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WEEK OF NOV 11, 2024
What’s Ahead

Donald Trump speaking at his 2024 election event.

Republican President-elect Donald Trump speaks at the Palm Beach County Convention Center on election night.

Lynne Sladky / AP

Seismic changes ahead for science policy under second Trump presidency

Although science policy was not a focal point of the 2024 campaign, the reelection of Donald Trump as president will have far-reaching consequences for the research enterprise. Among the most imminent changes are that diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives will come under immediate pressure. On day one of his new administration, Trump has pledged to revoke Biden’s executive order prioritizing DEI programs, which science agencies had pointed to as a basis for expanding efforts to diversify the STEM workforce. Trump has also already announced various senior personnel who have an adversarial view toward DEI initiatives, such as Stephen Miller, who will be his deputy chief of staff for policy. Miller’s legal advocacy group issued FOIA requests to various science agencies last month to probe their diversity programs.

Visa policy changes affecting scientists and students could also be in store. Although Trump’s campaign speeches focused on his proposals for curbing illegal immigration, he has also pledged to use visa policy as a tool of research security. In a campaign video on “stopping Chinese espionage,” Trump said he will “impose whatever visa sanctions and travel restrictions are necessary to shut off Chinese access to American secrets.” More broadly, research security is poised to be a topic of intense focus during his administration. Many people Trump has already picked or eyed for top roles are known for having a deep interest in the subject, including Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL), who will be his national security advisor; Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), his nominee for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations; and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), reportedly his choice for secretary of state.

The outlook for science budgets is less clear. In his first term Trump prioritized spending on research tied to “industries of the future” but nevertheless proposed sweeping budget cuts to science agencies as part of a broader drive to reduce government spending. Since Trump ultimately did not insist on tight budget caps during the negotiations, Congress rejected his proposals for cuts and was even able to significantly expand some science agencies. Yet Trump appears interested again in cutting government spending, promising to task technology executive Elon Musk with identifying ideas for cuts. Trump may also attempt to roll back some of President Joe Biden’s signature spending initiatives, such as the energy technology subsidies in the Inflation Reduction Act and the semiconductor industry subsidies in the CHIPS and Science Act. However, many of the programs created by those acts have bipartisan backing in Congress.

Congress returns with next year front of mind

Congress is back in session this week after a seven-week break for the election. At this point, votes are still being tallied to determine which party will take control of the House when President-elect Donald Trump takes office for a second term in January 2025. It is already clear, however, that Republicans will take control of the Senate, meaning that Trump should be able to get his top political appointees confirmed without Democratic support. Republicans may also push to delay finalizing the fiscal year 2025 budget until Trump takes office, hoping for greater influence over final appropriations. If Republicans take control of both the House and the Senate, Trump can use an expedited process known as reconciliation for certain types of legislation. Republicans may look to strengthen the R&D tax credit available to businesses as part of a broader overhaul of the tax code. The 2017 tax reform law signed by Trump weakened the R&D tax credit, but Republican lawmakers have proposed to reverse that move.

The composition of key congressional committees could look very different next year, with several high-profile changes set to occur. On the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, for example, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) looks likely to take over as chair. Cruz has been highly critical of the Biden administration’s focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion, and recently published a report slamming the National Science Foundation for funding diversity initiatives. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will also see new leadership following the retirement of its chair, Sen. Joe Manchin (I-WV). The committee’s top Republican, Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY), may also depart the panel to serve in a leadership role in his party’s caucus. In the House, the ranking member of the Commerce-Justice-Science Appropriations Subcommittee, Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-PA), lost his seat, as did the chair of the Energy Subcommittee of the House Science Committee, Rep. Brandon Williams (R-NY). On the House Energy-Water Appropriations Subcommittee, ranking member Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) looks set to hang on to her seat despite a very close race, which AP has yet to officially call.

UN progresses proposal to research impact of nuclear war

A UN proposal to research the environmental, physical, and socio-economic consequences of nuclear war passed an initial vote earlier this month. The UN general assembly committee resolution , drafted by Ireland and New Zealand, calls for the creation of an international scientific panel to investigate the potential impact of different nuclear war scenarios. A similar study has not been conducted by the UN since the end of the Cold War, when climatic and scientific modeling were much less advanced than today.

The UK, France, and Russia were the only three countries to vote against the resolution, with the UK Foreign Office stating that the “devastating consequences” of nuclear war are already well known and do not need to be studied further — a posture that has drawn criticism from British anti-nuclear proliferation advocates. A total of 144 UN member states voted in support of the resolution, including China, and 30 member states abstained, including the U.S. The resolution will now go to the full general assembly for a final vote. The National Academies was directed by Congress in 2020 to conduct a similar study on the environmental impact of nuclear war but has not yet published its findings.

AAAS holding events on trust in science

The American Association for the Advancement of Science will host an event Thursday to discuss the release of the latest Trust In Science survey from the Pew Research Center. The past four editions of the survey have reported declines in the number of Americans who view science as having a positive effect on society and increases in the percentage who have a negative view of science. AAAS will also host a meeting of the Science and Human Rights Coalition Thursday and Friday that will focus on “building a culture of trustworthy science.” The event will review “strategies for elevating and promoting science that is civically engaged, and giving scientists the tools, resources, and support they need to carry out that work.”

Also on our radar

  • The House Oversight and Accountability Committee will hold a hearing Wednesday on unidentified anomalous phenomena, an umbrella term for aerial, undersea, or transmedium objects of unknown origin. The hearing will attempt to shed light on government research programs and findings concerning UAP, according to a press release. Witnesses include Timothy Gallaudet, a naval oceanographer and former acting NOAA administrator, and Michael Gold, a former top NASA official who was a member of a recent NASA study on the topic.
  • NIH’s Scientific Management Review Board will meet Tuesday for the first time since 2015 to discuss NIH’s mission, structure, and budget. The dormancy of the board was the subject of a probe by House Republicans in 2023.
  • MIT planetary geophysicist Maria Zuber has replaced former NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine as the chair of NASA’s Mars Sample Return review team. The team’s report recommending a new architecture for the mission is still expected by the end of this year.
  • British physicist Mark Thomson was selected last week as the next director-general of CERN, Europe’s leading particle physics lab. His term starts in 2026.
In Case You Missed It

The principles aim to build public trust in climate intervention experiments, as several have been blocked by local opposition.

Upcoming Events

All events are Eastern Time unless otherwise noted. Listings do not imply endorsement. Events beyond this week are listed on our website.

Monday, November 11

Veterans Day.

UN: COP29 climate change conference (continues through Nov. 22)

Charleston Hub: 2024 Charleston Conference (continues through Friday)

Tuesday, November 12

NOAA: Science Advisory Board meeting (continues Wednesday)

National Academies: Implications of AI-related data center electricity use and emissions workshop (continues Wednesday)

DOD: Strategic Environmental R&D Program Scientific Advisory Board meeting
9:00 - 11:15 am

NIST: Workshop on assessing risks and impacts of AI innovation
10:00 am - 4:30 pm

NIH: Scientific Management Review Board meeting
11:15 am - 5:30 pm

Research!America: Public engagement with science training landscape discussion
2:00 - 3:00 pm

NSF: Meet the NSF Trailblazers
3:00 - 5:00 pm

Wednesday, November 13

USGS: Advisory Council for Climate Adaptation Science meeting (continues Thursday)

National Academies: Quadrennial Review of the Nanotechnology Initiative meeting (continues Thursday)

NSF: Advisory Committee for STEM Education meeting (continues Thursday)

DOD: Defense Science Board meeting (closed)
10:00 am - 2:00 pm

NSF: Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering meeting
10:00 am - 4:00 pm

CSIS: Ensuring US leadership in AI
9:00 - 10:15 am

NASA: International Space Station Advisory Committee meeting
10:00 - 11:00 am

Senate: Meeting to advance the nomination of Matthew Marzano to be a member of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
10:00 am, Environment and Public Works Committee

Research!America: 2024 post-election briefing
11:00 am - 1:00 pm

House: Unidentified anomalous phenomena: Exposing the truth
11:30 am, Oversight Committee

National Academies: L’Oreal for Women in Science awardees present impact of their work on society
1:30 - 3:00 pm

Hudson Institute: Competing with China on critical minerals
2:00 - 3:00 pm

Senate: Oversight of the United States Copyright Office
2:30 pm, Judiciary Committee

Thursday, November 14

National Academies: Committee on Science, Engineering, Medicine, and Public Policy fall meeting (continues Friday)

National Academies: Attribution of Extreme Weather Committee, kickoff meeting (continues Friday)

USGS: Scientific Earthquake Studies Advisory Committee meeting (continues Friday)

AAAS: Building a culture of trustworthy science: Scientific freedom, scientific responsibility and human rights (continues Friday)

Science|Business: What does Trump mean for global R&D?
9:00 - 10:00 am

National Academies: Future-proofing flood management: Water Science and Technology Board fall meeting
9:45 am - 5:15 pm

NTI: Developing guardrails for AI biodesign tools
11:00 am

House: Preparing for the next pandemic: Lessons learned and the path forward
11:30 am, Oversight Committee

DHS: National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee meeting
1:00 - 4:30 pm

NSB: Committee on Science and Engineering Policy teleconference
1:00 - 2:00 pm

NSF: Towards a National Secure Data Service
1:00 - 2:00 pm

CSET: A year-end review: Recapping global AI governance efforts
1:00 - 2:00 pm

AAAS: Webinar on Pew’s latest survey of Americans’ trust in science
3:15 - 4:00 pm

Atlantic Council: Putting AI to work for national security
4:00 - 5:15 pm

CSIS: Spectrum is national security: Meeting America’s spectrum needs
4:00 - 5:00 pm

National Academies: DC Art Science Evening Rendezvous on community engagement and climate change
6:30 - 9:00 pm

Friday, November 15

ITIF: 2024 Global Trade and Innovation Policy Alliance Summit
9:00 am - 5:00 pm India Standard Time

NASA: STEM Engagement Committee meeting
11:00 am - 3:00 pm

National Academies: Societal Experts Action Network fall symposium
10:00 am - 3:30 pm

Sunday, November 17

ANS: Winter Conference and Expo (continues through Thursday)

Venus Exploration Analysis Group: Annual meeting (continues through Tuesday)

Monday, November 18

Acoustical Society of America: 187th meeting (continues through Friday)

Optica: 2024 Quantum Industry Summit (continues through Wednesday)

National Academies: Issues at the intersection of engineering and human rights: A symposium (continues Tuesday)

Know of an upcoming science policy event either inside or outside the Beltway? Email us at fyi@aip.org.

Opportunities

Deadlines indicated in parentheses. Newly added opportunities are marked with a diamond.

Job Openings

Johns Hopkins: Director, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (ongoing)
ITIF: Innovation policy analyst, multiple positions (ongoing)
Bipartisan Policy Center: Senior policy analyst, energy program (ongoing)
American Chemical Society: Deputy editor in chief, Chemical and Engineering News (ongoing)
American Chemical Society: Executive editor, policy and regulation (ongoing)
DOD: Science director, Office of Naval Research Global (Nov. 14)
◆DOD: Deputy director, Science Advisor Program, Office of Naval Research Global (Nov. 18)
◆NIST: Director of legislative affairs (Nov. 25)
◆Science: Associate news editor (Nov. 30)
AIP: Congressional fellowship (Dec. 1)
Optica: Congressional fellowship (Jan. 3)
FYI: Science policy internship (Jan. 5)
STPI: Science policy fellowship (Jan. 6)
AGU: Congressional fellowship (Jan. 15)

Solicitations

FAS: Call for policy ideas for new administration, Day One Project (ongoing)
National Academies: Call for experts for study on workplace barriers, solutions, and policies for STEM professionals and students with disabilities (Nov. 15)
NOAA: RFC on petition for rulemaking regarding weather modification activities (Nov. 19)
DOD: RFC on rule requiring public access to results of federally funded research (Nov. 25)
EPA: RFC on new technologies for quantifying facility methane emissions (Nov. 27)
DOJ: RFC on National Institute of Justice draft public access plan (Nov. 29)
NIST: RFI on safety considerations for chemical and/or biological AI models (Dec. 3)
NIST: RFI on implementation of the National Standards Strategy for Critical and Emerging Technology (Dec. 9)
NSF: RFC on ethical, social, safety considerations of the merit review process (extended to Dec. 13)
USGS: RFC on draft chapters of the Biodiversity and Climate Change Assessment (Dec. 16)
NSF: RFC on revisions to NSF infrastructure guide (Jan. 17)

Know of an opportunity for scientists to engage in science policy? Email us at fyi@aip.org.

Around the Web

News and views currently in circulation. Links do not imply endorsement.

Election 2024

Science: Amid the uncertainty, here’s what Trump’s victory might mean for US science
Nature: What Trump’s election win could mean for AI, climate and health
Science|Business: Assessing the Trump factor in US science: Fear and uncertainty
Science|Business: Call for more EU investment in R&D after Trump win
Wired: What Donald Trump’s win will mean for Big Tech
Chemical & Engineering News: The chemical enterprise braces for a second Trump presidency
Science: Here’s how voters landed on state science issues

White House

Bloomberg: Trump’s win has Biden rushing to finalize Chips Act deals with Intel, Samsung
E&E News: Biden’s last major climate rule nears finish line
E&E News: ‘Science is still science’: US still committed to climate fight despite Trump’s win, Podesta says at COP29
White House: Remarks as delivered by John Podesta at COP29

Congress

House Oversight Committee: Republicans investigate NSF’s research security
E&E News: GOP warns agencies against post-election partisan work
E&E News: Democrats look to buttress American Climate Corps

Science, Society, and the Economy

APLU: APLU and Pew release report on fostering a public impact research ecosystem
The Conversation: Carl Sagan’s scientific legacy extends far beyond ‘Cosmos’ (perspective by Jean-Luc Margot)
Research Policy: The Nobel “pride” phenomenon: An analysis of Nobel Prize discoveries and their recognition (paper by Max von Zedtwitz, et al.)
Symmetry: Recognizing Rosemary Fowler (perspective by Pruthvi Mehta)
Scientific American: The law must respond when science changes (perspective by David Faigman and Jeff Kukucka)
Issues in Science and Technology: Leaving no-woman’s-land (perspective by Jewel Kling, et al.)

Education and Workforce

FedScoop: Trump’s Schedule F would have hurt govtech recruitment, OPM official says
Times Higher Education: Academics’ time increasingly taken up with research security
Wall Street Journal: University of Rochester president urges firing of Ranga Dias after superconductivity scandal
American Nuclear Society: Oak Ridge community roundtable explores workforce challenges
Inside Higher Ed: Scaling up: Providing paid research opportunities for students
Research Professional: Researcher mobility ‘still recovering from Brexit’

Research Management

Stat: These 7 watchdogs scour scientific papers for problems — and often find them
Nature: AI-generated images threaten science — here’s how researchers hope to spot them
Scholarly Kitchen: The top ten challenges, needs, and goals of publishers – and how AI can help in digital transformation and the open science movement (perspective by Hong Zhou)
NIH: Using AI and other digital technologies to enhance grant management operations
Nature: ChatGPT is transforming peer review — how can we use it responsibly? (perspective by James Zou)
Nature: Science communication will benefit from research integrity standards (editorial)
Inside Climate News: Appeals court affirms conviction of Everglades scientist accused of stealing ‘trade secrets’

Labs and Facilities

Nature: New CERN chief pledges to forge ahead with $17-billion supercollider
SWI swissinfo.ch: Researcher warns CERN projects face delays from Russia exclusion
ScienceInsider: Trade sanctions and budget woes delay new x-ray sources and neutron beams in Russia
DOE: Tim Hallman joins the Office of the Deputy Director for Science Programs
Fermilab: Fermilab and Spain sign agreement to strengthen collaboration on the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment
Research Professional: Germany joins Square Kilometer Array Observatory
Weather Geeks: Atmospheric insights at NCAR (audio interview with Everette Joseph)

Computing and Communications

The Information: The battle over open-source AI will be settled in Trump’s presidency
Nextgov: Trump promised to repeal Biden’s AI executive order — here’s what to expect next
FedScoop: OpenAI further expands its generative AI work with the federal government
MIT: Despite its impressive output, generative AI doesn’t have a coherent understanding of the world
Scientific American: Rainwater could help satisfy AI’s water demands (perspective by Justin Talbot Zorn and Bettina Warburg)
Lawfare: Sovereign AI in a hybrid world: National strategies and policy responses (perspective by Pablo Chavez)
Physics World: Why AI is a force for good in science communication (perspective by Clare Malone)

Space

SpacePolicyOnline: What will a second Trump term mean for space policy?
Ars Technica: Space policy is about to get pretty wild, y’all
SpaceNews: NASA seeks continuity in human spaceflight programs in next administration
SpaceNews: Space export reforms to march forward amid transition to new administration
SpaceNews: Restoring NASA’s original mission (perspective by David Steitz)
Scientific American: The International Space Station has been leaking for five years
The Economist: China plans to crash a spacecraft into a distant asteroid
Los Alamos National Lab: AI-enhanced model will improve space weather forecasting

Weather, Climate, and Environment

NBC News: Trump taps former Rep. Lee Zeldin to lead the EPA
E&E News: How Trump could shrink EPA
E&E News: ‘Remain apolitical,’ EPA tells staff as transition looms
E&E News: EPA’s green bank could be a boon for red congressional districts
New York Times: Trump whiplash looms over global climate talks
New York Times: Will Musk influence Trump on climate change and electric vehicles?
E&E News: What’s at stake for climate policy? ‘Who the hell cares,’ Trump says
The Conversation: What Trump can do to reverse US climate policy − and what he probably can’t change (perspective by Gautam Jain)
BBC News: Politicians not ambitious enough to save nature, say scientists
Nature: ‘A big, big win’: Plan to pay for wildlife conservation emerges at biodiversity summit

Energy

Power: Power shift: Trump’s energy agenda sparks cautious optimism, climate concerns
IAEA: World Fusion Energy Group kicks off in Rome
Fusion Industry Association: FIA and IAEA announce partnership to collaborate on efforts accelerating commercial fusion
American Nuclear Society: US, South Korea explore MOU on nuclear cooperation

Defense

Inside Defense: Missile defense enterprise could see massive expansion under next Trump administration
DOD: DOD makes loans to industry for critical technology development, production
DefenseScoop: Scale AI unveils ‘Defense Llama’ large language model for national security users
Breaking Defense: Australia kills $5.3B military space program with Lockheed
SpaceNews: Bind Russia to a new arms control treaty to ban nuclear weapons in space (perspective by Kendall Marston)

Biomedical

Science: Trump won. Is NIH in for a major shake-up?
Science: How much power do Trump and Kennedy have to reshape health agencies?
Scientific American: Trump’s administration will attack health care from multiple angles
E&E News: RFK Jr. may have some surprising allies in his push to ban fluoride
Stat: A Q&A with the FDA’s top vaccine regulator amid a fresh wave of disinformation (interview with Peter Marks)
Financial Times: The corporate researchers hoping to help fend off the next pandemic
Science: Effort to sequence all complex life ramps up
The Guardian: Genomic research is at risk from ‘race science’ activists’ discredited ideas (perspective by Bill Newman and Demetra Georgiou)
Science: Why has NIH’s dental institute director been missing for 6 months?
Stat: The US is at risk of losing the proteomics race to China (perspective by Neil Kelleher and Rohan Ganesh)

International Affairs

Scientific American: We need scientific brainstorming about shared global dangers (perspective by Frank von Hippel)
Nature: Western science diplomacy must rethink its biases and treat all partners equally (perspective by Hussam Hussein and Abdullah Awad)
South China Morning Post: China is quietly extracting itself from a US helium ‘stranglehold’, experts say
Research Professional: German science groups reaffirm work with Chinese academy
Research Professional: ‘New low point’ for German and Russian academic relations
University World News: ETH foreign student screening leans on West’s sanctions list
University World News: Canadian universities brace for more fallout after immigration U-turn
Science: ‘Scienticide’: Argentina’s science workforce shrinks as government pursues austerity

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