Every day, it seems, brings more dispiriting news to the science world. The head of the Environmental Protection Agency is removing research scientistsfrom the agency’s advisory boards and has forbidden some of them from speaking at conferences. The Government Accounting Office is investigating reports that the current administration is violating scientific integrity policies at federal agencies. The Trump administration has proposed deep budget cuts at scientific agencies.
But scientists’ problems run deeper. According to a number of recent surveys, there has been a rapid decline in knowledge about and sympathy for scientists and the institutions where many of them work, particularly among Republican and Republican-leaning voters. Politicians from the same party who now govern in over 32 states, the White House, and Congress are aware of these sentiments.