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21 sats \ 14 replies \ @TNStacker OP 1 Jun \ parent \ on: Trump’s assault on science will have dire consequences econ
My very specific concern is I work with highly sensitive defense research, which they want, but this activity has and will continue to hurt activity. There was over a year where the Air Force's hypersonics program lead was vacant due to Tuberville's BS. We lost faculty, post-doc and PhD researchers because we couldn't bring them on. Now they cut travel budget and we don't meet about much of this stuff over networks.
I'm definitely not going to argue that they haven't made a mess of all of that sort of stuff. I have sufficient exposure to know you're describing a widespread issue.
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It will cost us. Also, great researera are going to the UK and France.
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I'm highly skeptical of both of those claims.
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Your skepticism is fine, but it is literally my jobs to know. And what I'm saying is pretty easily verifyable. But think about it. The UK is trying to recover talent from Brexit and the U.S. Is freezing visa appointments for PhD researchers. Where would you go for the next 4-5 years?
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Perhaps we're talking past each other, a bit. I won't be surprised if what you're talking about happens on the margins.
I'm skeptical that the US will significantly slip from its dominance in research and development. The best minds in the world come to American institutions. I don't see them choosing to go to less prestigious, lower paying, higher cost of living places, in any meaningful numbers.
I'm also skeptical that what's being funded by the government is very valuable. I have no doubt there are individually valuable projects, but on balance I don't think government research is worth much.
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Yeah, but it is all a partnership. So a government grant allows us to buy certain equipment and fund technicians. Then a company - say Plug Power who needs some advanced ion battery research - can contract with us to do the advanced science and engineering that helps them get the next gen product to market.
I guess most don't know how it works so they attack it. I'm not saying there isn't B.S. research, but B.S. research is only B.S. until that particular crisis hits and we need to start somewhere.
I'll give you an example. All the work you see now in hypersonics and advanced propulsion - is mostly dusted off and updated 60 year old government research.
It would be worth much more if the private economy were investing in that research, unsullied by government largess.