HISTORICAL FACTS: Vannevar bush - The Untold Story

White House plan for a ‘golden age’ of science ignores the structures that made the US a scientific superpower

A new White House report argues that eight decades of science policy that helped make the United States the world’s scientific leader is too bureaucratic, too focused on institutions rather than individual researchers, and too slow to translate discoveries into economic and technological advantages.

The Conversation · Aug 7

How much should politics influence science, and vice versa? National Science Board’s ousting resurrects an existential debate

“On behalf of President Donald J. Trump,” read 22 emails sent from the White House Presidential Personnel Office on Friday afternoon, April 24, 2026, “I am writing to inform you that your position as a member of the National Science Board is terminated, effective immediately.”

The Conversation · Apr 30

Trump’s second term is reshaping US science with unprecedented cuts and destabilizing policy changes

Before 2025, science policy rarely made headline news. Through decades of changing political winds, financial crises and global conflicts, funding for U.S. research and innovation has remained remarkably stable, reflecting the American public’s strong support for investing in basic science.

The Conversation · Dec 17, 2025

Basic research advances science, and can also have broader impacts on modern society

It might seem surprising, but federal research funding isn’t just for scientists. A component of many federal grants that support basic research requires that discoveries be shared with nonscientists. This component, referred to as “broader impacts” by the National Science Foundation, can make a big difference for K-12 students and…

The Conversation · May 8, 2025

How war, money and the quest for discovery entwined the US government and universities

The showdown between the Trump administration and Harvard University is spotlighting bare-knuckled politics and big dollar figures

The Independent UK · Apr 16, 2025

Cutting funding for science can have consequences for the economy, US technological competitiveness

America has already lost its global competitive edge in science, and funding cuts proposed in early 2025 may further a precipitous decline.

The Conversation · Feb 17, 2025

Biden helped bring science out of the lab and into the community − emphasizing research focused on solutions

President Joe Biden was inaugurated in January 2021 amid a devastating pandemic, with over 24 million COVID-19 cases and more than 400,000 deaths in the U.S. recorded at that point.

The Conversation · Jan 17, 2025

As AI and megaplatforms take over, the hyperlinks that built the web may face extinction

The original idea for the world wide web emerged in a flurry of scientific thought around the end of World War II. It began with a hypothetical machine called the “memex”, proposed by US Office of Scientific Research and Development head Vannevar Bush in an article entitled As We May…

The Conversation · Nov 17, 2024

For Matthew Modine, biking is freedom

From “Oppenheimer” to “Stranger Things” and “Hard Miles,” Modine shares how his acting career reflects his values

Salon · Apr 18, 2024

National Research Foundation’s chance to bridge India’s science-society gap

The National Research Foundation, India’s new research funding agency with a Rs 50,000 crore budget, aims to boost research and innovation.

The Hindu · Sep 24, 2023