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Universities Urge Federal Lawmakers to Honor Merit-Based Research

July 11, 2011, 2:06 pm

With federal budget negotiations in Washington nearing a climax, a group of 140 research universities and scientific societies has written to key lawmakers asking them to avoid interfering with the merit-based process for allocating federal research money. The groups, including the Association of American Universities and the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities, said they were especially alarmed by moves in Congress to eliminate specific projects supported by the National Science Foundation—such as those supported by the NSF Directorate for Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences—whose scientific value may not be apparent to nonexperts and thus appear ripe for political exploitation.

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  • 22086364

    Linger in the IU Bloomington library, reading materials that have nothing to do with my courses or my research.

  • nyhist

    I attended the wonderful 15th Berkshire Conference on the History of Women at U Mass Amherst & met women historians from all over the world (31 countries were represented there). I recommend the next one to all–3 years from now–at the Univ of Toronto.

  • not4nothin

    Went back to my undergraduate-daze school, 35 years after.  Saw dear old friends, several key locations and was in awe of how much everything had changed, while remaining vaguely familiar.  Oh Missoula! 

  • http://brendabethman.com Brenda Bethman

    Didn’t do it yet, but on Friday I leave to go hang on the beach in Door County, WI for 10 days. This will definitely the most fun I’ll have all summer.

  • smilintoday

    Ditto 22086364.   I have a 12-month contract so don’t really have a “summer”, but on my lunch time I’ve been reading People magazine in the school library.    Perfect anecdote for a life of academia!  My own personal mental vacation.

  • aphrajunkets

    My husband and I celebrated our anniversary by going on a university sponsored trip to Greece that included a tour of the Cyclades and Crete. We had a knowledgeable guide, visited marvelous sites, and enjoyed great food.

  • Guest

    Who is supposed to measure their merit? Other experts within these impenetrable fields? Oh yes, of course, peer review systems are naturally self-regulating and self-correcting and should be trusted. Which is why so much crap gets published by sycophants and their friends, tuitions are outrageous, and tenure decisions are often rife with nepotism. Maybe what we all need is sunshine. If you can’t explain the value of your research to “non-experts” this may be a sign from God. I’ve had grant applications rejected; it isn’t the end of the world.

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