The captain of the Solong cargo ship arrested after a collision with a tanker in the North Sea is a Russian national, the ship's owner has confirmed.
bbc.com/news/articles/c30mj5gq…
#news #politics #international #russia #sabotage #disaster
The captain of the Solong cargo ship was arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.Stuart Harratt & Jonathan Josephs (BBC News)
“OneWeb customers say that when the service is working great, it’s great.”…Eric Berger (Ars Technica)
LISA is BLACKPINK's latest member to crack the top 10
https://www.npr.org/2025/03/12/nx-s1-5323068/lisa-blackpink-alter-ego-billboard-charts?utm_source=flipboard&utm_medium=activitypub
Posted into Music @music-npr
Arizona AG urges Trump administration to halt federal firings in case to be heard Wednesday
https://www.npr.org/2025/03/12/nx-s1-5324618/arizona-ag-kris-mayes-trump-administration-lawsuit-federal-firings?utm_source=flipboard&utm_medium=activitypub
Posted into U.S. News @u-s-news-npr
Why one senator is voting "no" on a bill that would stop a government shutdown
https://www.npr.org/2025/03/12/nx-s1-5324716/sen-chris-coons-government-shutdown-stopgap-spending-bill?utm_source=flipboard&utm_medium=activitypub
Posted into Morning Edition @morning-edition-npr
I'm starting a #Mastodon thread on the new #Trump administration's actions and positions on #OpenAccess to research.
I posted frequently about the actions of his first administration. But I did it on #Twitter / #X, which I no longer use.
Also see this wiki page where I'm collecting my old Twitter posts on his first term and my new Mastodon posts on his second term.
cyber.harvard.edu/hoap/The_Tru…
For updates, watch this space.
Update. "The mad dash to protect environmental data from Donald Trump"
theverge.com/2025/1/18/2434602…
(#paywalled)
"Information about climate change vanished from federal websites under Donald Trump, who has repeatedly called climate change “a hoax.” Now, federal agencies could face deep staff and budget cuts overseen by Trump cronies Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. The proposed cuts not only threaten what kind of data the government shares but also whether it can collect and organize it at all....
One key resource that could languish under the Trump administration is the Environmental Protection Agency’s Environmental Justice Screening and Mapping Tool, #EJScreen.…Even if it stays online, the tool is not as useful without constant upkeep....
Much of the environmental data included in EJScreen is collected by the #EPA itself. The EPA isn’t likely to abandon its air quality monitors anytime soon, but #Project2025…proposes eliminating the EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights that manages the tool...."
Researchers are bracing for new threats to government data on pollution and climate change under the Trump administration.Justine Calma (The Verge)
Update. Here's a good use of #GitHub to track textual changes and page takedowns on federal govt web sites since #Trump took office.
404media.co/github-is-showing-…
This project is dedicated to the pages on #DEI. I hope someone launches a similar project on the pages dedicated to science and research.
#Censorship #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics
Watch the Trump administration play DEI whac-a-mole on this government agency's GitHub page.Jason Koebler (404 Media)
Update. "For the first time in its more than 60-year history, the #CDC's [#OpenAccess] Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (#MMWR) did not go out as scheduled because of a communications pause at federal health agencies issued by the #Trump administration."
medpagetoday.com/infectiousdis…
#Censorship #Medicine #USPol #USPolitics
MMWR did not publish as usual at 1 p.m. todayRachael Robertson (MedpageToday)
Update. As recently as January 2, 2025, #NASA had five modules for teaching #OpenScience on its web site. The #Trump administration has taken them down.
science.nasa.gov/open-science/…
Here they are in the @internetarchive Wayback Machine.
web.archive.org/web/2025010214…
#Takedowns #TrumpAntiScience #USPol #USPolitics
Open Science 101 is a free curriculum designed to teach researchers, educators, students, and the general public about the principles and practice of open science.Lauren Leese (NASA Science)
Update. If you're following this thread, also follow the Silencing Science Tracker from Sabin Center for Climate Change Law (at Columbia Law School) and the Climate Science Legal Defense Fund.
climate.law.columbia.edu/Silen…
Update. "Datasets aggregated on data.gov, the largest repository of U.S. government #OpenData on the internet, are being deleted, according to the website’s own information. Since Donald Trump was inaugurated as president, more than 2,000 datasets have disappeared from the database."
404media.co/archivists-work-to…
#Data #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
More than 2,000 datasets have disappeared from data.gov since Trump was inaugurated. But analyzing exactly what happened and where it went is going to take some time.Jason Koebler (404 Media)
Update. "#USDA ordered to scrub climate change from websites"
politico.com/news/2025/01/31/u…
"Agriculture Department employees have been ordered to delete landing pages discussing climate change across agency websites and document climate change references for further review, according to an internal email obtained by POLITICO...."
#Agriculture #Censorship #Climate #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. I just posted an item outside this thread that belongs in the thread. Sorry. Here it is. The #Trump #CDC is asking staffers to withdraw pending scientific publications that use newly-prohibited terms like #transgender, #immigrant, or #LGBT.
fediscience.org/@petersuber/11…
#Censorship #ScholComm #USPol #USPolitics
"Scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [#CDC] were ordered late on Friday to withdraw any pending publications, at any scientific journal, that mention terms such as “transgender,” “immigrant,” “L.G.B.T.” or “pregnant people.FediScience.org
Update. "Top advisers to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [#CDC] are asking the agency’s acting director to explain the abrupt removal of information and data from CDC websites, and say when it will be restored. In a sharply worded letter sent Saturday, the group asked Acting Director Susan Monarez what the rationale was for removing the data, if the consequences and legal authority of such a decision were considered, what was being done to safeguard the data sets that were removed, and when access to them would return. The letter asks for answers by Feb. 7."
archive.is/SWhYj
The CDC advisory board was disbanded by Trump in 2019 and revived by Biden in 2021. The members "expect to be fired" for asking the agency to explain and reverse the takedowns.
Update. "Represented by Public Citizen Litigation Group, Doctors for America filed a #lawsuit today [Feb 4] against the Office of Personnel Management (#OPM), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (#CDC), the Food and Drug Administration (#FDA), and the Department of Health & Human Services (#HHS) for the removal of a broad range of #health-related data and other information used by health professionals and researchers from publicly accessible government websites."
citizen.org/news/doctors-for-a…
#Medicine #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Represented by Public Citizen Litigation Group, Doctors for America filed a lawsuit today against the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the…Public Citizen
Update, on the #CDC order directing staffers to retract pending journal articles that use now-prohibited terms like #transgender and #immigrant (earlier in this thread) …
Bravo to the #BMJ (@bmj_latest) for calling this order "sinister and ludicrous."
bmj.com/content/388/bmj.r253
"This is not how it works. Medically relevant terminology and inclusive language follow evidence based reporting standards or are matters of individual journal style and policy. They do not follow political orders. Similarly, co-authors cannot simply scrub themselves from articles. Authorship gives credit and accountability for the work, and an article’s list of authors does not ghost contributors. If authors wish to withdraw submissions under review at a journal, this process is feasible should all of their co-authors agree. However, if somebody who merits inclusion in the authorship group of an article requests to be removed, even with the approval of the co-authors, this is a breach of publication ethics."
#Authorship #Retractions #ScholComm #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
The news that on 31 January 2025 the Trump administration instructed scientists employed by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to withdraw or retract articles from medical and science journals is sinister and ludicrous.The BMJ
Update. Here's an online tool from #BradleyAllf to help you publish research in the #Trump age, especially if you're a US govt scientist. Just paste in your abstract and it will underline the banned words.
brad7280.github.io/thoughtcrim…
Update. "Staffers with Elon #Musk’s [#DOGE] entered the headquarters of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (#NOAA)…today, inciting concerns of downsizing at the agency."
theguardian.com/us-news/2025/f…
What's the #Trump or #Trumpist interest here?
1. "#Project2025…called for the agency to be 'broken up and downsized', claiming the agency is 'harmful to US prosperity' for its role in #climate science."
2. Andrew Rosenberg, a former NOAA official, "noted it had been a longtime goal of corporations that rely on NOAA data to prevent the agency from making the data public, instead of giving it directly to private corporations that create products based on it, such as weather forecasting services."
PS: Rosenberg is right. During the GWBush admin, Senator #RickSantorum (R-PA) repeatedly tried to take down NOAA's open weather data, to benefit AccuWeather, the for-profit weather forecaster in his state. I wrote about it often at the time and may have to dig out and reup those old pieces.
Members reportedly sought access to IT systems at agency that Project 2025 has called ‘harmful to US prosperity’Michael Sainato (The Guardian)
Update. The #BMJ isn't the only journal pushing back against the #CDC directive that staff scientists should retract pending publications that use Trump-banned words. (Earlier in this thread.)
Kudos to the _American Journal of Public Health_ (#AJPH) for pushing back as well.
medpagetoday.com/special-repor…
From publisher Georges Benjamin: "We at the American Journal of Public Health have no interest in following the president's prohibitions on language. We will publish things under our guidelines, under our ethical principles." Benjamin acknowledged that the journal may now get fewer submissions from government scientists.
AJPH is published by the American Public Health Association (#APHA).
#Censorship #Medicine #ScholComm #SocietyPublisher #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
'We will publish things under our guidelines, under our ethical principles'Kristina Fiore (MedpageToday)
Update. #OMB is telling #DOGE to stop using #Slack. Why? Because Slack messages are subject to #FOI requests.
404media.co/doge-employees-ord…
#Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Employees at Elon Musk's agency have been told "OMB is asking us to stop generating new slack messages starting now."Jason Koebler (404 Media)
Update. If you're following this thread, you might also follow Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to #Trump Administration Actions, from #JustSecurity.
justsecurity.org/107087/tracke…
#USLaw #USPol #USPolitics
A public resource tracking the legal challenges to the Trump administration's executive orders and actions.Just Security
Update. The Dept of Defense (#DOD) just released the implementation plan for its upgraded #OpenAccess policy under the Biden-era #OSTP #NelsonMemo.
discover.dtic.mil/wp-content/u…
This is the first fed agency action of its kind since #Trump took office. Note that, so far, this work has not stopped or changed.
Update. "Intense backlash prompted the reinstatement of some online resources. But guidelines for safe contraception and information on racial inequities in health care remain missing."
nytimes.com/2025/02/03/health/…
#CDC #Censorship #Medicine #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "White House budget proposal could shatter the National Science Foundation"
arstechnica.com/science/2025/0…
" 'This kind of cut would kill American science and boost #China and other nations into global science leadership positions,' [said] Neal Lane, who led the #NSF in the 1990s during Bill Clinton's presidency."
PS: I've never liked #nationalist arguments for funding or fostering science. Science is international. But the #Trump admin is putting us in a dilemma. Either we see deep cuts in US science funding. Or we use nationalist arguments to avert those cuts.
There are non-nationalist arguments to fund US science. For example, good science is usually expensive and those who do it well should be funded for the benefit of all. Unfortunately that argument is not likely to work on Trump admin officials. It's not US-specific and applies everywhere, even in China.
#Nationalism #USPol #USPolitics
“This kind of cut would kill American science and boost China.”…Eric Berger (Ars Technica)
Update. The @WashPost does a good job showing the breadth of govt science and info taken down by the #Trump admin.
washingtonpost.com/opinions/in…
Update. "Trump officials exerting unprecedented control over CDC scientific journal"
cbsnews.com/news/trump-officia…
"Trump administration political appointees have taken steps in recent weeks to exert unprecedented influence over the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's flagship medical research publication, the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, multiple federal health officials tell CBS News. The interference included dictating what to cover and withholding studies on the growing bird flu outbreak."
PS: Just curious. How do Trump officials decide that covering bird flu is bad for their agenda?
#Medicine #ScholComm #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
"The MMWR has lost its autonomy," one health official told CBS News.Alexander Tin (CBS News)
Over at @deltathink, Dan Pollock and Ann Michael estimate the impact of #Trump executive actions on academic publishing, starting with the #CDC.
deltathink.com/news-views-spec…
"The proportion of CDC-authored papers is tiny [0.1% of global output and 0.6% of US output], and so their suppression is unlikely to lead to a drop in publishing output. However, should the orders spread to other areas of health research, then the effects could be profound – especially for journals and publishers relying heavily on US-authored papers."
Update The #Trump admin has taken down the #OSTP #NelsonMemo.
It was formerly at this URL.
whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uplo…
You can still find it in the @internetarchive #WaybackMachine, as recently as Jan 18, 2025.
web.archive.org/web/2025011802…
We can't tell yet whether it was taken down because Trump officials didn't like the #OpenAccess policies it laid out, didn't like its use of #DEI language — or both.
Update. I still don't know the full story behind the takedown of the #NelsonMemo. But here's a clue. The Dept of Defense (#DOD) continued rolling its memo-based #OpenAccess policy *after* Trump took office and *after* the memo was taken down.
fediscience.org/@petersuber/11…
That's a sign that agencies have not been told to stop rolling out their memo-based policy upgrades. But of course that may change.
Also note that memo is preserved in the #NationalArchives, for now, not just in the Wayback Machine.
bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/w…
(Yes, I'm aware that Trump fired Colleen Shogan, the Biden-era National Archivist.)
nytimes.com/2025/02/07/us/poli…
“No cause or reason was cited,” wrote the archivist, Colleen Shogan. But the National Archives had been deeply involved in the classified documents case against President Trump.Erica L. Green (The New York Times)
Update. The Dept of Defense (#DOD) just released the implementation plan for its upgraded #OpenAccess policy under the Biden-era #OSTP #NelsonMemo.
discover.dtic.mil/wp-content/u…This is the first fed agency action of its kind since #Trump took office. Note that, so far, this work has not stopped or changed.
Update. "In the initial days of the #Trump administration, officials scoured federal websites for any mention of what they deemed #DEI keywords — terms as generic as “diverse” and “historically” and even “women.” They soon identified reams of some of the country’s most valuable public health data containing some of the targeted words, including language about LGBTQ+ people, and quickly took down much of it — from surveys on obesity and suicide rates to real-time reports on immediate infectious disease threats like bird flu."
vox.com/future-perfect/399319/…
#Censorship #Medicine #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics
Trump and Elon Musk have said they want to get rid of DEI. But their purge has swept up data on obesity and suicide rates plus teen smoking and sexual behavior.Dylan Scott (Vox)
Update. "The White House has designated Mr. #Musk’s office, United States #DOGE Service, as an entity insulated from public records requests."
nytimes.com/2025/02/10/us/poli…
In Nov 2024 before Musk joined the #Trump government, he wrote on X / Twitter: "There should be no need for FOIA requests. All government data should be default public for maximum transparency."
x.com/elonmusk/status/18530796…
#FOAI #Secrecy #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Government watchdog groups say they will challenge the Trump administration’s decision to put the initiative under the Presidential Records Act, which shields its work from public disclosure.Minho Kim (The New York Times)
Update. "Court Orders #CDC, #FDA to Restore Scrubbed Webpages, Data"
medpagetoday.com/washington-wa…
"A federal judge on Tuesday ordered government agencies to restore public access to health-related webpages and datasets that they removed to comply with an executive order by President #Trump…The scrubbed material includes reports on HIV prevention, a CDC webpage for providing clinicians with guidance on reproductive healthcare, and an FDA study on 'sex differences in the clinical evaluation of medical products.'"
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Litigation #Medicine #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics
Judge agreed to temporary restraining order requested by the Doctors for America advocacy groupAssociated Press (MedpageToday)
Update. From @hildabast: "What if We Can’t Rely on PubMed?"
absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2025/…
"#PubMed is incredibly reliable…That said, between the risks of an exodus of key personnel, understaffing, or goodness-knows-what vandalism when a goon squad arrives at NIH, it’s not paranoid any more to think ahead to the once-unthinkable. What would PubMed enshittification look like? Could PubMed go down more often, and for longer? Might services no longer be free? How else could the #quality and #reliability of its services be degraded?"
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
PubMed is incredibly reliable. And a lot depends on it. It’s an ecosystem built around MEDLINE, the steady feed of new publications…Hilda Bastian (Absolutely Maybe)
Update. From #HaroldVarmus, "I Used to Run the #NIH. Here’s What Worries Me."
nytimes.com/2025/02/14/opinion…
"I’ve spent over five decades as a scientist in academia and the federal government, including as director of the NIH. Never before have I seen my profession so politicized as it is now under the #Trump administration…For baffling reasons, the executive branch is now waging war on America’s scientific enterprise. This assault includes nominating leaders hostile to science and unqualified for their roles; issuing a barrage of executive orders that disrupt research by restricting meetings, publications, travel and grant making; censoring ideas and even certain words from scientific discourse; and trying to withhold billions of dollars from universities and other research institutions that help pay the costs of research."
PS: In addition to being a former NIH director, Varmus is a Nobel laureate (1989 Medicine) and co-founder of @PLOS.
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
The Trump administration hobbles research and endangers the public health.Harold Varmus (The New York Times)
Update. "The Trump Administration Is Targeting Science. The Scientific Integrity Act Could Help Protect It."
blog.ucsusa.org/kellickson/the…
"The Scientific Integrity Act (#SI Act) is a bipartisan bill re-introduced on February 6th in the US House of Representatives… [It] would include language prohibiting scientific or research misconduct; preventing intimidation or attempted coercion to alter or censor scientific or technical findings; and allowing public dissemination of scientific and technical findings…It would ensure that scientific conclusions are not made based on political considerations but based on the best available science."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Legislation #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
The chairman of the House Oversight Committee initiated a formal investigation of federal agency scientific integrity policies and scientific work.The Equation
Update. "The #Trump administration and Elon #Musk are reportedly taking aim at #NOAA, the agency responsible for the National Weather Service and many other crucial functions."
fastcompany.com/91274927/trump…
"#Project2025 specifically noted NOAA as a target, as well. The Heritage Foundation’s 900-page right-wing playbook called the agency “one of the main drivers of the #climate change alarm industry” and recommended it be “dismantled and many of its functions eliminated” and instead #privatized. It’s not clear what that would look like, though experts have said it isn’t a good idea—and that private weather companies wouldn’t even want that change because they’d have to bear the cost of collecting weather data that’s currently given to them for free."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #OpenData #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "Science at Risk: Protect #NOAA"
secure.ucsusa.org/a/2025-prote…
I just signed this open letter from @ucsusa and hope you will too.
"Scientists and other experts: Add your name to this open letter calling on Congress and the #Trump administration to ensure that NOAA and its sub-agencies remain fully funded and staffed, and that the independent, trusted science the agency produces is protected."
#Climate #DefendResearch #OpenData #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "Join the Organizing Team for Your Local Stand Up For Science Rally!"
airtable.com/app4h5wUssMGXxiaX…
#DefendResearch #USPol #USPolitics
Airtable is a low-code platform for building collaborative apps. Customize your workflow, collaborate, and achieve ambitious outcomes. Get started for free.Airtable
Update. I applaud this open letter from 48 US scientific societies to US researchers, educators, and academics.
unitedsciencealliance.org/
"Today, science is under threat…We need scientific research to support the health and safety of people and our planet. We need policy decisions that are grounded in research and data…We will champion scientific integrity, including academic freedom, the inclusion of diverse perspectives, and policies grounded in scientific evidence…Scientific truths are nonpartisan. It has never been more important to recommit to scientific knowledge, and to ensure you have access to data, are free from censorship, and are able to do your valuable work."
#Academia #Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter
Update. "This position is a response to concerns raised regarding prohibition of specific terminology, and restrictions on researchers’ activities and collaborations. #COPE [Committee on Publication Ethics] considers that authors and editors are best placed to determine the appropriate language to be used in their respective fields, to ensure that research is communicated appropriately…COPE supports the World Association of Medical Editors (#WAME)’s statement that editorial decisions must remain unaffected by the authors’ nationality, ethnicity, political beliefs, race, or religion. Publication choices should not be swayed by external governmental policies, unless compliance with applicable laws is at stake.”
publicationethics.org/guidance…
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. The Union of Concerned Scientists (#UCS, @ucsusa) just released this open letter to Congress. I signed and hope you will too.
secure.ucsusa.org/a/2024-save-…
"I am asking you to defend the science and scientists that keep Americans safe. The Trump administration's current agenda is eviscerating the protections that Americans count on and support: clean air and water; safe food and medicine; products that won't harm us; and protection from extreme weather and other damaging effects of climate change…Protecting rigorous and independent science is a common-sense, nonpartisan goal."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Please join science supporters, scientists, and experts in signing an open letter asking Congress to stand up against attempts to politicize or eliminate scientific roles, agencies, and federal research that protect our health, environment, and our c…Union of Concerned Scientists
Update. Kathleen Bachynski and Martin McKee argue that #Trump cuts to medical research and ongoing clinical trials violate the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki on Research Ethics and the 1979 Belmont Report on Ethical Principles and Guidelines for the Protection of Human Subjects of Research.
bmj.com/content/388/bmj.r289
Update. "Join academic workers across the country in fighting restrictions on research - Feb. 19th Rally."
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAI…
"For the last three weeks, we have seen unprecedented attacks on science that have severely impacted our day-to-day work as scientists, researchers, and clinicians - funding that sustains critical scientific research to improve human health has been dramatically cut, research is being censored, and scientists are losing their jobs…The work we do is a public good and essential for the health of each and every American, now and in the future. We must fight to save science so we can continue doing the work that keeps Americans healthy."
h/t @ClimateJenny
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Why? For the last three weeks, we have seen unprecedented attacks on science that have severely impacted our day-to-day work as scientists, researchers, and clinicians - funding that sustains critical scientific research to improve human health has b…Google Docs
Update. @juddlegum and #RebeccaCrosby provide more evidence that the #Trump team is taking down valuable govt pages — this time #OSHA pages on workplace safety — that use #DEI language in ways that have nothing to do with the kind of DEI Trumpists oppose.
popular.info/p/in-botched-dei-…
For example, they're taking down pages that refer to "diversity of state-specific…regulatory requirements" and "diverse conditions under which EMS responders could work."
PS: It's no accident that this might remind you of the brainless firing of US nuclear security staffers, which Trumpists are still trying to reverse. Autopilot ransacking.
nytimes.com/2025/02/16/us/poli…
#BrainlessKeywordSearching #Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
The administration asked some of the agency’s workers, who were part of last week’s massive layoffs across the federal government, to come back.Minho Kim (The New York Times)
Update. US space scientists have written an open letter to #NASA and #Congress.
sites.google.com/view/space-sc…
"Almost all of our work as space scientists is funded by U.S. taxpayers, and we have a responsibility to oppose actions that limit the reach of our work to the public… Following NASA’s request, all AG [Analysis/Assessment Group] websites and the important, labor-intensive study reports, science goals documents, and other resources hosted on those websites are indefinitely unavailable to the communities who did this work and to the general public…We ask that all those in decision-making positions unequivocally condemn and act to reverse recent attacks on scientific integrity, federal grant funding for scientific research, and initiatives that broaden public participation in science."
PS: Also see the list of similar letters growing the left sidebar.
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. From @alicejmeadows: "Declaration To #DefendResearch Against US Government Censorship"
scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org/20…
"Much of the resistance to the Trump administration’s efforts to censor research and researchers is happening at the grassroots level, including this Declaration To Defend Research Against US Government Censorship, instigated by Lisa Schiff, together with Catherine Mitchell, Sara Rouhi, Peter Suber, and myself [Alice Meadows]. Like many of those who are protesting against these growing threats to research, we are acting in a personal capacity, rather than on behalf of our organizations. As members of the scholarly communication community, we believe that researchers must be freely able to conduct, collaborate on, share, review, and discuss their research…I very much hope that you’ll join the 1,000 plus who have already signed."
#Censorship #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
In response to US government efforts to censor research and researchers, a small group of scholarly communications professionals have launched a Declaration to defend research.Alice Meadows (The Scholarly Kitchen)
Update. From @mayank_mchugh and @JACoates at @force11: "Science is Under Siege: The Open Science Community Must Act and Lead by Example"
upstream.force11.org/open-scie…
"The new US administration has thrown the entire academy into chaos, threatening global health. This article is a call for the #OpenScience community to practice what it preaches and lead by example in defending science…The only viable line of defence against such rapid and intense attacks is transparency and a heightened rigour. And it is here that the open science community has a unique and essential role in this very moment."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Worldwide, science is under attack by anti-scientific movements. The new US administration has thrown the entire academy into chaos, threatening global health.Mayank Chugh (Upstream)
Update. "Defend Scientific Freedom and Integrity Against Political Suppression."
change.org/p/defend-scientific…
I just signed this petition and hope you will too.
"We call on governments, funding bodies, academic institutions, and international organizations to:
1. Protect Scientific Freedom: Ensure that research funding decisions are made based on scientific merit, not political ideology.
2. Stop Censorship in Public Health and Environmental Science: Allow government scientists to communicate freely with the public and publish research without political interference.
3. Preserve Open Access to Data: Governments must not delete, withhold, or manipulate scientific data that serves the public good...."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. Special thanks to the Association of University Presses (#AUPresses, @aupresses). It not only signed the Feb 13 Declaration to #DefendResearch, it posted an announcement to spread the word.
aupresses.org/news/aupresses-s…
#Censorship #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
AUPresses joins with individual and institutional members of the scholarly communications community to assert that researchers must be freely able to conduct, collaborate on, share, review, and discuss their research.awindhorn (Association of University Presses)
Update. Although the #Trump admin is firing scientists, "some science leaders argued [that it's] not specifically targeting research. 'Science seems to be collateral damage to these [downsizing] efforts that are almost random, by date of hire or date of promotion,' says Sudip Parikh, CEO of #AAAS…'It’s not strategic. It’s not based on the needs of the future, the needs of science.'"
PS: My take: Some of the destruction targets research he opposes for political reasons, like #climate research. But much of the rest is semi-random pillaging to show numbers (positions cut, dollars saved). This is evident from the growing number of firings, in a growing number of departments, that Trump and #Musk later try to rescind.
Update. "Journalism organizations call for restoration of public data."
nasw.org/article/journalism-or…
"Leaders of five #journalism organizations, including the National Association of Science Writers and representing more than 7,000 members in the United States and abroad, sent the following letter to the heads of eight U.S. federal agencies that have recently removed public datasets and databases funded by Americans’ tax dollars."
#Censorship #Data #DefendResearch #OpenData #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Leaders of five journalism organizations, including the National Association of Science Writers and representing more than 7,000 members in the United States and abroad, sent the following letter to the heads of eight U.S.www.nasw.org
Update. "Outcry as Trump withdraws support for research that mentions ‘climate’ "
theguardian.com/environment/20…
"The #Trump administration is stripping away support for scientific research in the US and overseas that contains a word it finds particularly inconvenient: “climate”…Trump, who has said that the climate crisis is a “giant hoax”, has already stripped mentions of climate change and global heating from government websites."
#Censorship #Climate #DefendResearch #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics
US government stripping funds from domestic and overseas research amid warnings for health and public safetyOliver Milman (The Guardian)
Update. "PLOS [@PLOS] statement on recent US Executive Orders and scientific integrity"
theplosblog.plos.org/2025/02/p…
"We are deeply concerned about a range of recent US Executive Orders that collectively have the potential to dismantle the US scientific enterprise as it has existed for the past 70 years…We will not approve changes to terminology or removal of data that compromise the scientific accuracy of content. Requests to remove legitimate authors from manuscripts violate our authorship policies which are grounded in principles of credit, accountability and transparency…We are actively working to understand the evolving implications of these directives and the disruption they have brought…We remain dedicated to the advancement of #OpenScience."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #PLOS #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Since its founding over twenty five years ago PLOS has been dedicated to advancing open science, ensuring that knowledge is accessible to…PLOS (The Official PLOS Blog)
Update. From @neuralreckoning: "Science must step away from nationally managed infrastructure"
thetransmitter.org/policy/scie…
"Scientific data and independence are at risk. We need to work with community-driven services and university libraries to create new multi-country organizations that are resilient to political interference."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #OpenInfrastructure #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. From @karenhao: "The foundations of America’s prosperity are being dismantled"
technologyreview.com/2025/02/2…
"[Scientists] warn that dismantling the behind-the-scenes scientific research programs that backstop American life could lead to long-lasting, perhaps irreparable damage to everything from the quality of health care to the public’s access to next-generation consumer technologies. The US took nearly a century to craft its rich scientific ecosystem; if the unraveling that has taken place over the past month continues, Americans will feel the effects for decades to come."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Federal scientists warn that Americans could feel the effects of the new administration's devastating cuts for decades to come.Karen Hao (MIT Technology Review)
Update. An editorial in #JAMA and the #JAMANetwork.
jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/…
"Some authors of scientific works in process have had to remove their names from publications for these publications to proceed; others have chosen to pause or withdraw their publications. While some of these actions are directly related to the executive order to #HHS employees to cease communications, many have been undertaken preemptively by authors who are not subject to the order but are presumably fearful of the challenges of communicating complex findings in this current environment. Some authors are engaging in anticipatory compliance by scrubbing from their manuscripts words they fear may be deemed, in the moment, politically unacceptable…We remain steadfast in our guidance to authors and readers across the JAMA Network journals and endorse and adhere to the standards set by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors [#ICMJE]…We will act flexibly, where appropriate, to ensure that censoring efforts will not silence the integrity of the scientific process or clear communication of scientific information important for health."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #ScholComm #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. The International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (#ICMJE) has updated its guidance in light of recent actions by the #Trump administration.
icmje.org/news-and-editorials/…
"If authors request removal or addition of an author after manuscript submission or publication, journal editors should seek an explanation and signed statement of agreement for the requested change from all listed authors including the author to be removed or added…Corrections are warranted for errors of fact that should have been recognized at the time of publication. Matters of debate and evolving science and methods are not errors. Retraction of published work is generally reserved for errors serious enough to invalidate results and conclusions and/or when there is scientific misconduct.."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #ScholComm #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "Why the European Journal of Public Health and EUPHA are opposing President Trump’s attack on the language of diversity"
academic.oup.com/eurpub/advanc…
"The news that the #Trump administration has ordered scientists at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to withdraw or retract articles containing terms such as “gender,” “transgender,” “LGBT,” or “transsexual” is as shocking as it is dangerous…Such censorship is not only an assault on scientific integrity but also a harbinger of the creeping authoritarianism that Europe has seen before, one that we must resist with all the force of history…First, we will not retract published articles due to political pressure. Retractions are reserved for fraud, major errors, or ethical breaches, not for the mere use of words that a government disapproves of. Second, we will continue to publish research that includes terms related to gender, sexuality, and reproductive health. Third, we will defend the rights of researchers to publish without fear of political persecution. Fourth, we will stand in solidarity with colleagues facing censorship. Suppression of knowledge anywhere is a threat to knowledge everywhere."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #DEI #Medicine #ScholComm #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "ALLEA Statement on Threats to Academic Freedom and International Research Collaboration in the United States"
allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2…
"The European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities expresses grave concern over the escalating threats to academic freedom, both in the United States and beyond. Recent developments regarding science and scholarship in the U.S., including executive orders freezing billions in federal research funding and censorship around topics such as climate change and gender, are forcing many U.S. science agencies and research organisations to abruptly suspend normal operations. Such censorship and political suppression of language, research topics, and methodologies—whether through funding restrictions, legislative control, or institutional interference—fundamentally compromise the integrity of scientific and scholarly endeavours not just in the U.S. but around the world due to the global nature of the research ecosystem."
#AcademicFreedom #ALLEA #Censorship #Collaboration #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "Reflections on the Current Moment from SSP’s Board of Directors"
sspnet.org/community/news/stat…
"The challenges stemming from a shifting U.S. political landscape, which threaten academic freedom, #DEIA (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility) initiatives, the scholarly record, and federal research funding, are affecting the Society for Scholarly Publishing (#SSP) community in multiple ways: mentally, emotionally, physically, and financially…Since we were established in 1978, SSP has intentionally demonstrated an unwavering commitment to building a diverse and inclusive community. We actively infuse our work with equitable values, including providing leadership as a founding member of the Coalition for Diversity and Inclusion in Scholarly Publishing (#C4DISC)."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #DEI #ScholComm #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
The recent months have been deeply unsettling for those of us who work in the global scholarly communications industry.Jacklyn Lord (Society for Scholarly Publishing)
Update. "Will medical publishers fight Trump’s war on 'woke'?"
thebookseller.com/comment/will…
"Although many medical journal #editors have made their position known, medical #publishers are, for now, conspicuously silent…The collective resolve of the medical publishing industry is being put to the test. This is an opportunity for the industry to affirm its commitment to safeguard the scholarly record from ideological distortion. #Censorship in health research affects us all. We share a responsibility to stand firm and decry Trump’s war on "gender ideology" as a full-scale assault on the scientific method."
#DefendResearch #Journals #Medicine #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. Statement from #TheLancet in response to recent US executive orders
thelancet.com/editorial-polici…
"The Lancet Group will be making no changes to our editorial policies regarding withdrawal, authorship change, inclusive language, or retraction. Ahead of publication, the withdrawal of submitted papers and authorship changes will only generally be considered if the written agreement of all authors is received. The Lancet Group will continue to recommend the use of inclusive language, accepting authors’ ultimate choice of terminology when it is scientifically accurate and respectful, and will continue to encourage authors to follow the Sex and Gender Equity in Research (SAGER) reporting guidelines. Published papers will only be corrected or retracted when they contain factual errors or if scientific misconduct has taken place. These policies are in line with recently issued guidance from the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors [#ICMJE]."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #DEI #Medicine #ScholComm #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "Farmers Sue Over Deletion of Climate Data From Government Websites"
nytimes.com/2025/02/24/climate…
"Organic farmers and environmental groups sued the Agriculture Department on Monday over its scrubbing of references to #climate change from its website…That included websites containing data sets, interactive tools and funding information that farmers and researchers relied on for planning and adaptation projects, according to the lawsuit…Peter Lehner, a lawyer for #Earthjustice, said the pages being purged were crucial for farmers facing risks linked to climate change, including heat waves, droughts, floods, extreme weather and wildfires."
#Agriculture #Censorship #DefendResearch #Litigation #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
The data, which disappeared from Agriculture Department sites in recent weeks, was useful to farmers for business planning, the lawsuit said.Karen Zraick (The New York Times)
Update. "On March 7, 2025, we [Stand Up For Science] rally [in Washington DC] to defend science as a public good…We call on policymakers, institutions, and the scientific community to uphold the integrity of science, protect its accessibility, and ensure its benefits serve all people. To achieve this, we seek the following policy actions.
1. Secure and Expand Scientific Funding…
2. End Censorship and Political Interference in Science…
3. Defend Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in Science."
standupforscience2025.org/our-…
#Censorship #DefendResearch #DEI #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Download the Stand Up for Science Policy Goals in a printable format here: Download our Policy Goals On March 7, 2025, we rally to defend science as a public good and pillar of social, political, a…STAND UP FOR SCIENCE
Update. "The National Archives is nonpartisan but has found itself targeted by Trump."
apnews.com/article/trump-natio…
"The president didn’t give a public reason for firing archivist Colleen Shogan, but he has long held a grudge against the agency for notifying the Justice Department of his alleged mishandling of classified documents after he left office following his first term…A Trump-aligned archivist might also be less inclined to enforce the Presidential Records Act or ask questions if Trump leaves office with troves of classified documents, said Norm Eisen, executive chair of the State Democracy Defenders Fund."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #NARA #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
As President Donald Trump moves to overhaul the federal government with astonishing speed, he has wreaked havoc on one agency long known for its nonpartisanship and revered for its mission: the National Archives and Records Administration.Ali Swenson (AP News)
Update. "Will They Come for PubMed Next?"
medpagetoday.com/opinion/secon…
"PubMed is the backbone of biomedical research in the U.S. That's not an exaggeration…However, there are reasons to be extremely concerned about its continued existence…There are [at least five] ways the administration could interfere with PubMed."
PS: Although the author mixes up #PubMed and #PubMedCentral, her concerns apply to both.
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Here's what we lose if the administration takes away this invaluable resourceKatie Suleta, DHSc, MPH, MS (MedpageToday)
Update. "The Rise (and Fall?) of the National Science Foundation"
chronicle.com/article/the-rise…
(#paywalled)
"The #Trump administration’s assault on the #NSF represents precisely the kind of political interference [#VannevarBush] sought to prevent — one that threatens not only scientific progress but also the very foundation of academic freedom."
Update. "Déclaration visant à défendre la recherche contre la censure du gouvernement américain"
redactionmedicale.fr/2025/02/d…
Thanks to Herve Maisonneuve for his French translation of the key recommendations of the Feb 13 Declaration To Defend Research Against U.S. Government Censorship. He adds this good conclusion: "We are free to consider that these initiatives are useless… but [signing them] allows us to support colleagues who cannot express themselves in public."
#DefendResearch #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Point n'est besoin d'expliquer ce qui se passe aux USA depuis l'arrivée au pouvoir de Donald Trump dans le domaine de la recherche et de la santé.Rédaction Médicale et Scientifique
Update. Thanks to @georgetown for making this public statement.
president.georgetown.edu/messa…
"I know that the rapidly evolving external environment is unsettling to many in the community. Some of us have received directives to stop our research activities; some of our students have had job offerings rescinded; some have read repeated external communications that question the value of their work…We promote scholarship freely based on inquiring minds…We do not conduct these activities alongside our mission; they are the essence of our mission…Be assured that we are actively tracking all developments as they occur, assessing whether they affect our mission’s work, quickly partnering with those community members affected, and supporting them as they navigate change."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Trump #Universities #USPol #USPolitics
I know that the rapidly evolving external environment is unsettling to many in the community. Some of us have received directives to stop our research activities; some of our students have had job offerings rescinded; some have read repeated external…Joni Halabi (Office of the President)
Update. A new editorial in Nature: "Trump 2.0: an assault on science anywhere is an assault on science everywhere."
nature.com/articles/d41586-025…
"How, then, should those of us who are part of the global enterprise of education, health, science and engineering respond? One priority must be to denounce these actions, to shout about their negative effects, to support researchers and to defend their ability to work and study without fear for their jobs. Understandably, those working at — or even leading — federal agencies might feel that they cannot speak up, but researchers at other organizations, such as universities, scientific societies, businesses, labour unions and campaign groups have more freedom, and must exercise it by showing support for affected colleagues."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
US President Donald Trump is taking a wrecking ball to science and to international institutions. The global research community must take a stand against these attacks.www.nature.com
Update. Reminder from #Trump's first term (2017): Trump’s budget director pick: “Do we really need government-funded research at all”
vox.com/science-and-health/201…
"President Donald #Trump recently picked Rep. Mick #Mulvaney…to head the White House’s Office of Management and Budget [#OMB]…In a stunning September 9 Facebook post (that’s since been deleted but is still cached), Mulvaney asked, '... what might be the best question: do we really need government funded research at all.'"
#DefendResearch #Funding #USPol #USPolitics
Mick Mulvaney suggested Zika science is uncertain, so we shouldn’t bother to fund it.Julia Belluz (Vox)
Update. "CDC Staff Prohibited From Co-Authoring Papers With World Health Organization Personnel"
huffpost.com/entry/cdc-who-pub…
"Scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [#CDC] have been prohibited from co-authoring publications with World Health Organization [#WHO] staff, dealing a blow to global research efforts and continuing the #Trump administration’s aggressive attack on government-funded science."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
It’s just the latest “Orwellian” crackdown on government scientists.Matt Shuham (HuffPost)
Update. The #NIH web site is down.
nih.gov/
It's been up and down, but mostly down, since before noon yesterday.
downdetector.com/status/nih/
I don't know what's going on but will post updates as I find them.
#DefendResearch #Medicine #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Official website of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). NIH is one of the world's foremost medical research centers. An agency of the U.S.National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Update. "RFK Jr. issues rule barring public comment on #HHS rulemaking"
thehill.com/policy/healthcare/…
"Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Friday released a policy prohibiting public comments during his department’s rulemaking process, ending more than 50 years of the public’s involvement in crafting his department’s rules…After assuming office, Kennedy had vowed to usher in “radical transparency” at the HHS…Lawrence O. Gostin, faculty director of O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at the Georgetown University Law Center…speculated that Kennedy was rescinding public comments in order to quickly “ram through” radical changes to health care, public health and scientific research in the U.S."
#DefendResearch #Medicine #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. The #NIH site is back up.
nih.gov/
The reports of it being down have plummeted to near zero.
downdetector.com/status/nih/
But I'm still looking for a good explanation of what happened.
#Medicine #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Official website of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). NIH is one of the world's foremost medical research centers. An agency of the U.S.National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Update. Therese Choquette ran searches on #PubMed and may have found gaps corresponding to terms banned by the #Trump admin.
linkedin.com/posts/therese-cho…
PS: Unfortunately she compared US PubMed with Europe PubMed Central, which is apples to oranges. (PubMed is metadata-only and PMC is full text.) Can we crowdsource some systematic searches comparing (1) PubMed now with PubMed before Trump, e.g. in the Wayback Machine, and (2) US PMC with Europe PMC?
#DefendResearch #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
**Edit: I did this search due to the situation here in the US. The intent was to see how US PubMed performed the searching on topics containing the ”forbidden”… | 67 comments on LinkedInTherese Choquette (former Vallerskog) (www.linkedin.com)
Update. "48 Scientific Societies Representing Almost 100,000 Scientists Ask Congress to Protect the Future of Science"
ucsusa.org/about/news/scientis…
"[48] scientific societies…representing almost 100,000 scientists from diverse disciplines, have sent a letter, organized by the #UCS, to members of Congress demanding that they protect federally funded scientific research and federal scientists. The letter is open so the number of signers may continue to grow."
#DefendResearch #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
48 scientific societies representing almost 100,000 scientists signed on to a letter asking Congress to protect the future of scienceUnion of Concerned Scientists
Update. Here's the open letter mentioned in the previous post (this thread).
ucs-documents.s3.us-east-1.ama…
"We, the undersigned professional scientific societies, associations, and organizations, are writing to ask you to take immediate action to protect and restore life-saving and essential scientific research that…[is] funded by American taxpayers and authorized by Congress and cannot be unilaterally halted by the executive branch."
Update. It's just a coincidence that the newer open letter to Congress in the previous post, this thread (nd but approx March 3) …
ucs-documents.s3.us-east-1.ama…
… and this older letter (nd but approx Feb 17) …
unitedsciencealliance.org/
… were both initially signed by 48 scientific societies. They're different letters, organized by different groups, and signed by (mostly) different societies.
Update. The American Physical Society (#APS, @apsphysics) is running a survey on the impact of cuts to US science #funding. Please take it if you're affected or likely to be affected.
apsphysics.fillout.com/t/6ESUv…
"This survey collects stories showcasing the transformative positive impact of #NSF, #NIST, #DOE, #NASA, and #DOD-funded research and programs as well as what would be lost if support for basic research evaporates. You can document your experiences and share how recent executive actions have impacted you. Individual stories will be only be used publicly with permission or when fully anonymized."
#DefendResearch #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Made with Fillout, the best way to make forms, surveys and quizzes your audience will answer.Impacts of Federal Science Funding
Update. "US science is under threat ― now scientists are fighting back"
nature.com/articles/d41586-025…
"The courts temporarily halted some of the Trump administration’s orders, but a coherent message has broken through: federal support for science is in danger. Gradually, scientists began to stir, Varga says: “They’re realizing now that doing any one thing is better than doing nothing.” That activism is taking many forms...."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Funding #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Researchers are organizing protests and making their voices heard as Trump officials slash funding and lay off federal scientists.Witze, Alexandra
Update. "‘Omg, did #PubMed go dark?’ Blackout stokes fears about database’s future"
nature.com/articles/d41586-025…
"The NIH told Nature in an e-mail that, on 1 March 'some of NIH public-web services experienced service disruptions' but all services were restored on 2 March. 'NIH is committed to resilient and open access to PubMed and other NIH web services,' the team wrote. But [Krutika Kuppalli, an infectious-diseases physician] says any disruption — even if temporary — raises concerns about how researchers access essential scientific information. 'It also serves as a reminder of the need for contingency plans, such as alternative #repositories or offline access to critical research, to ensure that health-care providers and researchers are not left without crucial information when they need it most,' she says."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #OpenInfrastructure #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
A brief outage has focused attention on scientists’ reliance on the US-government-funded website.Mallapaty, Smriti
Update. "EDGI Relaunches Federal Environmental Web Tracker"
envirodatagov.org/press-releas…
"In response to the #Trump administration’s rapid dismantling of federal websites, the Environmental Data & Governance Initiative (#EDGI) has relaunched its Federal Environmental Web Tracker…The… Tracker makes records of significant changes to federal environmental websites publicly available in a searchable database…Since the first Trump administration, EDGI has monitored thousands of federal environmental webpages. Partners at the #InternetArchive download these webpages every day, and EDGI’s #OpenSource software compares versions of these webpages to identify differences."
#Censorship #Climate #DefendResearch #Environment #Monitoring #Preservation #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics
In response to the Trump administration’s rapid dismantling of federal websites, the Environmental Data & Governance Initiative (EDGI) has relaunched its Federal Environmental Web Tracker.Shannan Lenke Stoll (Environmental Data & Governance Initiative)
Update. An editorial in _Annals of Internal Medicine_ responds to "Political Action That Threatens the Integrity of Medical Research."
acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/AN…
"The editors have given a great deal of thought to actions Annals can take to counter some of this damage. Following an executive order that limited the ability of health agency staff to communicate externally, we quickly published all manuscripts with government-affiliated authors that were accepted but awaiting publication before we could receive a request to withdraw them. As a member of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors [#ICMJE], Annals helped develop and strongly endorses the guidance it posted in early February 2025 relevant to journals' responses to requests to withdraw, revise, or alter authorship of manuscripts in process at scientific journals. To date, we are unaware of any request to retract published articles that include banned terms or address issues the U.S. administration deems unsavory. If we receive such requests, Annals will not honor them. Retraction is warranted only when there is clear evidence of major errors or scientific misconduct that seriously compromise research findings."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. Kudos to Aix Marseille University (@univamu_europe), for funding "American Scientists Who Fear #Trump #Censorship"
404media.co/french-university-…
"A leading French university is inviting American scientists who fear their research on subjects like #climate might be censored by Donald Trump’s administration to do their work in France. The program is called ‘safe place for science,’ and will provide 15 million Euros in funding for some 15 researchers over a 3-year period…It targets, but is not limited to, climate and environment, health, and human and social sciences."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #USPol #USPolitics
The program, called ‘safe place for science,’ offers American scientists funding to continue their research in France.Emanuel Maiberg (404 Media)
Update. "NIH to terminate hundreds of active research grants"
nature.com/articles/d41586-025…
"In an unprecedented move, the US #NIH has begun mass terminations of research grants that fund active scientific projects because they no longer meet “agency priorities.” NIH staff members have been instructed to identify and potentially cancel grants for projects studying transgender populations, #gender identity, diversity, equity and inclusion (#DEI) in the scientific workforce, [or] #environmentaljustice…Grants that allot funding to universities in #China and those related to #climate change are also under scrutiny. 'It’s extremely alarming that grants that have been vetted by the scientific community and deemed important and impactful to understand the world are now being cancelled because of political ideology,' says Lisa Fazio, a cognitive psychologist at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, who studies misinformation. 'For all this talk about free speech, this is direct censorship of scientific research.'"
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Funding #Medicine #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Studies that touch on LGBT+ health, gender identity and DEI in the biomedical workforce could be terminated, according to documents obtained by Nature.Mallapaty, Smriti
Update. The Stand Up For Science rally starts in two hours (noon ET).
drive.google.com/file/d/1T5Cnz…
"Since being launched in mid-February, Stand Up for Science has transformed into a national movement with international support. Our primary goal: defending science as a public good and central pillar of social progress. On March 7th, we will host official events mobilizing scientists and science advocates in Washington DC, New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, and 28 other cities around the United States....But March 7th is just the beginning. Our policy goals include a restoration of federal scientific funding, the reinstatement of wrongfully terminated employees at federal agencies, an end to governmental interference and censorship in science, and a renewed commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in science. We are also committed to empowering scientists–and anyone who has benefited from scientific advancements–to engage in sustained advocacy in the years to come."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #standupforscience2025 #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "‘Scientists will not be silenced’: thousands protest Trump research cuts"
nature.com/articles/d41586-025…
"Thousands of researchers and supporters of science protested in cities across the US and Europe today against actions taken by the administration of US President Donald #Trump to cut the US scientific workforce and slash spending on research worldwide…Marie Walde, a biophysicist at the Roscoff Biological Station in France, posted about a rally she attended…saying: “In solidarity with our colleagues in the US, researchers and citizens all over France are protesting today for science and knowledge as a public good.” … Since taking office in January, Trump and his team have laid off, and in some cases then tried to rehire, thousands from US science agencies, whose jobs touched on nuclear safety, bird flu surveillance, extreme-weather forecasting and more."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Funding #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Researchers at Stand Up for Science rallies voice defiance against the policies of US President Donald Trump’s administration.Witze, Alexandra
Heard at yesterday's Stand Up For Science rally in Washington.
medpagetoday.com/publichealthp…
Francis Collins, former director of the #NIH: "99% of new drug approvals depended…on NIH research…So the industry has a lot to lose if federal investment is damaged. It would be good to hear more about that from pharmaceutical company leaders -- just saying."
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD.). Said he was glad to be in a crowd with so many "mad scientists… Everybody in America should be mad…about what we are witnessing right now in our country, including the illegal and reckless attacks on science by Elon #Musk and the #Trump administration."
Former Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI). When he and his colleagues introduced the 21st Century Cures Act in 2015, it included $45 billion in additional health research funding for NIH and FDA. At the time, they had support from members of Congress on both sides of the aisle, including former House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI), then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), and current House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA). "You see, diseases don't impact just Republicans or Democrats. It [sic] impacts all of us."
Bill Nye the Science Guy. "We demand that scientists not be censored, that there be legal safeguards to prevent political interference in their research and they be enabled to communicate their findings freely."
Speakers at D.C. event included politicians, a recent NIH director, and Bill Nye the Science GuyJoyce Frieden (MedpageToday)
Update. Selected additional coverage of the March 7 Stand Up For Science rally in Washington and across the country:
Scientists Are Rising Up to Resist Trump Policies, Inside Climate News, March 6
insideclimatenews.org/news/060…
‘Enough is enough’: Scientists from UCLA, USC protest Trump’s policy changes, LA Times, March 7
latimes.com/environment/story/…
Thousands gather across U.S. and world in Stand Up for Science events, Science, March 7
science.org/content/article/th…
Out of the lab and into the streets, researchers and doctors rally for science against Trump cuts, AP, March 7
apnews.com/article/science-doc…
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Researchers, doctors, their patients and supporters are venturing out of labs, hospitals and offices across the country to stand up to what they call an attack on life-saving science by the Trump administration.Seth Borenstein (AP News)
Update. "USDA’s Purge of #Climate #Data is Illegal and Reckless, Doing Immediate Harm to Farmers, Lawsuit Alleges"
insideclimatenews.org/news/050…
"The #Trump administration has deleted thousands of climate-related web pages from the U.S. Department of #Agriculture’s (#USDA) website, stripping #farmers of critical resources as droughts, floods and shifting growing conditions intensify. Now, a coalition of environmental and farming groups is suing to get that information back, arguing that the purge is not just reckless but illegal."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Small agricultural operations and farmers new to the industry were left particularly vulnerable when the Trump administration took down websites that provide climate information, the plaintiffs claim.Inside Climate News
Update. "These Words Are Disappearing in the New Trump Administration"
nytimes.com/interactive/2025/0…
"The above terms appeared in government memos, in official and unofficial agency guidance and in other documents viewed by The New York Times. Some [agencies] ordered the removal of these words from public-facing websites, or ordered the elimination of other materials (including school curricula) in which they might be included…The presence of some terms was used to automatically flag for review some grant proposals and contracts that could conflict with Mr. #Trump’s executive orders. The list is most likely incomplete. More agency memos may exist than those seen by New York Times reporters, and some directives are vague or suggest what language might be impermissible without flatly stating it."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics
Federal agencies have issued guidance to employees on hundreds of terms to limit or avoid using. An analysis of government websites shows many of the same words being removed.Karen Yourish (The New York Times)
Update. See the growing number of petitions from the Union of Concerned Scientists (#UCS, @ucsusa) at MoveOn.org (@moveon) in support of US science and scientists.
sign.moveon.org/partnerships/u…
Update. From @chrischirp: "Censor, purge, defund: how Trump is following the authoritarian playbook on science and universities"
christinapagel.substack.com/p/…
"Making a list of the actions taken since January 2025 reveals distinct patterns. Just as the administration’s actions as a whole are following an authoritarian playbook, so are the specific ways they are attacking science. I’ve displayed 35 distinct actions in the Venn Diagram below (table of actions with links), grouped into three main categories:
[1] Control of science to align with state ideology; [2] Undermining the independence of universities / suppressing dissent; [3] Maintaining geopolitical / economic goals."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #Universities #USPol #USPolitics
I have mapped 35 of the Trump administration's attacks on science and universities to the authoritarian playbook - and consider what it means for attacks still to comeChristina Pagel (Diving into Data & Decision making)
Update. #ActionLab is a #crowdsourced collection of practical actions "for the various issues scientists are facing in the wake of destructive anti-science policies. Filter our database by action type, by location, by deadline, or by the amount of time you have to spend today. Find a way to act that is right for you."
airtable.com/apppMymixtqx3yqxa…
Here's the gallery view of the 27 actions posted to date.
airtable.com/apppMymixtqx3yqxa…
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Airtable is a low-code platform for building collaborative apps. Customize your workflow, collaborate, and achieve ambitious outcomes. Get started for free.Airtable
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."
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."
US science continues to be hit hard by budget and staff cutsNo 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
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
The U.S. National Academy of Sciences should denounce the antiscientific policies of the Trump administrationScientific 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
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
The Trump administration is targeting climate organizations that received a Biden-era grant.The New Republic
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. "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. "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
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. "#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
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."
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
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 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
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. "#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?
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
The importance of diversity in science is an unshakeable reality that the scientific community must stand by.Caplan, Arthur
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
We will continue to update this roundup as we learn of additional statements. Latest Additions (Last Update: 1:10pm; March 21, 2025) ALA Warns New IMLS Acting Director Not to Cut Programs Required by Law (via ALA) International Federation of Library…Library Journal infoDOCKET
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
France’s research minister said the scientist was traveling to Houston for a conference when his phone was searchedRobert Mackey (The Guardian)
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
Rules designed for adversaries do not help against friends, expert warns, as US grills Australian researchers on DEI, ‘environmental justice’, ‘gender ideology’ and China linksJohn Ross (Times Higher Education (THE))
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
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. "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
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."
reshared this
Glyn Moody reshared this.
@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.
Matt Blaze reshared this.
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.
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
At the Center for Open Science (COS), our mission is to advance openness, integrity, and rigor in research.www.cos.io
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
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
The lawsuit says the detention of noncitizen students and faculty members deprives U.S. citizens of their right to engage with foreign-born peers.Sharon Otterman (The New York Times)
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
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
The current American government is curtailing science in several ways. Certain terms are censored in scientific reports and publications, communications and collaborations between scientists are limited or even proscribed, and funding is withdrawn.Jan Velterop (SciELO in Perspective)
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. 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
Developed by an interdisciplinary research team, this website shows how funding cuts reduce economic activity and employment nationwidescienceimpacts.org
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."
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
Members of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine warned Americans of ‘real danger in this moment’Jessica Glenza (The Guardian)
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
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. "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
The project helped protect Americans from medical errorswww.medpagetoday.com
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-…
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. "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
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. "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."
The Department of Agriculture is no longer allowed to use the phrase “safe drinking water.”The New Republic
Update. "As #Universities Yield to #Trump, Higher Ed #Unions Are Fighting"
insidehighered.com/news/facult…
"Many college and university presidents have kept silent. But unions representing higher ed employees have stepped up to the plate. They’ve protested in Washington, D.C., and on their campuses, organized open letters and filed a flurry of lawsuits against the Trump administration. Union leaders say they are filling a void in an existential fight for higher ed’s future. They wish others would join their resistance, but their unified strength in numbers may protect their members from federal retaliation in ways that higher ed officials aren’t."
#Academia #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter
From lawsuits to protests, labor organizations representing faculty, grad students and other workers are resisting. Discussions about what to do next continue.Ryan Quinn (Inside Higher Ed | Higher Education News, Events and Jobs)
Update. "US Weather Agency to Preserve Research Websites in Reversal"
bloomberg.com/news/articles/20…
"The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency [#NOAA] will preserve access to websites tied to its research division, after previously moving to cancel a cloud web services contract that supports many of its pages. Bloomberg News had reported earlier that the service contract for NOAA’s Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research — known as NOAA Research — had been set to terminate this week, jeopardizing access to most of the office’s public-facing websites. But in an emailed statement Friday, NOAA said that the sites will be preserved."
#Censorship #Climate #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "Massive, Unarchivable Datasets of Cancer, Covid, and Alzheimer's Research Could Be Lost Forever"
404media.co/nih-archives-repos…
(#paywalled)
"Almost two dozen repositories of research and public #health #data supported by the #NIH are marked for “review” under the #Trump administration’s direction, and researchers and archivists say the data is at risk of being lost forever if the repositories go down. “The problem with archiving this data is that we can’t,” Lisa Chinn, Head of Research Data Services at the University of Chicago…Unlike other government datasets or web pages, downloading or otherwise archiving NIH data often requires a Data Use Agreement between a researcher institution and the agency, and those agreements are carefully administered through a disclosure risk review process."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #OpenData #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Days before Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that 10,000 HHS staffers would lose their jobs, a message appeared on NIH research repository sites saying they were "under review."Samantha Cole (404 Media)
Update. "The White House Frames the Past by Erasing Parts of It"
nytimes.com/2025/04/05/technol…
"Thousands of…govt web pages [have] been taken down or modified, including content about vaccines, hate crimes, low-income children, opioid addiction and veterans, before a court order temporarily blocked part of the sweeping erasure. A Justice Department database tracking criminal charges and convictions linked to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol was removed. Segments of data sets are gone, some of the experts who produced them were dismissed, and many mentions of words like “Black,” “women” and “discrimination” have evaporated…“This is not a cost-cutting mechanism,” said Kenny Evans, who studies science and technology policy at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and runs the White House Scientists Archive at the school. 'This slide toward secrecy and lack of transparency is an erosion of democratic norms.'"
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Preservation #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
As the Trump administration pulls government websites and data offline, it is selectively stripping away the public record, letting the president declare his own version of history, archivists and historians said.Tiffany Hsu (The New York Times)
Update. "Marks Says He Was Forced Out of #FDA for Trying to Protect #Vaccine Safety #Data"
medpagetoday.com/publichealthp…
"Shortly before he was forced to resign, the nation's top vaccine regulator says he refused to grant #HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s team unrestricted access to a tightly held vaccine safety database, fearing that the information might be manipulated or even deleted."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #Preservation #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Top vaccine regulator denied RFK Jr. full access to and editing of safety databaseAssociated Press (MedpageToday)
Update. Statement from the University of California Systemwide Academic Senate Council: The Defense of the University, April 8, 2025
senate.universityofcalifornia.…
"We thus call on the Regents, President, and Chancellors of the University of California to expend every effort, commit necessary resources, and use all legal measures to defend our ability to conduct consequential, transformative research and provide high-quality teaching and mentoring. We call on our leaders to ensure the safety and privacy of students, faculty, and staff. And we further call on our leaders to protect academic freedom and faculty control of the curriculum—proactively and publicly."
Update. "Mississippi libraries ordered to delete academic research in response to state laws"
mississippitoday.org/2025/04/0…
"A state commission scrubbed academic research from a database used by #Mississippi #libraries and public #schools — a move made to comply with recent state laws changing what content can be offered in libraries. The Mississippi Library Commission ordered the deletion of two research collections that might violate state law…One of the now deleted research collections focused on “race relations” and the other on “gender studies.”
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
The two research collections state officials ordered for deletion included material from professional journals, conference papers, books, student dissertations, periodicals and newspaper articles.Michael Goldberg (Mississippi Today)
Update. A statement from the American Academy of Arts & Sciences (@americanacad).
amacad.org/news/board-statemen…
"Our founders were also the founders of our nation…Current developments, in their pace, scale, and hostility toward institutions dedicated to knowledge and the pursuit of truth, have little precedent in our modern history. We oppose reckless funding cuts and restrictions that imperil the research enterprise of our universities, hospitals, and laboratories…We condemn efforts to censor our scholarly and cultural institutions, to curtail freedom of the press, and to purge inquiry or ideas that challenge prevailing policies…The Academy will continue to…work to safeguard the conditions of freedom necessary for novel discoveries, creative expression, and truth-seeking in all its forms. We join a rising chorus of organizations and individuals determined to…prevent our nation from sliding toward autocracy."
A statement from the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, approved April 2025.Academy of Arts and Sciences
Update. "Estimated economic losses from federal health research cuts, by county"
axios.com/2025/04/09/nih-cuts-…
"Nearly half of all U.S. counties will experience economic losses of at least $250,000 as a result of the Trump administration's planned cuts to indirect funding by the National Institutes of Health [#NIH], per the Science & Community Impacts Mapping Project."
#DefendResearch #Funding #Medicine #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "NIH freezes all research grants to Columbia University"
science.org/content/article/ni…
"Weeks after President Donald Trump’s administration ordered the U.S. National Institutes of Health to pull $250 million in biomedical research grants to #ColumbiaUniversity, the agency is freezing all remaining grant money owed to the university until further notice…#NIH will not only block new funding for the university, but also stop paying investigators working on all existing NIH projects."
#Academia #DefendResearch #Funding #Medicine #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter
Update. "White House ends funding for key US climate body"
theguardian.com/us-news/2025/a…
"The White House is ending funding for the body that produces the federal government’s pre-eminent climate report, which summarizes the impacts of rising global temperatures on the United States. Every four years, the US Global Change Research Program (#USGCRP) is required by Congress to release a new national climate assessment to ensure leaders understand the drivers of – and threats posed by – global warming. It is the most comprehensive, far-reaching and up-to-date analysis of the climate crisis, playing a key role in local and national decision making about agriculture, energy production, and land and water use…But now, #NASA has ended its contract with the consulting firm ICF International, which convened the USGCRP and coordinated the federal agencies that contribute to the quadrennial report."
#Climate #DefendResearch #Funding #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Nasa cuts contract that convened USGCRP, which released assessments impacting environmental decision-makingDharna Noor (The Guardian)
Update. "US #NIH reverses conference travel ban for scientists"
reuters.com/business/healthcar…
"Researchers at the US National Institutes of Health had been told they cannot attend scientific conferences and meetings without official permission, even if they paid their own way and went during time off… After Reuters reported the travel restriction policy earlier on Thursday, an #HHS spokesperson said, 'Effective April 10, official travel may resume following established approval processes within each Institute and Center.'"
Neither the original travel restrictions nor the recent reversal have been put in writing.
Update. Phillip Levine lists the 77 US #universities that stand to lose the most from three kinds of funding cuts threatened by the #Trump admin: (1) capping indirect costs for #NIH grants at 15%, (2) cutting the #NSF budget by two-thirds, and (3) endowment taxes.
chronicle.com/article/these-77…
(#paywalled)
PS: Note that there are other kinds of cuts that Levine does not bring into this calculation, like withholding funds from targeted institutions because of their DEI or antisemitism policies.
#Academia #DefendResearch #Funding #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter
Update. "More Than $110 Million in #NIH Grants to #Harvard, Affiliated Hospitals Terminated Since Late February"
thecrimson.com/article/2025/4/…
"All of the grants were terminated before the #Trump administration announced a $9 billion review of funding to Harvard and affiliated health care centers. At least four grants to Harvard-affiliated scholars — specifically those related to research on Covid-19 — have since been temporarily reinstated as the White House battles court challenges. The affected projects had more than $43 million in undisbursed funds at the time of cancellation…All of the canceled projects prominently featured themes of #gender and #sexualidentity, #Covid-19 and its #vaccine, or health disparities."
#Academia #Censorship #DefendResearch #Funding #Medicine #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter
The National Institutes of Health has terminated research grants worth more than $110 million to Harvard University and its affiliated hospitals since late February, according to public Department of Health and Human Services filings reviewed by The …www.thecrimson.com
Update. "Judge permanently blocks #NIH’s plan to cap funding, setting up appeals battle"
highereddive.com/news/judge-pe…
"Research #universities won an extended reprieve Friday when a federal judge permanently barred the National Institutes of Health from capping funding for indirect research costs at a 15% rate, a move that would cost institutions billions a year. US District Judge Angel Kelley ruled NIH had violated federal statute, was “arbitrary and capricious” in creating the cap, failed to follow rulemaking procedures when doing so and violated constitutional prohibitions on applying new rules retroactively."
The NIH will surely appeal.
#Academia #DefendResearch #Funding #Trump #USLaw #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter
Universities are waiting cautiously as the agency's unilateral plan to cut billions of research support dollars has already created widespread disruption.Ben Unglesbee (Higher Ed Dive)
Update. "Trump seeks to end climate research at premier U.S. climate agency. White House aims to end NOAA’s research office; NASA also targeted."
science.org/content/article/tr…
(#paywalled)
"President Donald Trump’s administration is seeking to end nearly all of the #climate research conducted by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (#NOAA)…The administration is also preparing to ask for deep cuts to #NASA’s science programs."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Funding #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "Massive cuts to #NASA science proposed in early White House budget plan"
washingtonpost.com/science/202…
"NASA’s science budget could be cut nearly in half under an early version of President Donald Trump’s budget proposal to Congress, a move that would terminate billions of dollars’ worth of ongoing and future missions…'This is an extinction-level event for NASA science,' said Casey Dreier, chief of space policy for the Planetary Society…'It needlessly terminates functional, productive science missions and cancels new missions currently being built, wasting billions of taxpayer dollars in the process.'”
Update. "#CDC's #STD Lab Shuttered by #Trump Layoffs"
medpagetoday.com/infectiousdis…
"A critical laboratory for surveilling sexually transmitted diseases (#STDs) in the US has been lost in the Trump administration's mass layoffs…One of its most remarkable projects is a one-of-its-kind repository of 50,000 isolates of gonorrhea used to monitor antibiotic resistance, which is quickly becoming a global health concern. The lab has been doing this work for nearly 40 years -- but will now, at best, have a gap in data."
Also see the public statement by the American Sexually Transmitted Diseases Association (#ASTDA).
astda.org/statement-from-astda…
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Funding #Medicine #OpenData #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics
Implications of lab slashing 'makes me sick to my stomach,' former employee saidKristina Fiore (MedpageToday)
The Food and Drug Administration (#FDA) has already lost 19% of its staff, the Centers for Disease Control (#CDC) 18%, and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (#CMS) 9%.
medpagetoday.com/special-repor…
#DefendResearch #Medicine #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
This past week in healthcare investigationsKristina Fiore (MedpageToday)
Update. "Faculty Letter to Yale University Administration"
sites.google.com/view/yalefacu…
"We stand together at a crossroads. American universities are facing extraordinary attacks that threaten the bedrock principles of a democratic society, including rights of free expression, association, and academic freedom. We write as one faculty, to ask you to stand with us now. We urge you to: …Resist and legally challenge any unlawful demands that threaten academic freedom and university self-governance…Protect science and other research at Yale from funding cutoffs… Defend the rights to free speech on campus…Work purposefully and proactively with other colleges and universities in collective defense."
#Academia #AcademicFreedom #DefendResearch #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter
April 2025 Dear President McInnis, Provost Strobel, and Members of the Yale Board of Trustees: We stand together at a crossroads.sites.google.com
Update. "The #Trump administration’s cuts have slowed operations in #Antarctica to a crawl. Scientists warn that #climate research conducted there is vitally urgent. Despite this, the #NSF is preparing for an operational retreat from Antarctica."
explorersweb.com/new-funding-c…
PS: This one is more personal for me. In 1996 I visited Palmer Station, a US base for polar biology on Anvers Island off the Antarctic Peninsula, and had a wonderful talk and tour with its director, Polly Penhale.
#DefendResearch #Funding #USPol #USPolitics
The NSF is beginning an operational retreat from Antarctica. Both the aging U.S. facilities and the research itself are imperiled.Lou Bodenhemier (Explorer's Web)
Update. Bad news from the #NEH for #KnowledgeCommons (and the rest of us).
about.hcommons.org/2025/04/17/…
"On April 2, 2025, we received notification that our NEH Infrastructure and Capacity Building Challenge Grant, awarded in 2020, was terminated effective immediately…On April 10, 2025, we received further…notification that our contract to provide the NEH’s Designated Public-Access #Repository was also being terminated…This loss is devastating…both for the financial impact it represents…but also for the unceremonious end to a goal we’d set for ourselves years ago…Not to mention the bigger picture here: that designated public-access repository is no longer needed, because it is assumed that the NEH will no longer be funding research, and thus there will be no results of research to make publicly accessible."
PS: All the agencies covered by the #OSTP #NelsonMemo must designate #OpenAccess repositories for their OA content. NEH was the only agency to designate a repo not hosted by the govt. All the other agency repos will be hosted by the govt, where they will be subject to political censorship or takedowns.
#Censorship #DefendResearch #GreenOA #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "Faculty From 14 Universities Join Forces to Call on Administrative Bodies to Stand Up to Attacks on Higher Education"
docs.google.com/document/d/1hF…
"Faculty from fourteen universities across the United States signed and released letters calling for their respective university’s administrative bodies to stand up to the Trump administration’s attacks on academic freedom, freedom of inquiry, and other democratic principles. Nearly 5,100 faculty have collectively signed these letters on what the American Association of University Professors has called a Day of Action for Higher Ed. This is a collaborative effort independently organized by passionate faculty across four universities… Following the extraordinary sign of leadership from Harvard University on April 14, 2025, these faculty are speaking out to encourage their own institutions to stand up and fight back collectively against the illegal and unprecedented actions of the federal government."
#Academia #Censorship #DefendResearch #Trump #Universities #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Faculty From 14 Universities Join Forces to Call on Administrative Bodies to Stand Up to Attacks on Higher Education Nearly 5,100 Faculty From 14 Universities Call on University Administrations to Stand Up to Attacks on Democr…Google Docs
Update. "Trump’s War on Measurement Means Losing Data on Drug Use, Maternal Mortality, Climate Change and More"
propublica.org/article/trump-d…
"The data collection efforts that have been shut down or are at risk of being curtailed are staggering in their breadth. In some cases, datasets from past years now sit orphaned, their caretakers banished and their future uncertain; in others, past data has vanished for the time being, and it’s unclear if and when it will reappear. Here are just a few examples."
PS: What follows is one of the best lists of deleted or endangered datasets so far published.
#Censorship #DefendResearch #OpenData #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
By slashing teams that gather critical data, the administration has left the federal government with no way of understanding if policies are working — and created a black hole of information whose consequences could ripple out for decades.ProPublica
Update. "Trump team freezes new NSF awards — and could soon axe hundreds of grants"
nature.com/articles/d41586-025…
"All new research grants have been frozen at the US National Science Foundation (#NSF) — an action apparently ordered by the Department of Government Efficiency (#DOGE)… Documents seen by Nature show that two members of DOGE…have been given access to grant management systems and used that access to prevent grants from receiving funding that were already approved but awaiting finalization. 'That, of course, raises the hairs on the back of our neck in a worrisome way,' an NSF programme officer says."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Funding #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
The National Science Foundation is the latest US agency to be disrupted by Elon Musk’s DOGE.Garisto, Dan
Ned Hamson reshared this.
Update. "#NIH freezes funds to #Harvard and four other universities, but can’t tell them."
science.org/content/article/ni…
(#paywalled)
"After freezing all grants to #Columbia University last week, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is now stopping grant and contract payments to Harvard University and four other universities [#Brown, #Northwestern, #Cornell, #WeillCornell Medical School]…The move will both block new funding and halt payments to investigators currently working on NIH projects…The Department of Health and Human Services (#HHS)…instructed NIH staff not to provide any communication to these institutions or to Columbia about whether the funds are frozen or why, according to the email."
#Academia #DefendResearch #Funding #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter
Update. "Trump’s #DOJ Sends Intimidating Letters to Medical #Journals for Supposedly Being ‘Partisan’ "
gizmodo.com/trumps-doj-sends-i…
"The U.S. Department of Justice has sent letters to medical journals for supposedly being “partisan,” heavily suggesting that they’re spreading misinformation and are influenced by “funders” rather than medical science. Gizmodo has confirmed that the journal CHEST, a peer-reviewed publication on pulmonary care published by the American College of Chest Physicians, received a letter this week. And MedPage Today reports that at least two other journals have received similar intimidating letters."
PS: The letter to Harvard shows that the Trump admin wants to control what universities teach. These letters show that it also wants to control what scholarly journals publish.
#AcademicFreedom #Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Trump's goons will eventually come for everyone.Matt Novak (Gizmodo)
Update. "U.S. climate data websites go dark"
science.org/content/article/us…
"U.S. scientists, state policymakers, farmers, and others who depend on up-to-date #climate data on Thursday confronted an information blackout from federal regional climate centers across much of the country. “Unfortunately, all data and services offered under the base contract, including this website, will be unavailable unless and until funding is resumed,” a statement on the Southern Regional Climate Center’s website read…The disruption appears to be a temporary paperwork bottleneck within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (#NOAA), rather than a policy decision by agency leadership, officials at several of the centers say. The centers are managed by NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information. But they are housed chiefly at #universities operating under 5-year agreements. The contracts for payment are approved each year. The last annual cycle ended on 16 April."
#Climate #DefendResearch #Funding #OpenData #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "Over 150 US university presidents sign letter decrying #Trump administration"
theguardian.com/us-news/2025/a…
"More than 150 presidents of US colleges and universities have signed a statement denouncing the Trump administration’s “unprecedented government overreach and political interference” with higher education – the strongest sign yet that US educational institutions are forming a unified front against the government’s extraordinary attack on their independence. The statement, published early on Tuesday by the American Association of Colleges and Universities, comes weeks into the administration’s mounting campaign against higher education, and hours after Harvard University became the first school to sue the government over threats to its funding."
The letter itself:
aacu.org/newsroom/a-call-for-c…
#AACU #Academia #DefendResearch #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter
Statement signed by Harvard, Princeton and Brown leaders denounces White House’s ‘undue government intrusion’Alice Speri (The Guardian)
reshared this
Glyn Moody reshared this.
Update. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (#NOAA) maintains a public list of datasets and databases it's terminating.
nesdis.noaa.gov/about/document…
Transparency about pulling the plug on transparency.
#Climate #DefendResearch #OpenData #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Notices of changes are formal public announcements of planned services changes to applications and other products.National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service
Update. "National Science Foundation Terminates Hundreds of Active Research Awards"
nytimes.com/2025/04/22/science…
"In January, the #Trump administration attempted to freeze grant payments for existing awards at the #NSF. A temporary restraining order lifted the freeze. The order also said that the agency could not terminate active awards to comply with President Trump’s executive orders…In a statement on Friday, the NSF said that its grant cancellations were not in violation of the temporary restraining order. When asked by The Times to provide clarification on the legality of the grant cancellations, the agency declined to comment…On Friday, the NSF went further, canceling grants supporting ongoing research."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Funding #USPol #USPolitics
The agency targeted grants focused on diversity, equity and inclusion, as well as research on misinformation.Katrina Miller (The New York Times)
Update. "How #Trump is following #Project2025’s radical roadmap to defund science."
nature.com/articles/d41586-025…
"Indiscriminate firings. Terminated grants. Cancelled programmes. The barrage of actions by US President Donald Trump has shocked the country’s research community over the past two months. Yet, much of it was planned out years in advance and laid out publicly…The Wall Street Journal found that more than half of Trump’s executive orders (EOs) align with Project 2025 recommendations. And most of its 40 listed authors are now key figures on Trump’s team…Here, Nature examines science-related policies from Project 2025 that have already come to pass, and which ones might be on the horizon."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Funding #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Much of the Trump administration’s agenda for research is laid out in the 900-plus-page blueprint. Nature read it so you don’t have to.Garisto, Dan
Nomad13 reshared this.
Update. "The federal Department of Education [#ED] maintains an open access database of more than 2 million documents [Education Resources Information Center, #ERIC] dating back to the 1960s. It will cease operating Wednesday due to #DOGE cuts."
governing.com/policy/major-edu…
PS: I use many sources in my attempt to stay on top of what's happening with #OpenAccess, #OpenScience, #OpenEducation, and so on. ERIC has been one of the stalwarts.
#DefendResearch #Education #Funding #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
The federal Department of Education maintains an open access database of more than 2 million documents dating back to the 1960s. It will cease operating Wednesday due to DOGE cuts.Governing
Kim Perales reshared this.
Update. "#NIH Grant Cuts Aren't Saving Money. They're Wasting It."
bloomberg.com/opinion/articles…
"The Trump administration’s waves of massive cuts to funding at the NIH are framed as a recasting of research priorities and a way to save taxpayer money. Another way to frame it is an exercise in massive waste. In terminating nearly 750 NIH grants over the past two months, the government dumped years of investment down the drain…Funding was pulled just as some of these projects were getting off the ground, while others were rounding into their last year of funding — a point where enough data would finally be collected to offer concrete results. Our analysis found that nearly 40% of the canceled R01 grants supported research that had yet to produce findings, meaning all of the agency’s prior investments won’t benefit the public."
Update. "US dismisses all authors of National Climate Assessment."
reuters.com/sustainability/cop…
"President Donald Trump's administration has dismissed all contributors to the U.S. government's signature study that informs federal and local governments on how to prepare for climate change impacts…The dismissal of nearly 400 contributors to the sixth National Climate Assessment, which is mandated by Congress, leaves the future of the report in doubt."
reshared this
G. Gibson reshared this.
Update. I just did an interview for the Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (#ZBW, @ZBW_MediaTalk) on the impact of #Trump admin actions on US research and higher education. Thanks to @avatter for the good questions.
zbw-mediatalk.eu/2025/04/peter…
#Academia #Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter
Update. "Scientist Who Helped Prove Humans Changed the Climate Watches Evidence Being Erased"
sfpublicpress.org/scientist-wh…
"Ben Santer never imagined that 12 words could change the trajectory of his life and humanity’s understanding of what it was doing to the planet: 'The balance of evidence suggests a discernible human influence on global climate.' He wrote that sentence as the lead author of a pivotal chapter in the 1995 report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [#IPCC]…Now the #data sources that made that discovery possible are under threat… 'There’s real concern that the data may go away, that the satellites, measurements that have been collected for 40 plus years, may not continue.'"
#Censorship #Climate #DefendResearch #OpenData #Preservation #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Livermore Lab’s Ben Santer spent decades tracing humanity’s imprint on the atmosphere. Now, the data behind his work is under attack.Michael Stoll (San Francisco Public Press)
Update. Noam Ross and Scott Delaney maintain a crowdsourced database of #NIH grant terminations. Extremely helpful.
airtable.com/appjhyo9NTvJLocRy…
Meagan Parrish has put together a useful overview of what it contains.
pharmavoice.com/news/nih-hhs-c…
Ross and Delaney also maintain a database of #NSF grant terminations. Right now it lists 501.
airtable.com/appGKlSVeXniQZkFC…
#DefendResearch #Funding #Medicine #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
A look at the government’s far-reaching rollback in research grants so far.Meagan Parrish (PharmaVoice)
Update. People receiving an #NIH grant must now promise not to participate in #DEI programs or any boycott of #Israel or companies doing business in Israel. NIH calls this a "civil rights" condition on the grant.
grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/no…
#CivilRights #DefendResearch #Medicine #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
NIH Funding Opportunities and Notices in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts: Notice of Civil Rights Term and Condition of Award NOT-OD-25-090. NIHgrants.nih.gov
Update. "Impacts of Restrictions on Federal Grant Funding in Physics and Astronomy Graduate Programs."
ww2.aip.org/statistics/impacts…
"37% of the responding department chairs [in #physics and #astronomy] said they expect to enroll fewer first-year graduate students in the fall of 2025 than they did the previous year…The number of first-year graduate students in physics and astronomy is anticipated to decline by about 13%. This is a projected decline of about 600 first-year graduate students."
#DefendResearch #Funding #ERC #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update from Lisa Schiff (@lschiff), "Protecting your work – and your values – in US higher education."
timeshighereducation.com/campu…
"With US higher education under attack from the federal government, what can scholars do to ensure their research is preserved and to stand up for academic freedom? Lisa Schiff, a co-author of the Declaration to Defend Research."
#Academia #Censorship #DefendResearch #Preservation #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter
With US higher education under attack from the federal government, what can scholars do to ensure their research is preserved and to stand up for academic freedom? Lisa Schiff, a co-author of the Declaration to Defend Research Against US Government C…THE Campus Learn, Share, Connect
Update from Gary Price (@infodocket). "Accessing Archived Material From #ERIC (Education Resource Information Center) via the #InternetArchive."
infodocket.com/2025/04/23/acce…
"Here are a couple ways to access archived material from ERIC on the open web. We will do our best to keep this post updated if/when new open web sources become available to access ERIC material."
#DefendResearch #Education #Preservation #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Here are a couple ways to access archived material from ERIC on the open web. We will do our best to keep this post updated if/when new open web sources become available to access ERIC material. At this hour (9pm EDT, April 23) the ERIC.ed.Library Journal infoDOCKET
Update. At least five medical journals have now confirmed that the #Trump Justice Dept sent them letters asking what steps they take to deal with "misinformation" and "competing viewpoints".
medpagetoday.com/special-repor…
The three willing to be named are:
1. 𝘊𝘏𝘌𝘚𝘛, from the American College of Chest Physicians
2. 𝘖𝘣𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘴 & 𝘎𝘺𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘺, from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
3. 𝘕𝘦𝘸 𝘌𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘑𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘔𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘦, from the Massachusetts Medical Society.
It's the fifth journal to confirm receiving a letter asking about alleged biasKristina Fiore (MedpageToday)
Update. "Groups Decry Loss of Funding for 'Critically Important' GI Disease Network."
medpagetoday.com/special-repor…
"Physicians and patient advocates are sounding the alarm after the #NIH abruptly withdrew a grant renewal application for the Consortium of Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Disease Researchers (#CEGIR), the only clinical care network for eosinophilic gastroenteritis patients in the U.S."
The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (#AAAAI) says that NIH defunded the project, not on the merits, but because it uses "foreign components".
aaaai.org/about/news/news/2025…
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Funding #Medicine #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Sudden grant application dismissals will 'directly harm patients,' AAAAI saysJennifer Henderson (MedpageToday)
Update. The long-running and wide-ranging study of women's health that #NIH cut two days was back on track the next day.
nytimes.com/2025/04/24/health/…
PS: This is another sign that some protests work. It's also an example of thoughtless pillaging, as opposed to a careful attempt to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse.
#DefendResearch #Medicine #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
The decades-long research effort has contributed to thousands of research papers, altering medical care for women around the world.Roni Caryn Rabin (The New York Times)
Update. "Funding cut for landmark study of women's health."
npr.org/2025/04/23/nx-s1-53728…
"The #Trump administration is shutting down most of a landmark federal project studying women's health, stunning researchers around the country…The study, begun in the 1990s, has produced a series of groundbreaking results and was continuing to gather valuable data about women's health…Neither the #NIH, which funds the study, nor #HHS, which oversees the NIH, responded to NPR's questions about the matter…One big question is what will happen to the huge repository of #data…which represents a treasure trove that could be mined to make yet more important discoveries."
#DefendResearch #Funding #Medicine #OpenData #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. The #OpenAccess Biodiversity Heritage Library (#BHL) needs a new home. The #Smithsonian will stop hosting it next January.
blog.biodiversitylibrary.org/2…
#Biodiversity #DefendResearch #ILoveBHL #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
The Biodiversity Heritage Library (BHL) is the world’s largest open access digital library for biodiversity literature and archives. A global consortium of over 660 contributors, BHL has made more …Biodiversity Heritage Library
Update. Usha Lee McFarling has put together a very useful timeline of #Trump's major actions on science and health in his first 100 days.
statnews.com/2025/04/24/trump-…
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics
This timeline of the Trump administration documents decisions and events that have transpired with unprecedented speed since his inaugurationUsha Lee McFarling (STAT)
Update. "Will US science survive Trump 2.0?"
nature.com/articles/d41586-025…
"In just the first three months of his second term, US President Donald Trump has destabilized eight decades of government support for science. His administration has fired thousands of government scientists, bringing large swathes of the country’s research to a standstill and halting many clinical trials. It has threatened to slash billions in funding from US research universities and has terminated more than 1,000 grants in areas such as climate change, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease and HIV prevention. This looks likely to be just the beginning."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
President Donald Trump and his administration have gutted science agencies, terminated research programmes and cancelled billions of dollars in grants to universities. What are the long-term impacts for the United States and the world?Ledford, Heidi
Update. "‘The Classified Catalog’ launches to track secrecy news"
freedom.press/the-classifieds/…
"The [Trump] administration is eroding the information environment in ways this country has never seen. More secrets are being kept, more data is being deleted, and more government employees are being censored. This excessive secrecy prevents the public from meaningfully participating in self-government on domestic policies from climate and health issues to foreign affairs. To combat this, Freedom of the Press Foundation (#FPF) began tracking reports of government secrecy in January 2025."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Journalism #Monitoring #Secrecy #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
New database will mark Trump’s 100th day in officeFreedom of the Press
Update. One of many good points by Alice Meadows and Suze Kundu:
scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org/20…
When #Trump cuts budgets and staffing at science agencies, and terminates research grants, #journalists should write about the effects on people (less cancer research, more cancer), not just the effects on universities (less funding).
#DefendResearch #Journalism #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Alice Meadows and guest chef Suze Kundu look at how, by acting collectively across all stakeholder groups, we could turn the Trump administration's threats against research into opportunitiesAlice Meadows (The Scholarly Kitchen)
Update. #RFKJr has ordered the #NIH to stop studying #ebola and half a dozen other fatal infectious diseases.
wired.com/story/hhs-niaid-irf-…
Update. "Accelerating Access to Research Results: New Implementation Date for the 2024 #NIH Public Access Policy"
nih.gov/about-nih/who-we-are/n…
"I am excited to announce that one of my first actions as NIH Director is pushing the accelerator on policies to make NIH research findings freely and quickly available to the public. The 2024 Public Access Policy, originally slated to go into effect on December 31, 2025, will now be effective as of July 1, 2025."
PS: This announcement is from the Trump-appointed NIH director, #JayBhattacharya. It's another sign that Trump has not revoked or weakened the #OSTP #NelsonMemo, despite other attacks on research, including #takedowns of #OpenAccess texts and data. At the NIH, the largest funding agency, implementation of the Nelson memo is even speeding up.
#DefendResearch #Medicine #USPol #USPolitics
Speeding access to research results will support NIH's goal of maximum transparency.National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Update. "Amid DOGE-induced turmoil, National Science Foundation in crisis."
washingtonpost.com/science/202…
"The 75-year-old government agency [#NSF] has one function: keep the U.S. science enterprise at the leading edge. In the past two weeks, however, the $9 billion agency, which exists entirely to fund science researchers, projects and facilities…hit reverse on its main mission."
Update. "Exclusive: #NSF stops awarding new grants and funding existing ones."
nature.com/articles/d41586-025…
"Staff members at the US National Science Foundation (NSF) were told on 30 April to “stop awarding all funding actions until further notice,” according to an email seen by Nature. The policy prevents the NSF, one of the world’s biggest supporters of basic research, from awarding new research grants and from supplying allotted funds for existing grants, such as those that receive yearly increments of money. The email does not provide a reason for the freeze and says that it will last 'until further notice'."
#DefendResearch #Funding #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
US science funder also plans to screen grant applications for compliance with ‘agency priorities’.Garisto, Dan
Update. "#NIH halts funding for new projects with foreign collaborators, citing national security concerns."
statnews.com/2025/05/01/nih-ha…
"The National Institutes of Health announced Thursday it will no longer allow subawards to foreign institutions, as part of a national security-minded overhaul to how the agency manages its $47 billion research funding portfolio. The change is likely to cause immediate disruptions to research projects around the world."
#Collaboration #DefendResearch #Funding #Medicine #Nationalism #NationalSecurity #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
NIH abruptly halts some foreign research funding, derailing a vital flu vaccine trial and disrupting global health projectsMegan Molteni (STAT)
Glyn Moody reshared this.
Update. "#Trump says he’s yanking #Harvard’s tax-exempt status."
politico.com/news/2025/05/02/t…
PS: We could say that Trump has moved from threat to action. Or we could say that he's started another two-step dance to energize the MAGA base, first with a futile gesture ("look at my strong action!") and second with the inevitable loss in court ("look at those radical judges!").
#Academia #DefendResearch #Nonprofits #Universities #USLaw #USPol #USPolitics
@academicchatter
Update. "Education Department restarts online library #ERIC."
hechingerreport.org/proof-poin…
"The US Department of Education announced Monday that it would continue to operate its online library, known as ERIC, after allowing it to lapse last week. The Department of Government Efficiency (#DOGE) had sought significant cuts to the document repository that is used by 14 million people a year, and allowed funding to run out on April 23…A new, albeit much smaller contract was signed on April 24…[Matthew Soldner, the acting director of the Institute of Education Sciences] said that 'no content has been removed or deleted from ERIC. The preservation policy is unchanged [and] we will not remove an article in ERIC unless it is retracted by the publisher.'"
#DefendResearch #Education #Takedowns #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
The U.S. Department of Education announced Monday that it would continue to operate its online library, known as ERIC, after allowing it to lapse last week.Jill Barshay (The Hechinger Report)
Update. PEN America (@pen_ev) is pulling together separate federal agency lists of banned words to make one, growing master list. It currently has more than 350 entries.
pen.org/banned-words-list/
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Banned words list 2025: The federal government is banning a growing number of words to comply with executive orders from President Trump.ltolin (PEN America)
Ned Hamson reshared this.
Update. "#NIH under siege."
science.org/content/article/ni…
"Nearly 3 months into President Donald Trump’s administration, NIH in-house scientists and other workers [are] reeling from mass layoffs of colleagues; the removal of leaders; and limits on travel, communication, and purchasing that have shut the agency off from the outside world, hamstrung experiments, and crushed the community’s spirits…The atmosphere is one of 'chaos and fear and frustration and anger,' said a senior scientist with NIH’s intramural research program…This scientist added: 'It’s this feeling of utter powerlessness and repeated insults.'"
#DefendResearch #Funding #Medicine #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "Trump proposes unprecedented budget cuts to US science."
nature.com/articles/d41586-025…
"The budget document released by the White House on Friday for the upcoming fiscal year…would cut all non-defence spending by 23% but targets the US National Science Foundation [#NSF] for a 56% funding reduction, and would slash the budget of the US National Institutes of Health [#NIH] by roughly 40%. The Environmental Protection Agency [#EPA], which on Friday also announced plans to dismantle its primary research division, would be hit by a 55% cut as the administration seeks to eliminate what it calls “radical” and “woke” #climate programmes."
#DefendResearch #Funding #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Huge reductions, if enacted, could have ‘catastrophic’ effects on US competitiveness and the scientific pipeline, critics say.Witze, Alexandra
Update. "The Latest #Trump and #DOGE Casualty: #Energy Data."
propublica.org/article/the-lat…
"The #EIA [Energy Information Administration, an independent agency housed inside the Department of Energy, #DOE] has privately informed staff that it is scrapping publication of its closely followed International Energy Outlook for 2025. The previous edition of the international outlook, released every two years, contained 70 pages detailing global trends. The paradox: That will leave the field open to the equivalent publication from the Paris-based International Energy Agency, which conservatives accuse of bending its forecasts to promote climate-change goals."
#Censorship #Climate #DefendResearch #OpenData #Takedowns #USPol #USPolitics
The Energy Information Administration has long provided reliable data on everything from oil and gas to alternative energy. Now one of its signature reports has been slashed and a second one canceled entirely amid sweeping job reductions and turmoil.ProPublica
Update. "National Endowment for the Arts rescinds grants, dazing publishers and theaters."
washingtonpost.com/entertainme…
"Arts organizations across the country saw their grants pulled with little explanation, while a proposed federal budget sought to eliminate the arts funding agency altogether."
#Arts #DefendResearch #Funding #NEA #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
Update. "One of California’s largest collections of history could go dark."
sfgate.com/local/article/calif…
"One of #California’s largest collections of digitized #newspapers, going back nearly 200 years and spanning approximately 54 million articles, could disappear due to gutted state #funding. The unexpected news has delivered a heavy blow to historians, journalists, researchers and educators who rely on the archives for their work…The California Digital Newspapers Collection, housed at UC Riverside’s Center for Bibliographical Studies and Research, said on its website that its future “is in jeopardy” after…its budget was completely decimated, leaving [it] with just a few weeks to source $300,000 or face the possibility of getting shut down."
Update. Kudos to the American Meteorological Society (#AMS) and the American Geophysical Union (#AGU). Less than a week after the #Trump admin fired the 400 scientists working on the sixth National Climate Assessment (#NCA), due in 2028, these two scientific societies stepped up to continue the work in a new form.
news.agu.org/press-release/agu…
#Climate #DefendResearch #USPol #USPolitics
Congressionally mandated, the NCA draws on the latest scientific research to evaluate how climate change is affecting the United States.AGU News
Update. "#NIH blocks researchers in China, Russia and other countries from multiple databases."
fiercebiotech.com/research/nih…
"The #Trump administration has blocked access to multiple data repositories maintained by the NIH…The ban is effective April 4 and applies to institutions in China, Hong Kong, Macau, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba and Venezuela…The numerous controlled-access data repositories (CADRs) that are affected by the rule hold data on a vast swath of subjects including cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, mental health disorders, substance abuse and adolescent brain development."
#Censorship #DefendResearch #Medicine #Nationalism #OpenData #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
The Trump administration has blocked access to multiple data repositories maintained by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for researchers in several countries, including a cancer statistics d | The Trump administration has blocked access to mul…Darren Incorvaia (Fierce Biotech)
Update. "Protecting research from censorship: resources for scholarly publishers."
blog.scholasticahq.com/post/pr…
"The onslaught of executive actions introduced over the past few months to impose significant funding cuts and workforce reductions on federal research agencies, take down public data, and prohibit the use of words related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) has left many in the crosshairs grappling to wrap their heads around the implications of hastily issued government directives and policy changes. While there are still more unknowns than answers, initiatives are forming to track, assess, and help individuals and organizations respond to threats to research, including the Declaration To Defend Research Against US Government Censorship (#DefendResearch declaration), which #Scholastica has joined. We’ve developed this blog post to help scholarly publishers and editors stay abreast of guidance and initiatives pertinent to their operations and communities…We will update this post with new information as it becomes available."
#Censorship #Takedowns #Publishers #Trump #USPol #USPolitics
While there is a great deal of uncertainty surrounding the state of research in the US, initiatives are forming to help scholarly publishers respond to government directives and policy changes. We round up resources in this blog post.blog.scholasticahq.com
This is mindblowing disruption. This new US executive order orders an immediate review of all *existing* federal grants & contracts & also freezes all federal credit cards. The federal gov funds a huge amount of science & it will all stop while this plays out.
whitehouse.gov/presidential-ac…
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered: Section 1.The White House
In the final few months of 1990, Tim Berners-Lee and his colleague Robert Cailliau developed the world’s first browser, created HTML, wrote the first web server, and invented HTTP.Richard MacManus (Cybercultural)
Cop was speeding while watching a Youtube video titled, “Trans woman CONFRONTING Matt Walsh takes UNEXPECTED turn” when he struck and killed a bicyclist.
#MAGA trash. #acab #lgbtq
vtdigger.org/2025/03/07/shelbu…
Kyle Kapitanski is set to be arraigned next week on a felony charge stemming from the crash that killed Sean Hayes, a cyclist, in South Burlington.Alan J. Keays (VTDigger)
Be honest. Would you drink from THIS spring?
#Germany #folktale #folklore #WildHunt @germany @folklore
patreon.com/posts/wild-hunt-pa…
US judge says Musk's DOGE must release records on operations run in 'secrecy
#AureFreePress #News #press #headline #GOP #Politics #uspolitics #uspol
yahoo.com/news/us-judge-says-m…
(Reuters) -A federal judge on Monday ordered the government-downsizing team created by U.S. President Donald Trump and spearheaded by billionaire Elon Musk...Nate Raymond (Yahoo News)
12 March 1926 | A Polish Roma woman, Wanda Ferko-Pawłowska, was born in Zabrzeg.
In #Auschwitz from 29 July 1942.
No. 10570
She was transferred to KL Ravensbrück and liberated there.
More than a century ago, the US learned what happens when there is no national response to a major health crisis.The Conversation
'Landsknecht Orc' by Ylva Ljungqvist
Source: artstation.com/artwork/03mJnE
#DnD #DungeonsAndDragons #ttrpg #character #characterart #art #digitalart
Trying to figure out how I would explain to the version of myself living in 1995 the phrase "one of the most prominent surf draculas of our time"
knowyourmeme.com/memes/surf-dr…
Surf Dracula is a slang expression describing a trope in television shows and other media in which the character's backstory takes so long that the exciting main part of that character's arc arrives too late and gets insufficient screen time.Philipp (Know Your Meme)
Blaise reshared this.
An experienced thru-hiker traveling to the US to hike the AZT last month says she was treated inhumanely and deported without justification.Caitlin Hardee (The Trek)
Glyn Moody reshared this.
An unofficial guide to using Mastodon and the Fediversefedi.tips
Ahhh, interesting, thanks for the info! 🙏
I've added this to the article, hopefully it helps others too.
Banks and public money are financing Brazil's Amazon collapse
#politics #brazil #environmentalism
sumauma.com/en/exclusivo-como-…
From January 2018 to August 2024, nearly $1.9 billion was lent to 24,000 rural areas in the region known as Amacro, an agricultural frontier opened under Bolsonaro.Natália Chagas (SUMAÚMA)
Spotify appears to have removed Andrew Tate's "pimping hoes" class; internal communications show some Spotify employees complained about offering the course (Emanuel Maiberg/404 Media)
404media.co/pretty-vile-spotif…
mediagazer.com/250312/p12#a250…
Internal Spotify communications viewed by 404 Media show Spotify’s own employees complaining about Andrew Tate’s course being available on the platform.Emanuel Maiberg (404 Media)
You're going to want to read today's story. Gives you a better sense of the people who most closely surround Musk. Here's the lede:
At 49, Branden Spikes isn't just one of the oldest technologists who has been involved in Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). As the current director of information technology at X/Twitter and an early hire at PayPal, Zip2, Tesla and SpaceX, Spikes is also among Musk's most loyal employees. Here's a closer look at this trusted Musk lieutenant, whose Russian ex-wife was once married to Elon's cousin.
krebsonsecurity.com/2025/03/wh…
At 49, Branden Spikes isn't just one of the oldest technologists who has been involved in Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). As the current director of information technology at X/Twitter and an early hire at PayPal, Zip2, Tesla…krebsonsecurity.com
A man dared a hostess in Tokyo to a drinking game. She died several hours later. The story demonstrates how obscenely wealthy men use their power to take advantage of economically disadvantaged women for nothing but the sake of their own amusement.
#Japan #unseenjapan #ujwebsite
A "drinking game" in a high-end Tokyo bar that ended in a young woman's death has drawn attention to the abusive power wielded by rich men.Jay Allen (Unseen Japan)
The EU has just started a review of European public procurement rules, and have asked for input on potential changes to the rules.Open Source Initiative
404 Media has obtained the list of sites and services that ICE contractor ShadowDragon pulls data from. ShadowDragon sources data from all over the web and lets government analysts easily search it and draw connections between people.Joseph Cox (404 Media)
@_L1vY_ @PersistentDreamer
I remember a civil rights attorney, Stanley Cohen, telling me way back when I was on Twitter, that they can get to signal too. I don't remember how the government can do it, just that they are able. I also don't remember how he knew this but it was legit. I do recall he said it was more difficult but still doable.
I know that was all kinds of help 😆
😊☮️
Prelinger Archives is in the final year of a three-year grant for mass-digitization of its film collection funded by Filecoin Foundation for the Decentralized Web. Since the start of the […]\nblog.archive.org
Doctors often miss the signs of eating disorders in middle-aged women due to cultural stereotypes around these illnesses.The Conversation
Glyn Moody reshared this.
We’ve often noted how there are $42.5 billion in broadband grants headed to the states courtesy of the 2021 infrastructure bill. The GOP voted against the bill, but have repeatedly turned aro…Techdirt
Hey welcome back to my new channel, Documenting the Collapse of US Democracy! I know this must be strange for those of you who preferred the old format of discussing science and critical thinking butRebecca Watson (Skepchick)
Here is an alt-text description of the image:
The comic "Tom the Dancing Bug" by Ruben Bolling is titled "Elon Musk and His Doge Pals™ in 'Auto Graft'". It has nine panels with the main characters being Elon Musk, a man in a MAGA hat, a Doge, and a man with glasses. The comic is about Elon Musk being responsible for billions in government looting and waste. The man in the MAGA hat says, "Let's go, pals! I'll just bet that guy's a... DEI!" A van labeled "Musk Mobile" is shown with dollar signs on it, and the person with glasses says, "Okay, Elon! After this guy took over a car company in 2008, he got a special low-interest loan from the Energy Department!" The man in the MAGA hat says, "How about $38 billion in government give-aways?! That made him unimaginably wealthy!" The man with glasses says, "Here! I found some African dude who started his tech career in America in the 1990s while working here illegally!" The other characters decide to go after Elon Musk instead, and the Doge says "Ruh-roh!"
Provided by @altbot, generated using Gemini
COVID-19 highlighted the need to plan for medical emergencies, but most people still avoid the issue.The Conversation
The OSM Local Chapters & Communities Congress 2025 (LCCC 2025) is a virtual event where leaders and members of various OSM communities come together to share stories and learn from each other. The next annual congress will take place on 15th March 2025
wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Fo…
#OSM #OpenStreetMap #gischat #maps #LCCC
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MasterMischief
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •Gregory
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •That "boom" sound. That's what hitting rock bottom sounds like.
He ain't wrong.
George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽
in reply to Gregory • • •DP0
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •Trump 2.0 is like Brexit on steroids. It's the same ridiculous arguments. Everyone knew leaving the EU was a bad idea (particularly as an island) but Brexiteers promised a "golden age from day one", which turned into "just some teething problems", then via "the EU punishes us" to "benefits of Brexit in 5 years" and finally "not the Brexit we voted for."
MAGA is Brexit by the power of ten: faster and way more destructive, and it's not just about leaving the EU but leaving the world!
Albert Witteveen
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •xs4me2
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •Max - Poliverso 🇪🇺🇮🇹
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •@George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽
I've found Mr Sulu in the Fediverse!
I knew it was worth leaving Facebook 😍
Good morning Mr Takei.
Or good evening.
Or good whatever your time zone expects to be good when the Earth is in this position.
George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽
in reply to Max - Poliverso 🇪🇺🇮🇹 • • •Theosoreass
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •Curtis Cooley
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •Tim Ward ⭐🇪🇺🔶 #FBPE
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •fahrradfalko
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •Bo Tally
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •Very Human Robot
in reply to George Takei 🏳️🌈🖖🏽 • • •he said prices would go down, and stock prices are in fact going down.
Also, the recession will lower interest rates which is great for anyone with leveraged real estate holdings!