Update. Marcia McNutt, president of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (#NASEM), talks about defending US science under #Trump.
nationalacademies.org/news/202…

"First of all, we are working to reach officials in the administration who will be sensitive to the likely impacts of [their] actions on the health, security, economic opportunity, and well-being of all Americans. Second, we are using the contacts here at the Academies and among our members to directly appeal to other individuals who may share some of the administration’s goals. We are working with them to demonstrate how the scientific evidence base suggests some of the tactics the administration is taking now may not lead to the goals that they want to accomplish…The mantra of this administration is, of course, to make America great. Well, science has been a big part of what has made America great, and America can’t be great without great science…For example, we are doing a fast-track study on reducing red tape for researchers that should be useful to the new administration. It could dramatically increase the efficiency of federally supported science…I really encourage members to talk to their members of Congress; as their constituents, they have more impact."

#DefendResearch #USPol #USPolitics

Update. "US science rues ongoing demotion of research under President Trump"
physicsworld.com/a/us-science-…

"In his first cabinet meeting on 26 February, #Trump suggested that officials “use scalpels” when trimming their departments’ spending and personnel – rather than #Musk’s figurative chainsaw. But bosses at the Environmental Protection Agency (#EPA) still plan to cut its budget by about two-thirds…The White House’s attack on #climate science goes beyond just the EPA. In January, the US Department of #Agriculture removed almost all data on climate change from its website…The Trump administration has also barred #NASA’s now former chief scientist Katherine Calvin and members of the State Department from travelling to China for a planning meeting of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Meanwhile, in a speech to African energy ministers in Washington on 7 March, US energy secretary Chris Wright claimed that coal has “transformed our world and made it better”, adding that climate change, while real, is not on his list of the world’s top 10 problems."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics

US science rues ongoing demotion of research under President Trump – Physics World

US science continues to be hit hard by budget and staff cuts

^{No Author (Physics World)}

Update. "#Trump’s next #climate move: Show global warming benefits humanity"
eenews.net/articles/trumps-nex…

"President Donald Trump has long rejected climate science. Now, his administration is grappling with how to assemble a body of federal climate research to show a warming world is benefiting humanity…Proposals include…conducting a hostile review of U.S. and international climate reports, and recruiting a White House-approved list of researchers to produce a National Climate Assessment based on partisan research and industry studies."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Disinformation #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Trump’s next climate move: Show global warming benefits humanity - E&E News by POLITICO

A new federal report downplaying or denying climate change could drive a reversal of climate rules and expansion of executive authority.

^{Scott Waldman (E&E News by POLITICO)}

Update. "Strong Scientific Leaders Must Speak Out against the Trump Administration’s Science Denial"
scientificamerican.com/article…

"We are proud to be members of the #NAS [National Academy of Sciences], but we are not proud of its present inaction. In these challenging and defining times, the National Academy of Sciences, of all scientific institutions, must speak up…The new #Trump administration is now making an unprecedented effort to prevent science from informing public policy. In his first day in office, President Trump signed executive orders withdrawing the U.S. from participation in the Paris Agreement on #climate change and from the World Health Organization [#WHO]. The new administration has subsequently acted to drastically limit support for climate and medical research performed by scientists in the federal government and in universities. In this emergency, it is not enough for the National Academy of Sciences to speak up from its grass roots, as in 2016 or 2018. It must now speak as an institution if it is to fulfill its responsibilities to the nation and maintain its relevance in the future."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics

Strong Scientific Leaders Must Speak Out against the Trump Administration’s Science Denial

The U.S. National Academy of Sciences should denounce the antiscientific policies of the Trump administration

^{Scientific American}

Update. "How college presidents are quietly resisting federal attacks on higher education"
highereddive.com/news/college-…

"The relative lack of public statements is not a sign of cowardice as some have suggested. It’s that many college presidents have rightly concluded that quiet resistance rather than public protest is a more effective strategy. "

PS: Is quiet resistance working? If so, more power to it. It has to be better than quiet blenching. But does it work better than unquiet resistance? And how would we know?

#Academia #Universities #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter

How college presidents are quietly resisting federal attacks on higher education

Many leaders of institutions favor behind-the-scenes resistance over protests and op-eds, the Council of Independent Colleges’ president writes. 

^{Higher Ed Dive}

Update. It's not enough for #Trump to …

* nominate #climate denialists to run key agencies like the #EPA and #NOAA
* remove climate-related words from govt web sites
* take down whole climate science sites and datasets
* defund climate research and researchers
* layoff scientists and civil servants with climate expertise
* repeal climate regulations
* eliminate 10 regional EPA offices, including the one in DC
* and plan to replace consensus climate findings with ideological cherrypicking as the foundation for policymaking …

… now his #FBI is freezing the assets of nonprofits like Habitat for Humanity, which have received EPA grants, alleging that they might be guilty of “possible criminal violations” including “conspiracy to defraud the United States.”
newrepublic.com/post/192660/tr…

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #USLaw #USPol #USPolitics

Trump’s FBI Moves to Criminally Charge Major Climate Groups

The Trump administration is targeting climate organizations that received a Biden-era grant.

^{The New Republic}

Update. "Joint Statement on Federal Censorship of American History"
historians.org/news/aha-oah-jo…

"The American Historical Association (#AHA) and the Organization of American Historians (#OAH) condemn recent efforts to censor historical content on federal government websites, at many public museums, and across a wide swath of government resources…Policies that purge words, phrases, and content that some officials deem suspect on ideological grounds constitute a systemic campaign to distort, manipulate, and erase significant parts of the historical record. Recent directives insidiously prioritize narrow ideology over historical research, historical accuracy, and the actual experiences of Americans.

As the institution chartered by the US Congress for “the promotion of historical studies” and “in the interest of American history, and of history in America,” the American Historical Association must speak out when the nation’s leadership wreaks havoc with that history. So, too, must the OAH, as the organization committed to promoting “excellence in the scholarship, teaching, and presentation of American history.” It is bad enough to forget the past; it is even worse to intentionally deny the public access to what we remember, have documented, and have expended public resources to disseminate."

"To date, 11 organizations have signed on to the statement."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

AHA–OAH Joint Statement on Federal Censorship of American History

The American Historical Association (AHA) and the Organization of American Historians (OAH) have released a joint statement condemning federal censorship of American history.

^AHA

Update. "A Call for Harm Reduction Strategies"
katinamagazine.org/content/art…

"The new US presidential administration has launched an unprecedented assault on research and higher education. This isn’t just collateral damage from wide-ranging realignment of budgets, which would be bad enough, but an orchestrated attack on academic freedom, research funding, and the institutional autonomy that underpins intellectual progress…Resistance is most effective when collective action amplifies individual efforts rather than occurring in isolation. This means fostering more frequent and open dialogue across all sectors of the academic and research community [e.g. #libraries and #publishers]."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Update. "US Funding Cuts Imperil Open Infrastructure Globally"
katinamagazine.org/content/art…

"The impacts of funding cuts to research in the US extend far beyond their immediate targets. We see a chain reaction that could indelibly alter the education and research landscape, including the future of open and sustainable research…So what is there to do?… Here are our three specific calls to action…"

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Funding #OpenInfrastructure #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Update. "#APDU [Association of Public Data Users] Statement on #Education Research and #Data"
apdu.org/?p=5812775

"On Tuesday, March 11, 2025, over 1,000 staff from the Department of Education [#DOE] were laid off. This includes almost all staff from the Institute of Education Sciences (#IES), which housed the National Center for Education Statistics (#NCES)…NCES is mandated by law to report on the condition of education annually, collect and disseminate key education data, and support state and local education agencies…The [layoffs] make it unclear how NCES will meet its legal obligations under the Education Sciences Reform Act, Every Student Succeeds Act, the Information Quality Act, and other federal laws…Congress and policymakers must act to ensure NCES has the resources to meet its statutory obligations. Stakeholders—including researchers, educators, and state leaders—must demand transparency on how education data will be maintained."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #OpenData #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Update. Survey of US #librarians and #LIS faculty.
coloradomesa.az1.qualtrics.com…

"Recent weeks and months have brought shifts to the pursuit of research across the United States, including funding freezes and budget cuts, executive orders regarding DEIA (and its variants) and other justice-related topics (e.g., environmental justice)…This survey aims to gather the perspectives of academic librarians and LIS-program faculty about the implications of these shifts (and executive orders) on research initiatives and, more broadly, academic freedom, researchers' freedom of thought/speech/expression within academia, and researchers' overall intellectual freedom."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Update. Good advice from #MichaelIgnatieff, past President of the Central European University in Budapest and Vienna (2016-2021): "How a University Fights an Authoritarian Regime. Viktor #Orbán came for me. Donald #Trump is coming for you. Here’s what to do."
chronicle.com/article/how-a-un…
(#paywalled)

"You’re going to need an alliance that pulls together American families, employers, unions, companies, the whole network of people and institutions beyond your campus who understand that the universities of America are critical to everything that is good about the country: its commitment to freedom, its devotion to excellence, its leadership in science and medicine. This alliance is going to have to get political — to reach across red state and blue state, identify the members of Congress from both sides of the House who understand why universities matter to their communities, to the American economy, and to America’s deserved reputation for excellence. Don’t mince words. It’s too late to play nice. Call a spade a spade. Convince enough Americans that the administration’s strategy deserves only one name: vandalism."

#Academia #DefendResearch #Universities #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter

How a University Fights an Authoritarian Regime

Viktor Orbán came for me. Donald Trump is coming for you. Here’s what to do.

^{The Chronicle of Higher Education}

Update. "Scientists Say #NIH Officials Told Them To Scrub #mRNA References on Grants"
kffhealthnews.org/news/article…

"National Institutes of Health officials have urged scientists to remove all references to mRNA #vaccine technology from their grant applications…NIH acting Director Matthew Memoli sent an email across the NIH instructing that any grants, contracts, or collaborations involving mRNA vaccines be reported up the chain to #HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s office and the White House."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #USPol #USPolitics

Scientists Say NIH Officials Told Them To Scrub mRNA References on Grants - KFF Health News

Two senior scientists say National Institutes of Health officials advised them to remove references to mRNA vaccines in grant applications, and they fear the Trump administration will abandon a promising field of medical research.

^{KFF Health News}

Update. "#Trump Executive Order Targets #IMLS for Closure"
wordsandmoney.com/trump-execut…

"In a March 14 Executive Order, President Donald Trump has targeted seven more federal agencies for permanent closure, including the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

If some parts of IMLS are "statutorily required" and cannot be shut down by an executive order, the #OMB has seven days to show it.

"EveryLibrary is hosting a petition [to keep IMLS open]…The American Library Association has…weighed in with a statement."

#DefendResearch #Funding #Libraries #USPol #USPolitics

Trump Executive Order Targets IMLS for Closure

^{Andrew Richard Albanese (Words & Money)}

Update. "#DOGE order leads to journal cancellations by U.S. agricultural library"
science.org/content/article/do…

"The #USDA on Friday told staff members it has canceled subscriptions carried by its National Agricultural Library as part of a drive by President Donald #Trump’s administration to cut federal spending. The move appears to drop nearly 400 of the library’s roughly 2000 journals, including many prominent in various agricultural subfields —but curiously none from the world’s three largest scientific publishers, all of which are #ForProfit. USDA staff members depicted the move as hasty, indiscriminate slashing…Studies of journal subscription fees indicate that on average, scientific #SocietyPublishers charge less than such for-profit companies."

PS: (1) Of course the best ag research should be #OpenAccess. But that's a goal, not the current reality, and while we work for that goal, policymaking agencies still need access the best research. (2) If efficiency requires budget cuts, why focus the cuts on journals from #nonprofit #publishers, which on average are lower in price and higher in quality?

#Agriculture #DefendResearch #USPol #USPolitics

Update. #Trump Administration Aims to Eliminate #EPA’s Scientific Research Arm"
nytimes.com/2025/03/17/climate…

"The Environmental Protection Agency plans to eliminate its scientific research arm, firing as many as 1,155 chemists, biologists, toxicologists and other scientists, according to documents reviewed by Democrats on the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology…The EPA’s plan… calls for dissolving the agency’s largest department, the Office of Research and Development, and purging up to 75 percent of the people who work there. The remaining staff members would be placed elsewhere within the EPA…Rep. Zoe Lofgren [D-CA],…the top Democrat on the science committee, said that without the Office of Research and Development, the EPA would not be able to meet its legal obligation to use the “best available science” when writing regulations and considering policy. She also said that the office was created by congressional statute and that dissolving it would be illegal."

#Censorship #Climate #DefendResearch #Environment #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics

Trump Administration Aims to Eliminate E.P.A.’s Scientific Research Arm

More than 1,000 chemists, biologists and other scientists could be laid off under a plan to dismantle the Office of Research and Development.

^{Lisa Friedman (The New York Times)}

Update. "Don’t wait out four hard years: speak truth to power"
nature.com/articles/d41586-025…

"More scholars must push back. The idea that scientists can keep doing what they know must be done to incorporate #DEI into their work while adjusting terms to fit the demands of bigoted autocrats bent on hobbling science is to whistle loudly past a graveyard of avoidable error, continued financial cuts and censorship. That diversity matters to science is a truth — albeit one that has only recently begun to be accepted and applied…Genomics has established that different groups of people respond differently to drugs and vaccines. The individuals recruited to and participating in clinical trials must be representative of those who will use those treatments in real life…Social scientists are well aware that understanding behaviour and implementing desired change requires studying populations besides white, Western, university psychology students."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Don’t wait out four hard years: speak truth to power

The importance of diversity in science is an unshakeable reality that the scientific community must stand by.

^{Caplan, Arthur}

Update. "French scientist denied US entry after phone messages critical of #Trump found"
theguardian.com/us-news/2025/m…

"A French scientist was denied entry to the US this month after immigration officers at an airport searched his phone and found messages in which he had expressed criticism of the Trump administration…The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Travel #USPol #USPolitics

French scientist denied US entry after phone messages critical of Trump found

France’s research minister said the scientist was traveling to Houston for a conference when his phone was searched

^{Robert Mackey (The Guardian)}

Update. Gary Price (@infodocket) is collecting statements opposing the #Trump admin's attempt to shut down the Institute of Museum and Library Services (#IMLS). Thanks, Gary!
infodocket.com/2025/03/17/roun…

#DefendResearch #Libraries #LIS #USPol #USPolitics

Update. "What’s in store for US science as funding bill averts government shutdown"
nature.com/articles/d41586-025…

"The US government averted a shutdown late last week after President Donald #Trump signed into law a spending agreement that is likely to lock in modest cuts to science funding this year. But a larger crisis for science still looms as the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress continue to seek massive cuts to the federal budget for 2025 and beyond."

#DefendResearch #Funding #USPol #USPolitics

What’s in store for US science as funding bill averts government shutdown

Spending on research, including at the NIH, will see modest cuts this year. But the threat of big reductions in future remain.

^{Tollefson, Jeff}

Update. "Foreign interference laws ‘no protection from #Trump edicts’"
timeshighereducation.com/news/…
(#paywalled)

"A memo sent to Australian collaborators in US-funded research projects seeks assurances that they and their institutions have no involvement in diversity, equity and inclusion (#DEI) initiatives, “environmental justice”, “gender ideology extremism” or “any party that espouses anti-American beliefs”. It asks whether they have received any funding from China, including Confucius Institutes and “non-state actors”, along with Russia, Cuba or Iran. The 36 questions also include queries on how the projects “create measurable benefits” for the US."

#Australia #Censorship #DefendResearch #Funding #USPol #USPolitics

Update. "Researchers say the US government tried to erase sexual orientation from their findings"
abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireSt…

"Two California researchers said Friday that a U.S. government health publication instructed them to remove data on sexual orientation from a scientific manuscript that had been accepted for publication… Instead of complying, the researchers withdrew their paper from _Public Health Reports_, the official journal of the U.S. Surgeon General and U.S. Public Health Service."

Also see the blog post by the two co-authors, Tamar Antin and Rachelle Annechino.
criticalpublichealth.org/blog/…

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Resisting Attacks on Science - Center for Critical Public Health

So it happened. We have officially withdrawn a paper accepted for publication in a scientific journal because of editorial requests to remove language deemed out of compliance with executive orders.

^{Rachelle Annechino (Center for Critical Public Health)}

Update. "US conference boycott urged after French scientist deported"
archive.is/Wxwdg

"Academics say they are increasingly wary of travelling to conferences in the US after a French scientist was deported over text messages critical of Donald #Trump’s cuts to research funding … Space scientist Mark Wieczorek [@mrak], director of research at the Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris, part of CNRS, said the situation was “very troubling” and, despite being a dual US-French citizen, he now would “only go to the US for the case of a family emergency”…Given the French scientist in question is a “permanent researcher employed by CNRS”, it is “unlikely that this person is a radicalised terrorist and it is unlikely that their hatred of Trump is greater than mine as a US citizen,” continued Wieczorek."

#DefendResearch #Travel #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Update. "Center for Open Science (#COS) Statement on U.S. Executive Orders and the Future of Open Scholarship"
cos.io/about/news/cos-statemen…

"Recent executive orders and shifts in U.S. federal policy pose significant concerns for the research community, including the removal of publicly available data, changes in research governance, and uncertainties around funding. While some policies claim to promote transparency, their selective application risks undermining scientific integrity. True openness must apply across all research domains —not just where it aligns with political agendas. COS remains steadfast in its commitment to protecting and promoting open scholarship. Ensuring long-term access to research data is essential to maintaining scientific integrity. Our Open Science Framework (OSF) remains a reliable resource for researchers seeking to preserve and share their work, ensuring that public knowledge remains accessible despite policy uncertainties."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #OpenInfrastructure #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

COS Statement on U.S. Executive Orders and the Future of Open Scholarship

At the Center for Open Science (COS), our mission is to advance openness, integrity, and rigor in research.

^www.cos.io

Update. New study: "#NIH investment in drugs approved from 2010 to 2019 was not less than investment by the #pharmaceutical industry, with comparable accounting for basic and applied research, failed clinical trials, and cost of capital or discount rates."
jamanetwork.com/journals/jama-…

PS: Relevant to (1) #Trump admin cutbacks to NIH #funding and (2) industry #patents and licensing terms on approved drugs.

#Medicine #Pharma

Update. "#NIH Ends Future Funding to Study the #Health Effects of #Climate Change"
propublica.org/article/nih-fun…

"The National Institutes of Health will no longer be funding work on the health effects of climate change, according to internal records reviewed by ProPublica…While it’s unclear whether the climate guidance will impact active grants and lead to funding terminations, the directive appears to halt opportunities for future funding of studies or academic programs focused on the health effects of climate change."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Funding #Medicine #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

NIH Ends Funding to Study the Health Effects of Climate Change

It’s unclear whether the guidance will impact active grants, but it appears to halt opportunities for future studies. One climate health expert said the directive would have a “devastating” impact on much-needed research.

^ProPublica

Update. Here are some press releases and news stories on the lawsuit against the #Trump admin by American Association of University Professors (#AAUP) and the American Federation of Teachers (#AFT).

* From the AAUP
aaup.org/news/aaup-allies-sue-…

* From the AFT
aft.org/press-release/faculty-…

* From The Guardian
theguardian.com/us-news/2025/m…

* From the NYTimes
nytimes.com/2025/03/25/nyregio…

#Academia #Censorship #DefendResearch #MahmoudKhalil #Protests #Travel #Universities #USLaw #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter

US academic groups sue White House over planned deportations of pro-Gaza students

Trump administration is accused of inciting ‘climate of repression’ and stifling free speech on campuses, including Columbia University

^{Robert Tait (The Guardian)}

Update. "‘Breathtakingly Irresponsible’: Former Workers Decry Decimation of #Education Dept.’s #Data Warehouse"
chronicle.com/article/breathta…

"More than 160 contracts measuring educational progress across the nation’s schools and colleges were suddenly halted. Probationary workers were fired, employees were blocked from accessing information on their computers, and a national center that dates to the time of Abraham Lincoln was effectively decommissioned overnight. Employees worked late into the evenings downloading data that had taken decades to compile, according to interviews with more than a dozen people fired from the Institute of Education Sciences (#IES), an independent and nonpartisan agency within the U.S. Department of Education [#DOE], and its National Center for Education Statistics (#NCES)…IES, which had 173 employees before the cuts, was left with just over a dozen after Elon #Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency swept through the Education Department early last month. The crippling of the office was so swift and haphazard that it left serious doubts about how much of the educational data that has informed higher-education policy and practice will continue to be available."

#DefendResearch #OpenData #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

‘Breathtakingly Irresponsible’: Former Workers Decry Decimation of Education Dept.’s Data Warehouse

Fired NCES and IES employees describe a mad dash to save data that has informed higher-education policy and practice since the days of Abraham Lincoln.

^{Katherine Mangan (The Chronicle of Higher Education)}

Update. "Global Science in Danger"
blog.scielo.org/en/2025/03/26/…

"Recently, the government of the United States of America (USA) has frightened the scientific community…by censoring terms used in scientific communications and funding proposals…The idea that this is just relevant to American scientists or scientists from elsewhere working in America is not correct; with researchers the world over being affected. In the Netherlands, for instance, some researchers monitoring the state of forests…have received email messages, ostensibly from the #USGS (United States Geological Survey) and labelled “High Priority”. A list of questions was attached with the request to respond with answers within a week of receiving the email. The USGS indicated that sending these messages had been ordered by the United States Office of Management and Budget (#OMB)."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Update. The National Museum and Library Services Board (#NMLSB) just sent an open letter to #Trump's acting director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (#IMLS), Keith Sonderling.
publishersweekly.com/binary-da…

"It is our considered determination that the Museum and Library Services Act of 2018, as codified in Title 20 of the U.S. Code, outlines specific statutory mandates that cannot be paused, reduced, or eliminated without violating Congressional intent and federal statute…All such statutory obligations may not be discontinued or delayed under an Executive Order or other executive action."

#DefendResearch #Libraries #Museums #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Update. "Entire staff at federal agency that funds #libraries and #museums put on leave"
npr.org/2025/03/31/nx-s1-53344…

"According to a statement from AFGE Local 3403, which represents #IMLS [Institute of Museum and Library Services] workers, the agency's staff was notified by email about being placed on paid administrative leave for 90 days after a "brief meeting between DOGE staff and IMLS leadership." Employees had to turn in government property, and email accounts were disabled."

#DefendResearch #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Update. SCiMaP: View Impact of Federal Health Research Cuts
scienceimpacts.org/

"The National Institutes of Health (#NIH) funds crucial health research to address cancer, diabetes, dementia, and more. NIH funding also boosts the economy, returning >250% of the value invested. On Feb. 7th, 2025, the White House ordered across-the-board cuts to NIH funded research. This website shows how funding cuts reduce economic activity and employment nationwide."

#DefendResearch #Funding #Medicine #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

SCIMaP - Impacts of Federal Cuts to Science and Medical Research

Developed by an interdisciplinary research team, this website shows how funding cuts reduce economic activity and employment nationwide

^{scienceimpacts.org}

Update. "More than 1,900 scientists write letter in ‘SOS’ over Trump’s attacks on science"
theguardian.com/us-news/2025/m…

"More than 1,900 members of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine [#NASEM] signed an open letter warning Americans about the “danger” of the #Trump administration’s attacks on science. The letter comes amid the administration’s relentless assault on US scientific institutions which has included threats to private universities, federal grant cancelations and ideological funding reviews, mass government layoffs, resignations and censorship."

Here is the letter itself.
docs.google.com/document/d/13g…

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics

More than 1,900 scientists write letter in ‘SOS’ over Trump’s attacks on science

Members of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine warned Americans of ‘real danger in this moment’

^{Jessica Glenza (The Guardian)}

Update. "Patient Safety Network Abruptly Cut by Trump Administration"
medpagetoday.com/opinion/faust…

"The #Trump administration suddenly cut all funding for the Patient Safety Network (#PSNet) on Friday…PSNet is an influential and respected project within #HHS that has been dedicated to decreasing medical errors through research and knowledge dissemination. The endeavor has been credited with saving lives by helping change the culture by which clinicians learn from mistakes, thereby improving care."

Here's PSNet today.
psnet.ahrq.gov/

And here it is in the Wayback Machine.
web.archive.org/web/2025040214…

#AHRQ #Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Home | PSNet

AHRQ's Patient Safety Network (PSNet) features a collection of the latest news and resources on patient safety, innovations, toolkits, and training opportunities.

^{psnet.ahrq.gov}

Update. "Mass layoffs are underway at the nation’s public health agencies"
apnews.com/article/health-huma…

"Employees across the massive U.S. Health and Human Services [#HHS] Department received notices Tuesday that their jobs were being eliminated…The cuts include researchers, scientists, doctors, support staff and senior leaders, leaving the federal government without many of the key experts who have long guided U.S. decisions on medical research, drug approvals and other issues."

#CDC #CMS #DefendResearch #FDA #Medicine #NIH #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Layoffs begin at US health agencies

Employees across the massive U.S. Health and Human Services Department received notices Tuesday that their jobs were being eliminated, part of a sweeping overhaul designed to vastly shrink the agencies responsible for protecting and promoting America…

^{Carla K. Johnson (AP News)}

Update. The Dept of Health and Human Services (#HHS) can no longer fulfill requests for records under the Freedom of Information Act (#FOIA), at least not without "exponentially" longer delays and backlogs. #RFKjr — who promised "radical transparency" — fired the staffers who handled those requests. A spokesperson said the layoffs will "streamline" the department and the work "will continue".
npr.org/sections/shots-health-…

#DefendResearch #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Update. "Scientists sue #NIH, saying politics cut their research funding"
apnews.com/article/nih-funding…

"A group of scientists and health groups sued the NIH on Wednesday, arguing that an “ideological purge” of research funding is illegal and threatens medical cures…The suit was filed by the American Public Health Association [#APHA], unions representing scientists and some researchers who were stripped of grants."

A similar suit has been filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (#ACLU), the Center for Science in the Public Interest (#CSPI), and the Protect Democracy Project (#PDP).
nbcnews.com/health/health-news…

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #Trump #USLaw #USPol #USPolitics

ACLU sues National Institutes of Health for ‘ideological purge’ of research projects

The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit Wednesday alleging that the National Institutes of Health has conducted an “ongoing ideological purge of critical research projects” that violates federal law and is unconstitutional.

^{Evan Bush (NBC News)}

Update. #DOGE will review #NIH grant opportunities "to ensure the research that will be funded aligns with the priorities of President Donald Trump’s administration."
science.org/content/article/tr…
(#paywalled)

PS: Note that this is about content, politics, or ideology, not waste, fraud, or abuse.

"One NIH employee familiar with the matter worries that Trump officials reviewing the NOFOs [Notices of Funding Opportunities] “may not have the scientific background to understand why funding for research on certain topics is important.” Moreover, they added, “Having these decisions made by DOGE after months have been spent writing the NOFOs drafts and getting buy-in from [NIH’s institutes and centers] and offices is a huge waste of staff time and resources.”

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Update. "Leaked Memo Reveals Insane Ban on Words Agriculture Department Can Say"
newrepublic.com/post/193395/ag…

"A leaked memo from the U.S. Department of #Agriculture’s Research Service division revealed Sunday that the agency has banned some key language from its vocabulary, including the words “climate” and “vulnerable,” as well as the phrase “safe drinking water.” Other baffling entries on the memo’s banned language list are “greenhouse gas emissions,” “methane emissions,” “sustainable construction,” “solar energy,” and “geothermal,” as well as “nuclear energy,” “diesel,” “affordable housing,” “prefabricated housing,” “runoff,” “microplastics,” “water pollution,” “soil pollution,” “groundwater pollution,” “sediment remediation,” “water collection,” “water treatment,” “rural water,” and “clean water,” among dozens of others."

#Censorship #DefendResearch #Trump #USPol #USPolitics

Leaked Memo Reveals Insane Ban on Words Agriculture Department Can Say

The Department of Agriculture is no longer allowed to use the phrase “safe drinking water.”

^{The New Republic}

@mrak

On that basis I'm never going to be let into the US while Trump is running the Turd Reich.

Boycott the US as much as possible until they can run their government on sane, rational lines.

@mrak

One alternative is to accelerate the move of international conferences to outside of the US, but that ends up harming foreign US-based scholars here on visas, who now can't travel abroad for fear that their status will be revoked without warning at the border when they return.

Our communities should probably treat this as we did the height of the pandemic, and shift to online events.

use passwords/passcodes NOT fingerprint readers for login security. US law enforcement can legally press your finger to a fingerprint reader against your will in order to unlock a device, but they cannot force you to reveal a password/passcode.

Now let's guess which form of security this frenchman was using.. and probably on an iphone as well.

@academicchatter

OA

@academicchatter

FSCK paywall: archive.ph/rpfjI

FYI that what EuropePMC contains is described here: europepmc.org/Help#sources, it's not just PMC.

> Europe PMC contains all of the PubMed abstracts, the vast majority of PMC content, plus additional content including preprints, microPublications, patents, NHS clinical guidelines and Agricola records.

Further, in addition to the potential removal of already-indexed data, I think that we need to be wary of possible changes to the data pipeline at NLM.

1/2

china has been catching up in numbers of patents applications since 2010. actually they are no 1 already since then. that race is lost.
so why bother financing us research, if america is going to be a third world fascist country anyway 😀

ourworldindata.org/data-insigh…

China is the largest contributor to global patent applications, substantially ahead of other countries

China’s patent applications have grown rapidly in recent decades, as shown in the chart. Chinese applications surpassed US applications in 2010, reaching over 1.4 million in 2021.

^{Our World in Data}

Of course if I were writing to a Republican member of Congress, I'd describe independent science as "a common-sense, nonpartisan goal."

But it isn't. Science is inherently anti-fascist, because #fascism is anti-science. Indeed, fascists have been railing for years against the very idea that there is objective truth. The destruction of the American scientific community was always part of the plan.

@ucsusa