully discovered seven 
of them. One of these drugs is Clofarabine, which was given FDA 
approval in 2004 and is used in the treatment of pediatric leukemia. It 
is currently being used to treat children not only at Children's 
Hospital of Alabama in Birmingham but at hospitals around the world.
   In addition to drug discovery and development, Southern Research has 
a long history of technology development in engineering, including work 
on Prompt Global Strike and an aerial engineering system used by NASA 
to capture full motion high definition video of rocket launches.
   The scientists in the Energy and Environment division at Southern 
Research are at the forefront of work to produce cleaner energy and 
water, develop new sources of energy, and drive innovation that 
addresses climate change and coincides with the Clean Tech Revolution 
nationally.
   It is clear the investments our federal government has made in 
Southern Research are dwarfed by the returns our nation and world have 
received from the achievements this prestigious research organization 
has made in its four divisions: Drug Discovery, Drug Development, 
Engineering, and Energy and Environment.
   The people of Southern Research, from its current president and CEO, 
Art Tipton, to all of the visionaries who have worked tirelessly in its 
labs and offices over the past 75 years, are to be commended on this 
tremendous occasion. The feats they have achieved, through the legacy 
of Southern Research's founder, Tom Martin, have benefitted not only 
the South, but the entire nation and world.
   It is a privilege and honor to represent Southern Research in 
Congress. I extend not only my congratulations on 75 years of 
groundbreaking accomplishments, but my sincere gratitude to the 
remarkable people of Southern Research for the work they have done to 
improve the lives of countless people across the world through research 
and innovation over the past 75 years.

                          ____________________