Category Archives: Funding

The Republican War On Standards

Posted on June 22, 2017 by mikethemadbiologist

And I’m not referring to the usual pundit complaint about how mean and uncivil everyone is supposedly being. I mean the National Institute of Standards and Technology (‘NIST’). While it’s fun to joke about NIST being the keepers of official … Continue reading →

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The Republican War On Microbiology

Posted on June 12, 2017 by mikethemadbiologist

Yes, this is from Trump’s proposed budget, not a Congressional proposal. But until Republicans shoot this down–if they do shoot it down–they own this (boldface mine; color original): Welcome to the ARS Culture Collection (NRRL) Please note that the President’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Conservatives, Fucking Morons, Funding, The War on Science | 2 Comments

The Trump Administration Has A Very Unserious NIH Budget Proposal

Posted on May 18, 2017 by mikethemadbiologist

Former ScienceBlogling and now International Man of Scientific Mystery Ed Yong reports (boldface mine): The bulked-up version of the President’s budget for fiscal year 2018, which will be released next week, may not allay those fears. According to two sources … Continue reading →

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The Census Is Still In Trouble

Posted on May 10, 2017 by mikethemadbiologist

The U.S. right has had a long-running battle against the U.S. Census. Some context from five years ago: These are the same Republicans who have no problem with the massive surveillance state. At this point, it’s practically legal for the … Continue reading →

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Congress Tells Trump To Go To Hell About The NIH’s Fogarty Center

Posted on May 2, 2017 by mikethemadbiologist

One of the few specific items in Il Trumpe’s Magic Asterisk NIH budget was the elimination of NIH’s Fogarty International Center. Well, at least for 2017, that didn’t happen: Like Corey Robin, I’m truly confused as to how this came … Continue reading →

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Thoughts On “The Nonpartisan Nerd Parade”

Posted on April 27, 2017 by mikethemadbiologist

To use Buzzfeed’s phrase. Hughes (boldface mine): The programming could be called a lot of things. Inspiring, maybe. Nerdy. Wholesome. Boring. But it was not in any way controversial. And in that way it felt like a missed opportunity, bizarrely … Continue reading →

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We’re Not Having A Serious Discussion About Grant Overheads

Posted on April 11, 2017 by mikethemadbiologist

Something Steve M. at No More Mister Nice Blog wrote is very relevant to recent arguments about NIH (and by extension, other agencies’) grant overheads (boldface mine): Please note how the Times presents this debate — in effect, “White House, … Continue reading →

Posted in Funding, NIH | 1 Comment

Overheads: Nobody Is Leaving Money On The Table

Posted on April 4, 2017 by mikethemadbiologist

Last week, after a surprise attempt by the Trump Administration to take back $1.2 billion of committed funds from NIH, HHS Secretary Tom Price responded: Price repeatedly suggested reducing the amount the NIH pays universities to cover “overhead” costs, like … Continue reading →

Posted in Funding, NIH | 2 Comments

More On Bogus NIH Budgets

Posted on March 23, 2017 by mikethemadbiologist

Last week, we discussed Il Trumpe’s magic asterisk NIH budget, which supposedly will find a way to cut over $6 billion in spending through what is essentially pixie dust: What’s idiotic is that there’s no way ‘consolidations’ could possibly bring … Continue reading →

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A Small Example Of The Scientific Infrastructure Crisis: The Karst Edition

Posted on February 16, 2017 by mikethemadbiologist

Despite what is commonly depicted in books, television, and movies, the state of much of our scientific infrastructure is threadbare: One of the ridiculous things about many depictions of science in TV and movies is the notion that there’s this … Continue reading →

Posted in Funding, Museums etc., Plants | 2 Comments