Spending money on silliness at the NSF and NIH
Your tax dollars at work: Spending money on silliness at the NSF and NIH.
Coburn’s report identified a number of projects that will make most Americans—scientists and nonscientists alike—shake their heads. They include studies of: how to ride a bike; when dogs became man’s best friend; whether political views are genetically predetermined; whether parents choose trendy baby names; and when the best time is to buy a ticket to a sold-out sporting event. And it noted that “only politicians appear to benefit from other NSF studies, such as research on what motivates individuals to make political donations, how politicians can benefit from Internet town halls…and how politicians use the Internet.”
Read the whole thing, as it gives a scientist’s perspective of this waste, which is sometimes not as obvious as the examples above.
Your tax dollars at work: Spending money on silliness at the NSF and NIH.
Coburn’s report identified a number of projects that will make most Americans—scientists and nonscientists alike—shake their heads. They include studies of: how to ride a bike; when dogs became man’s best friend; whether political views are genetically predetermined; whether parents choose trendy baby names; and when the best time is to buy a ticket to a sold-out sporting event. And it noted that “only politicians appear to benefit from other NSF studies, such as research on what motivates individuals to make political donations, how politicians can benefit from Internet town halls…and how politicians use the Internet.”
Read the whole thing, as it gives a scientist’s perspective of this waste, which is sometimes not as obvious as the examples above.