Standing up for Science

 It's been forever since I've written a blog post. Twitter, and then X, and then Bluesky, has absorbed most of my hot takes. But I think more and more that it's time to move away from transient thoughts to things that are more well formed, and so I'm going to try and blog a bit more again. 

Mar 7, 2025 was Stand Up For Science Day. I was invited to speak at the Rhode Island local event. It was a freezing cold day in front of the Rhode Island State House in Providence, RI. With encouragement from my students, we did a little "teach-in" on campus first to lay out some of the history of federal funding in the US (going back to Vannevar Bush and Endless Frontiers), and why some of the new administration moves were so radical and dangerous. 

Then a bunch of us walked over to the State House for the rally. There was a good crowd there inspite of the bitter wind - by my estimate it was over 100 and perhaps close to 200. Lots of fantastic placards, including this one: 

And then it was time for me to speak. I've never spoken at a rally before, and it took a good amount of preparation (and much more trepidation) to generate my 3 minutes of remarks. The crowd was very encouraging, cheering every time I paused, and that helped a lot :). 

Here's what I said. 

I’m a scientist. An immigrant scientist. I came to this country to do research because it promised me freedom. The freedom to explore. To discover. To reveal the beauty of nature and mathematics. I’m grateful to have a job doing what I love, but today I speak only for myself and for all of us who love science and the pursuit of knowledge.

For almost a century, America has been a welcoming home for science. Scientists here have produced wondrous discoveries that built the world we see around us. Scientists eradicated polio. And smallpox. And tamed many of the demons of cancer. Scientists sent us to the moon. Sent robots to Mars. And built the technological wonders of the computer age: the internet, the web, the cloud, and yes, AI. 

Science has given us power – not over each other – but  to make this world we live in better. For all of us, and not just a select few.

I study the impact of technology in society. The research that many of us do has shown how technology can be used to oppress us, but how it also can be used to uplift and elevate voices that have been ignored, abused, and silenced. 

The beauty of scientific discovery is that it is open to anyone who is curious and brave. Being a scientist is being able to look at the world every day with the openness, innocence, and passion of a child. To be able to ask “why”, and “how”, and “what if”. 

And that’s why those in power want to silence us now. They are scared. Scared of the undeniable truths that science reveals. Scared of the way science empowers and benefits all of us. And absolutely terrified of the freedom that scientific exploration gives us. 

And so they try to muzzle us. Censor research they don’t like the answers to. Exclude those they refuse to see as full people. Try to use money to banish those brave enough to fight back, and buy off those willing to collaborate, 

Scientists will not be silenced. We will fight back. Not with fear, but with the truth. Not with power, but with inclusion. Not by censoring, but with openness. Science has always sought to help us dream of better worlds for all people,  and then build them. We stand up for science, and in doing so we stand up for all of us. 

And we will not stop.