The Wrong Gatekeeper
Scientists should judge scientific merit. Congress should define public purposes. Agencies should administer programs transparently. Courts should determine whether agencies remain within statutory authority. And the public should help deliberate on contested values, social consequences, and trade-offs. That is the missing democratic architecture.
Can Philanthropy Save Public Science?
Philanthropy can help save science by rebuilding the democratic foundations of science: public trust, public capacity, public deliberation, and public legitimacy. But if philanthropy becomes the off-cycle home for scientific and technological agendas that cannot secure durable democratic support, it will not save science.
Tired of the Endless “Endless Frontier”
Science policy colleagues seem convinced that invoking Vannevar Bush and showcasing a bipartisan parade of former presidents’ support for science will restore public consensus. I doubt it.
