At a conference in Boston, the nation’s scientists commiserated and strategized as funding cuts and federal layoffs throw their world into turmoil.
At the annual gathering in Boston this week of one of America’s oldest scientific societies, the discussions touched on threats to humankind: runaway artificial intelligence, toxic “forever chemicals,” the eventual end of the universe.
But the most urgent threats for many scientists were the ones aimed at them, as the Trump administration slashes the federal scientific work force and cuts back on billions of dollars in funding for research at universities.
“Angst and anxiety and, to a certain extent, grief,” is how Sudip Parikh, who leads the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the organization hosting the conference, summed up the mood on Saturday. News about layoffs at government agencies rippled across conference-goers’ phones.
“It’s like we’re getting hit from all sides,” said Roger Wakimoto, the vice chancellor for research at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Mere weeks into President Trump’s second term, his administration and Republicans in Congress have sent universities reeling with crackdowns on diversity initiatives, threats to endowments and potential deportations of undocumented students.