The Current Crisis: What's Happening to Science in America
science.org
May 28, 2026
4 min read
49/100
Summary
Federal funding for scientific research in the US is facing significant challenges, with NIH and NASA requiring prior permission for collaborations with foreign scientists and institutions. Grantees have reported being instructed to exclude papers with foreign co-authors from their annual progress reports.
Key Takeaways
- The NIH and NASA require prior permission for collaborations with foreign scientists and have directed grantees to exclude foreign co-authors from progress reports.
- Legislative efforts, such as the "Securing Innovation and Research from Adversaries" Act, aim to restrict collaboration specifically with Chinese researchers.
- Political appointees are gaining increased power to overrule granting committee decisions, impacting the distribution of federal funding for scientific research.
- The current policies and attitudes towards science in the US are viewed as detrimental to the nation's scientific progress and are seen as part of a broader nativist agenda.
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