science journalist | good physics, bad physics, and sometimes ugly physics Signal: dgaristo.72 Email: digaristo@gmail.com
Spin qubits, which have lagged as candidates for the nuts and bolts of quantum computers, limited in number and quality, have made striking progress in the last year. But the specter of science funding trouble is here, too. My reporting:
Underdog ‘spin qubits’ leap forward in race to a useful quantum computerFour independent research teams report big advances in devices built with the underestimated quantum bits, including lower error rates.www.nature.comApplied research typically takes precedence in these discussions, so it's nice to see something like the Higgs discovery foregrounded.
ProPublicaNEW: A proposed White House rule would give political appointees unprecedented control over scientific funding. One physicist, who helped discover the Higgs boson, the so-called “God particle,” explains how the move would’ve stifled that breakthrough:
White House science policy captured headlines this week, with the announcement of awards for its flagship AI program, Congressional hearings, and a Vannevar Bush-esque report "Science: A New Golden Age." We fashioned the news into one big story—incl. key updates at NSF. Reported w/ Kaia Glickman:
White House rolls out AI funding — and signals a new era for US scienceChief US science adviser calls for a shakeup in funding while handing out grants to accelerate research with AI.www.nature.comUnfortunately for Ryan, this isn't going to get a ton of attention because it's not rage bait. Clear-eyed reporting on what the report says and what it can actually do.
Ryan QuinnHere's my attempt to write a non-histrionic story about the new White House Office of Science and Technology Policy report, and what it does and doesn't say, and what remains unclear (a lot): www.insidehighered.com/news/governm...
"For example, in the 2022–23 and 2023–24 academic years, more than 95% of international physics and astronomy PhD students in the United States took longer than four years to complete their programmes."
International PhD students to face strict limits on time in the USTrump administration takes action to address ‘forever students’.www.nature.comExtremely rare to see a story this fraught reported this well.
Science MagazineExclusive: A cutting-edge gene-editing trial in China went disastrously wrong. A family wants accountability. https://scim.ag/3RuHuDB
Here's the link to the House Science hearing, which should start at 10:15 a.m. ET
"Examining the Priorities of the FY2027 Research and Technology Enterprise"YouTube video by House Science, Space, and Technology Committeeyoutu.beDan GaristoAhead of a hearing before the House Science, Space and Technology Committee tomorrow, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy has released a 120-pg report, "Science: A New Golden Age" www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u... Here's the summary from the press release:
So the Genesis Mission announcement is being livestreamed but the audio is going between 'underwater' and 'ear-piercing static'. Good luck and don't wear headphones.
Genesis Mission Annual SummitYouTube video by ORISE Peer Reviewyoutu.beSome interesting proposals here about reshaping federal agencies, but this is... a pretty wild suggestion in the year 2026. Making every federal employee at-will, with the limitation of 5%/year means political appointees could fire 100,000 people each year with complete impunity.
Dr. Samantha Hancox-Liso i think as we try to reconstruct a functional mass politics for the 21st century, we need to both be honest about mass politics as it was, and realistic about what the social conditions of today make possible and rule out nostalgia is not a plan.
Ahead of a hearing before the House Science, Space and Technology Committee tomorrow, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy has released a 120-pg report, "Science: A New Golden Age" www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u... Here's the summary from the press release: