To the editor: This article highlights the urgent need to protect scientific financing from political interference (“The federal judge orders Trump to restore $ 500 million in subsidies for the medical investigation of UCLA frozen,” “ September 22). Research subsidies must be granted on the basis of merit, not controversies involving debates in the campus or admission policies.
Research with public funds has produced advances in the treatment of cancer and the prevention of infectious diseases. Speaking metaphorically, using subsidies such as political leverage is like depriving a water garden due to a dispute over a fence: it agrees the growth in which society depends. To safeguard innovation and public health, federal research investments must remain bipartisan and protected from partisan conflicts.
Nadia Thawan Chinkatok, Long Beach
