A clarion call for science
Harvard President Drew Faust called for members of the scientific community to “raise our voices” in an effort to prevent the U.S. Congress from becoming “an American Association for the Retreat of Science,” when she addressed a gathering of educators, engineers, science leaders, and policymakers in Boston on Thursday. Faust delivered her remarks during the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest and one of its most influential organizations devoted to advancing science, engineering, and innovation. “We must secure the federal research support critical to the future of our nation and of the world,” said Faust, one of the co-chairs of this year’s AAAS meeting on the theme of “The Beauty and Benefits of Science.” Faust’s remarks came as the nation braces for the impact of looming sequestration, a sequence of drastic federal budget cuts that are scheduled to take effect at the beginning of...