This article is extremely short-sighted. History shows us that government investment in research can yield transformative results. Take Germany in the late 19th and early 20th centuries: its robust public funding of science laid the groundwork for revolutionary breakthroughs in physics - Relativity and Quantum Mechanics - arguably two of humanity’s greatest intellectual achievements. These discoveries didn’t just advance knowledge: they powered the technological revolutions of the 20th century.
The only reason the U.S. emerged as the dominant global power instead of Germany was not due to a lack of scientific prowess on Germany’s part, but because of catastrophic political leadership. Germany failed to constrain Hitler’s worst instincts, just as the U.S. today risks failing to constrain Trump’s. But had Germany succeeded politically, we’d be having a very different conversation about the benefits of state-sponsored research.
To dismiss federal research funding as wasteful is to ignore the very foundation of modern innovation. The internet, GPS, and countless medical advances all trace back to government-backed research. Undermining that legacy is not just shortsighted - it’s deceitful.
PaulHoule · 12h ago
Education of foreign students is also a business that brings in a lot of money directly.
The claim that research isn't connected with education is bogus. Having a chance to participate in research and being close to the latest research is one of the greatest things you can get in education, at least in STEM.
taylodl · 11h ago
> Education of foreign students is also a business that brings in a lot of money directly.
And helps keep the costs for American students lower.
gsf_emergency_2 · 10h ago
Note that, in an ironic twist to TFA's thesis, Germany briefly overtook the US in nominal GDP under Hitler...
The only reason the U.S. emerged as the dominant global power instead of Germany was not due to a lack of scientific prowess on Germany’s part, but because of catastrophic political leadership. Germany failed to constrain Hitler’s worst instincts, just as the U.S. today risks failing to constrain Trump’s. But had Germany succeeded politically, we’d be having a very different conversation about the benefits of state-sponsored research.
To dismiss federal research funding as wasteful is to ignore the very foundation of modern innovation. The internet, GPS, and countless medical advances all trace back to government-backed research. Undermining that legacy is not just shortsighted - it’s deceitful.
The claim that research isn't connected with education is bogus. Having a chance to participate in research and being close to the latest research is one of the greatest things you can get in education, at least in STEM.
And helps keep the costs for American students lower.