Federally Funding World-Class Scientific Research
The federal government has a long history of funding top-tier scientific research. Last week, James Heelan hosted a discussion with Nobel Laureate Dr. Andrea Ghez and National Science Foundation (NSF) Galactic Astronomy Program Director Dr. Glen Langston on the FEDtalk podcast.
The show opened with an introduction to how research is funded by the government and the mission of the NSF. The NSF has a number of areas that can be researched, and anyone in the U.S. can apply for a research grant, according to Dr. Langston. He furthers that the NSF funds non-government institutions as well, and having a public-private partnership is key to thorough research.
So far, 248 Nobel laureates have been publicly supported through NSF grants (and often grants from other federal agencies) at some point in their careers.
Dr. Andrea Ghez, a 2020 Nobel Laureate who received funding from the NSF, said “I am very grateful for the process that the NSF has set up for articulating what our intentions are.”
Dr. Ghez won the Nobel Prize in Physics for her work with partners to confirm the existence of a black hole in the Milky Way galaxy. Of the achievement, she said, “We’ve done this by getting very sharp images of the stars in at the heart of our galaxy and over a long period of time measuring how these stars move. We’ve moved the idea of super massive black holes from a possibility to a certainty.”
When discussing the future of her work, she said it has been a challenge to put together an infrastructure for such a large-scale and long-term project.
Later in the discussion, the group talked about how certain proposals are chosen over others and the selection process.
Dr. Langston explained, “In astronomy we have 700 or 800 proposals, and we divide that into groups, and then we organize into 15-30 proposal panels, and these panels have a two day dedicated meeting to discuss each proposal…then we give a numerical rank to each proposal.” Additionally, he said failure is acceptable as long as the proposal group shows progress.
You can stream the show online anytime via the Federal News Network app and listen to the FEDtalk podcast on PodcastOne and Apple Podcasts.
FEDtalk is a live talk show produced by Shaw Bransford & Roth P.C., a federal employment law firm. Bringing you the insider’s perspective from leaders in the federal community since 1993.
FEDtalk is sponsored by the Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program (FLTCIP). The FLTCIP is sponsored by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, insured by John Hancock Life & Health Insurance Company, under a group long term care insurance policy, and administered by Long Term Care Partners, LLC (doing business as FedPoint).