At rallies across the United States, including Berkeley, San Francisco, and Palo Alto, communities gathered to defend scientific research against proposed federal funding cuts by the Trump administration.

Speaking to ABC7 News, Professor Ted Miguel emphasized the fundamental role of science in daily life, stating, “Science isn’t just some abstract thing. It’s what makes us healthy, it’s what makes us rich, it’s what gives us technology – it gives us our iPhone. So, if we attack it, we’re really not going to live the same kind of lives we want to live and I think it’s really dangerous.”

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) faces substantial budget reductions, jeopardizing research into critical diseases like Alzheimer’s, cancer, and heart disease. Since January, grant funding has been threatened, and thousands of scientific employees have lost their jobs, raising concerns about the long-term consequences.

A federal judge has temporarily blocked the NIH budget reductions, but the battle over funding continues.