editorial
A Historic Commitment
O
n Monday, April 27, I was privileged to be present at a speech given by President Barack Obama at the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) annual meeting in Washington, D.C. Over 600 NAS members and numerous other people of scientific stature and influence attended. The speech was historic both for its occurrence and for what was said. Only three previous presidents have, in modern times, addressed NAS at an annual meetingOJohn F. Kennedy, Jimmy Carter, and George H. W. BushOand only Kennedy did so during his first year in office. As for what was said, the commitment to the support of science, technology, and education was unprecedented in magnitude and impressive in its erudite presentation. After a many-year drought in government commitment to and respect for science in the world’s most technically advanced country, Obama’s speech was like sweet water in the desert. The programs discussed for reinvigoration of the nation’s investment in science were multifaceted. I will not enumerate all of them, but I would like to point out several commitments. One is to finish the 10-year budget doubling of three key science agencies: the National Science Foundation (NSF), the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Other commitments include tripling the number of NSF graduate fellowship slots and improving the support for and quality of K⫺12 science education for our future scientists. In addition, the speech included an announcement of a new DOE organization: the Advanced Research Projects Agency⫺Energy (ARPA⫺E; modeled after the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency). We all understand that politicians sometimes make hollow promises, but while I am often a cynic, I believe that a substantial fraction of these promises for increased science funding will come to pass. I feel that some other things that were said are also worth noting. Referring to the present economic problems, Obama said, “At such a difficult moment, there are those who say we cannot afford to invest in science, that support for research is somehow a luxury at moments defined by necessities. I fundamentally disagree. Science is more essential for our prosperity, our security, our health, our environment, and our quality of life than it has ever been before.” And, “Federal funding in the physical sciences as a portion of our gross domestic prod-
10.1021/AC900944F 2009 AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY
Published on Web 05/07/2009
uct [GDP] has fallen by nearly half over the past quarter century.” That’s an awful statistic, and Obama went on to state a goal to “devote more than 3 percent of our GDP to research and development.” Making a subsequent reference to Vannevar Bush, science advisor to President Franklin Roosevelt (see my editorial “The Federal Rudder”, Anal. Chem. 1996, 68, 649A), Obama quoted: “Basic scientific research is scientific capital.” The president continued by observing that an “investigation into a technical topic may be slow to pay off, and the investor widely shares the profits.” This is the reason, he said, that “the private sector generally under-invests in basic science and why the public sector must invest in this kind of researchObecause while the risks may be large, so are the rewards for our economy and our society.” I was impressed with his understanding of this historical, fundamentally correct idea. The most raucous applause from an audience of workaholic NAS scientistsOpeople who are passionate about scienceOwas evoked by the lines, “We are restoring science to its rightful place. On March 9th, I signed an executive memorandum with a clear message: under my administration, the days of science taking a back seat to ideology are over. Our progress as a nationOand our values as a nationOare rooted in free and open inquiry. To undermine scientific integrity is to undermine our democracy. It is contrary to our way of life.” Chemical & Engineering News published an article on this speech on May 4, and the transcript and summary of it can be found at http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/ Remarks-by-the-President-at-the-National-Academy-ofSciences-Annual-Meeting/ and http://www.whitehouse. gov/the_press_office/Fact-Sheet-A-Historic-CommitmentTo-Research-And-Education/, respectively. Read itOyou will like it!
JUNE 1, 2009 / ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
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