Is the USDA Silencing Scientists?

The US government may muzzle some of its research scientists who investigate controversial topics. Each department has its own rules, and federal workers are often expected to seek approval from before submitting articles or books for publication, which can delay release of findings or lead to outright denials from timid supervisors who fear funding cuts. Brandon Keim details the experiences of a South Dakota entomologist with the US Department of Agriculture in studying how pesticides might influence monarch butterfly numbers. The USDA suspended the entomologist in 2014, preventing him from delivering a presentation about the effects of genetically modified crops on farmland ecology at the prestigious National Academy of Science. US research informs the world on advances in health, agriculture, energy, security and other areas. The entomologist filed a complaint alleging intimidation, career disruptions, and systematic rejection of research proposals and grant applications. “It’s hard to make good decisions without good facts,” writes Keim for the Atlantic. “If scientists tiptoe around the most important issues in their field, we'll get neither.” – YaleGlobal