Every year during the holiday season, Bassam Shakhashiri, NSF associate director for science and engineering education, performs a flashy chemistry demonstration intended to get children excited about science. This year, however, Shakhashiri has begun his pyrotechnics a little early with a controversial campaign to increase spending on education, including a recent article in Science (246:317, 1989) that examines his wish for a $600 million annual budget, three times the 1990 level. In a era of tight budgets, however, more money for one program often means less for another, and NSF officials are worried that Shakhashiri’s efforts could harm increased funding for research. “Erich [NSF Director Erich Bloch] is not happy,” says one official. “What Bassam doesn’t realize is that, for every friend he makes in education, he loses two in the research community. It could lead to a very bad situation.” But Shakhashin doesn’t seem to mind. In fact, he’s ...
Government Briefs
Fireworks At The Foundation Every year during the holiday season, Bassam Shakhashiri, NSF associate director for science and engineering education, performs a flashy chemistry demonstration intended to get children excited about science. This year, however, Shakhashiri has begun his pyrotechnics a little early with a controversial campaign to increase spending on education, including a recent article in Science (246:317, 1989) that examines his wish for a $600 million annual budget, three time
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