Maria Zuber: Federal government has unique role in supporting scientific discovery
“Our unwavering commitment to promoting the progress of science has opened new windows on the universe, made possible new industries, and improved the lives of all Americans,” MIT Vice President for Research Maria T. Zuber told members of the U.S. House of Representatives at a March 21 hearing of the Subcommittee on Research and Technology of the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, speaking in her role as chair of the National Science Board (NSB). “The question before us,” she continued, “is will the world’s richest, most powerful nation continue to invest in our future? Do we still want to be the first to know, to understand, to discover, to invent?” The 25-member NSB is the governing board for the National Science Foundation (NSF). Zuber appeared before the subcommittee at the second in a series of hearings examining the foundation’s role in the federal research enterprise. Also testifying on the topic of...