In his inauguration speech in January 2009, US President Barack Obama promised to "restore science to its rightful place", "harness the Sun and the winds and soil to fuel our cars and run our factories", and "roll back the spectre of a warming planet".
Laudable aims but a series of News articles show that the results have been mixed. The 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act the stimulus bill has pumped an extra $31 billion into R&D. But there has been an abject failure to pass a comprehensive climate bill, and the issue has now been so politicized that there is little chance of substantial progress after the midterm election. And despite a commitment from Obama to improve 'science integrity', a News Feature finds that federal scientists still run up against institutional barriers when it comes to communicating their research.
Finally, in a Comment article, Daniel S. Greenberg sets out five priorities for Barack Obama’s science to-do list for the next two years, arguing that he should tilt the balance away from military R&D spending; route more money to younger scientists; and use tax credits to prod industrial investment in university research.
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