Category: scientists
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Students, faculty mystified as NSF turns back applications for prestigious fellowship program
Students, faculty mystified as NSF turns back applications for prestigious fellowship program When Kulindu Vithanachchi’s phone lit up with an update from the National Science Foundation about his application for a high-profile early-career fellowship, he couldn’t wait to open the message, hopeful for big news. But not this news. Vithanachchi, a University of Arizona undergraduate…
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Opinion: Francis Collins: ‘I think of science as glimpsing God’s mind’
Opinion: Francis Collins: ‘I think of science as glimpsing God’s mind’ Below is a lightly edited, AI-generated transcript of the “First Opinion Podcast” interview with Marc Siegel and Francis Collins. Be sure to sign up for the weekly “First Opinion Podcast” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Get alerts about each new episode…
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STAT+: NIH funding rates for early-career researchers plunged in 2025, new data show
STAT+: NIH funding rates for early-career researchers plunged in 2025, new data show A Trump administration change to how the National Institutes of Health awards grants has reduced early-stage investigators’ odds of securing funding, new data from the agency show. During the 2025 fiscal year, 18.5% of early-stage researchers who applied for grants equivalent to…
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The future of American science and a dispatch from ASH
The future of American science and a dispatch from ASH How did Terns Pharmaceuticals and its “hodgepodge” pipeline grab attention at the American Society of Hematology conference? Is Eli Lilly’s new drug making people lose too much weight? And what, exactly, is the Trump administration’s plan for reforming the National Institutes of Health? We discuss…
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STAT+: Biosecure Act advances, but extra ACA subsidies are still up in the air
STAT+: Biosecure Act advances, but extra ACA subsidies are still up in the air You’re reading the web edition of D.C. Diagnosis, STAT’s twice-weekly newsletter about the politics and policy of health and medicine. Sign up here to receive it in your inbox on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The only nice thing about airport downtime is that I…
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NIH funding cuts have affected over 74,000 people enrolled in experiments, a new report says
NIH funding cuts have affected over 74,000 people enrolled in experiments, a new report says NEW YORK — Over 74,000 people enrolled in experiments have been affected by the National Institutes of Health’s funding cuts, according to a new report. Between the end of February and mid-August, funding ceased for 383 studies that were testing treatments for conditions…
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Opinion: A close friend grapples with James Watson’s complicated legacy
Opinion: A close friend grapples with James Watson’s complicated legacy Below is a lightly edited, AI-generated transcript of the “First Opinion Podcast” interview with Nancy Hopkins. Be sure to sign up for the weekly “First Opinion Podcast” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Get alerts about each new episode by signing up for…
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James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers
James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers When biologist James Watson died on Thursday at age 97, it brought down the curtain on 20th-century biology the way the deaths of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson on the same day in 1826 (July 4, since the universe apparently…
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Former NIH leaders lament ‘constant chaos’ at the agency, and caution it’s not over
Former NIH leaders lament ‘constant chaos’ at the agency, and caution it’s not over BOSTON — Jeremy Berg walked on stage sporting a curious look: a red tie patterned with a word cloud drawn from the applications of 197 researchers who vied to be part of a National Institutes of Health initiative aimed at accelerating…
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HHS terminates NIH program aimed at diversifying biomedical workforce
HHS terminates NIH program aimed at diversifying biomedical workforce The Department of Health and Human Services is terminating a National Institutes of Health grant program that supports students from marginalized backgrounds in the biomedical sciences. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced the elimination of the program — the Minority Biomedical Research Support Program —…
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STAT+: Harvard is the most celebrated university in the world. Will Trump’s international student ban derail that standing?
STAT+: Harvard is the most celebrated university in the world. Will Trump’s international student ban derail that standing? Harvard University has long stood on top of the academic world. Thousands from all over seek a coveted spot every year at the Ivy League school with a reputation for cultivating future leaders, from Nobel Prize recipients to…
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STAT+: Reeling from Trump contract cuts, the National Academies prepares for ‘a fairly radical downsizing’
STAT+: Reeling from Trump contract cuts, the National Academies prepares for ‘a fairly radical downsizing’ The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine is headed for a major reorganization as it tries to reduce its overhead amid big losses in funding from the federal government. Facing a shortfall of roughly $40 million in terminated contracts,…
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‘What wouldn’t I be worried about?’: Research leaders discuss threats to U.S. science
‘What wouldn’t I be worried about?’: Research leaders discuss threats to U.S. science Attacks on efforts to diversify the sciences. Research grant terminations. Fear among scientists to speak out against the government. Cuts to international aid. These were some of a long list of concerns shared by three research leaders as they discussed the state…
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STAT+: Charles Lieber, ex-Harvard chemist convicted of lying about ties to China, joins faculty of Chinese university
STAT+: Charles Lieber, ex-Harvard chemist convicted of lying about ties to China, joins faculty of Chinese university Charles Lieber, the former chair of Harvard’s chemistry department and renowned nanoscientist who was convicted of lying to federal agents about his ties to China, was recently announced as a new professor at a Chinese university. Lieber joined the…
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Nearly 2,000 top researchers call on Trump administration to halt ‘assault’ on science
Nearly 2,000 top researchers call on Trump administration to halt ‘assault’ on science Since taking office, President Donald Trump has slashed biomedical research funding, fired thousands of federal agency scientists, canceled training programs for young researchers, temporarily removed access to public datasets, and pressured scientists to alter or abandon work ideologically opposed to the White…