Research! by ji
@argmax.com
ji = john irons; Philanthropy+Research at Siegel Endowment; social scientist musing about AI/technology; sourdough baker; affiliated w/IDE@MIT; SciFi fan; +stuff; http://argmax.com; Views my own; reposts!=endorsement
A #laborday reminder, via Wikipedia: “Labor Day is a federal holiday…to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements in the US” +We celebrate workers by setting aside a day to not work! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labor_Day
Labor Day - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
New post on #AI #agents misbehaving, potential impact on work, and what might be done to align johnirons.substack.com/p/agents-gon...
Agents Gone Rogue
Vol.2, August 2026
johnirons.substack.com
Followers just broke 1k! Thank you to everyone who cares about research!
Vol 2 of From the Research Desk SubStack drops tomorrow “Agents Gone Rogue” very relevant given OpenAI report released today. Subscribe! johnirons.substack.com
From the Research Desk | John Irons, PhD | Substack
Early thoughts at the intersection of technology and society from a social science perspective. Click to read From the Research Desk, by John Irons, PhD, a Substack publication. Launched a month ago.
johnirons.substack.com
Budget may stop proposed rule that "...could end U.S. scientific dominance by subjecting #research institutions to political meddling, introducing new instability to federal funding, limiting foreign collaboration and pushing away talented #researchers." www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
Senate Republicans join in rebuking White House over science funding
GOP leaders are supporting a spending bill that would prevent the White House from asserting greater control over hundreds of billions of dollars in federal grants.
washingtonpost.com
From the Research Desk johnirons.substack.com?r=1sx3mi&utm...
From the Research Desk | John Irons, PhD | Substack
Early thoughts at the intersection of technology and society from a social science perspective. Click to read From the Research Desk, by John Irons, PhD, a Substack publication. Launched a few seconds...
johnirons.substack.com
Coming soon! From the Research Desk johnirons.substack.com?utm_campaign...
From the Research Desk | John Irons, PhD | Substack
Early thoughts at the intersection of technology and society from a social science perspective. Click to read From the Research Desk, by John Irons, PhD, a Substack publication. Launched 4 years ago.
johnirons.substack.com
“The changes would give White House political appointees more power over hundreds of billions of dollars in discretionary grant funding, diminishing the traditional role of scientific peer reviewers.” www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
washingtonpost.com
We need *more* #research and #data, not less! "Decommissioning the US system...would lead to a massive increase in error in the annual estimates of ocean heating rates... forecasts and early warning systems for storms, tropical cyclones and El Niño would degrade" www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Scientists warn Trump plan to axe US ocean monitoring system will leave world ‘flying blind’
Experts say dismantling the ocean observation system will ‘severely degrade’ the accuracy of weather predictions
theguardian.com
"The decline in #research $ has affected scientists at every stage of their careers, not just the youngest scientists trying to establish their labs. Senior faculty...are having to cut graduate students, post-doctoral fellows and entire lines of research." www.washingtonpost.com/education/20...
MIT president blames federal policy shifts for big drop in research on campus
Federal funding cuts have curtailed research at elite universities such as MIT, dulling America’s competitive edge globally.
washingtonpost.com
“If a large number of sites are closed, many #research projects would be more difficult, if not impossible, according to nearly two dozen former forest-service scientists and six of their collaborators who spoke to Nature. ” www.nature.com/articles/d41...
World’s largest forest research agency faces severe cutback by Trump administration
The US Forest Service has proposed closing some three-quarters of its research sites in a move that has provoked widespread fear and uncertainty.
nature.com
I was right! “However, the term “balance-of-payments deficits” is indicative of a term of art, susceptible to a defined meaning, and subject to objective measure within the traditional means of judicial review.” #tariff will dig up post to say I told you so! storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
#49 in The State of Oregon v. Trump (Ct. Intl. Trade, 1:26-cv-01472) – CourtListener.com
Order entered on 5/7/2026: Slip-Op 26-47: Granting Plaintiffs' motions for summary judgment and entering a permanent injunction for The State of Washington, Burlap and Barrel, Inc., and Basic Fun, Inc...
storage.courtlistener.com
Not just independence, but competence is at stake #research “Many science advocates see it as the latest step by his administration to erode—some would say destroy—the independence of the 76-year-old research agency.“ www.science.org/content/arti...
Trump fires NSF's oversight board
Dismissal of the National Science Board is widely seen as latest move to erase NSF’s independence
science.org
Hope Congress will not go along with these #research cuts. “The White House seeks to slash the NSF budget by nearly 55%, to $4 billion. The proposal also cuts all funding for the NSF division that funds research on the social sciences and economics.” www.scientificamerican.com/article/trum...
Trump administration proposes massive budget cuts to science
The White House budget proposal would also curb federal payments for scientific publishing
scientificamerican.com
“The U.S. Forest Service is shutting down research stations around the country…50 of its 70 research stations…projects include…ways to reduce fire hazards in degraded forests and updating maps of fire threats to rural communities, wildlife habitats, and carbon storage.” www.opb.org/article/2026...
Forest Service axes research stations as severe fire season threatens Pacific Northwest
Though much of the stations’ research is long-term, some fire experts say the cuts could hamper firefighting efforts as soon as this summer.
opb.org
“The request proposes $4 billion for NSF, a 54% cut from the fiscal year 2026 enacted level….NSF would plan to fund just 2,900 competitive awards in fiscal year 2027, compared to 7,400 in fiscal year 2025” www.aip.org/fyi/trump-pr...
Trump Proposes Deep Research Cuts, New Icebreaker for NSF
The administration has requested a 54% cut to the agency’s funding and reupped other proposals Congress rejected last year.
aip.org
From climate change to public health, reliable science matters more than ever. Our Based on Science articles draw from our work and other expert sources to answer common questions with up-to-date evidence you can trust. Get your questions answered: https://ow.ly/ic2C50YEH1g
“Often referred to as Biotech Beach, San Diego’s #research hub, experts say, finds itself in the dark about whether the federal gov’t will deliver millions in funding. #Researchers say it’s already caused shock waves in cutting-edge research and patient trials.“ www.nbcsandiego.com/news/investi...
San Diego cancer breakthroughs at risk from funding cuts and delays, experts say
Researchers say changes in how the National Institutes of Health approve and distribute grants are putting patients, cures and the entire biotech industry in peril.
nbcsandiego.com
The 2026 National Science Foundation budget is $8.75 Billion.
First 6 Days of Iran War Cost U.S. $11.3 Billion, Pentagon Says
nytimes.com
This amazing scientific advance may one day lead to either more effective treatments or dare I say perhaps a cure. This is why it is vitally important to fund basic scientific research. Scientists Discover Way To Reverse Chemical Process Linked With Alzheimer’s Disease share.google/Vm0hfSMfkGIc...
Scientists Discover Way To Reverse Chemical Process Linked With Alzheimer’s Disease
By watching Alzheimer’s-related protein clumping unfold second by second, researchers have uncovered new clues about the role of metal ions.
share.google
Nice rundown "...the struggle to preserve climate research cannot be separated from the struggle of other scientific communities, like the public health community, nor from the broader effort to rebuild American democracy." #research newrepublic.com/article/2070...
Trump Is Attacking Climate Science. Scientists Are Fighting Back.
It’s easy, looking at the past year, to see the damage the administration has done. But researchers are also stepping up, trying to fill the gaps.
newrepublic.com
@mjsdc.bsky.social agree!
Research! by ji@argmax.com · 7mo agoFWIW, legality of #section122 #tariffs hinges on the definition of “balance-of-payments deficits”. current usage of that term, incl. in Trump’s declaration, differs from 1974 when the law was passed; “BoP deficits” was about reserves, not individual trade imbalances. Basis for legal challenges?
Go #science #research ! “Thin mountain air may fight diabetes by turning red blood cells into sugar sponges.” www.sciencedaily.com/releases/202...
Scientists discover why high altitude protects against diabetes
Living at high altitude appears to protect against diabetes, and scientists have finally discovered the reason. When oxygen levels drop, red blood cells switch into a new metabolic mode and absorb lar...
sciencedaily.com
