Administration rules on research put innovation at risk - Parthasarathy

It's hard not to imagine that ambition being dimmed by the constant threat of shifting political priorities. Innovation in the US "is likely to be massively curtailed," says Shobita Parthasarathy, director of the University of Michigan's Science, Technology and Public Policy Program. "You're in a place where every four years, you're totally changing directions, which is not the way science works."

That would have real consequences for Americans' health in the form of discoveries delayed or never even pursued — in the US, at least.

The risk is "even less transparent and accountable decision-making," says Parthasarathy. It opens the door for political appointees to "be influenced by the most powerful external stakeholders today: the leaders of the Big Tech companies," she adds.