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A major US non-profit group focused on improving child health has abruptly terminated US$3 million in research grants — leaving nearly 40 scientists confused, angry and scrambling to secure new funding.
On 24 July, 37 grant recipients received an e-mail from the March of Dimes Foundation in New York City informing them that their 3-year grants had been cut off, retroactively, starting on 30 June. Many of the researchers were only a year into their projects, and had had just enough time to hire and train staff, purchase supplies and generate preliminary results. Now, several say that they might need to lay off employees, euthanize lab animals and shelve their research projects if they cannot find other funding — fast.
The March of Dimes, which is supported largely by individual donations, made the decision to revoke the grants because of a budget shortfall, says Kelle Moley, the group's chief scientific officer. "I know this is harsh news," Moley says. "As a former grantee, this would be devastating to me as well."
That is small consolation to many researchers whom Nature spoke to.
Source: Nature
(Score: 3, Interesting) by jmorris on Monday August 06 2018, @05:17PM (3 children)
Go look em up on CharityNavigator [charitynavigator.org] and it was easy to see this coming, something any researcher should have done. Any researcher who didn't do due diligence on their funding sources has learned a valuable lesson in realizing that resources are not unlimited and freely available. Most reputable ones are rated four stars, March of Dimes has been two for years.
The truth is March of Dimes accomplished their mission a very long time ago, and like so many other organizations, refused to die. Don't have hard details but keep hearing bad rumors about em being 'pozzed out the wazoo.' Listing 110 'Federal, State and Territorial Advocacy Victories' as the biggest tangible accomplishment in their most recent (2016) full report on CharityNavigator has a unique odor of an organization forgetting its original purpose and going political advocacy group. Now notice research grants are NOT listed as an accomplishment so probably was a smaller part of their budget (yup, found it. 19.1% of program (i.e. not overhead) expenses are Research AND Medical Support so research is less than 19.1%), one not considered "core" and thus subject to being eliminated.
Ok, enough background info lets get the primary source. Click. Front and center on the homepage right now "WORKPLACE DISCRIMINATION AGAINST
PREGNANT WOMEN AND MOMS" and a button to "TAKE ACTION NOW". Scroll down and there three more links, what do we see as the middle one?
"Without ACA protection, maternal care would be unaffordable for most families." and it is the only one that has a "Learn More" link. Called it, SJW political action group wearing the skin of the March of Dimes. Time for them to die.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Monday August 06 2018, @06:38PM (1 child)
The left is fond of saying that LGBT are "born that way". Well OK then, we should research how to prevent it.
We have a cause and mechanism for some homosexuality in males. The mother's immune system reacts to a protein that is required for proper male development. This especially hits males that are born after other males from the same womb. It's like that issue with Rh factor; perhaps we can give mothers of boys a similar treatment.
We have shown that minute amounts of hormone-mimicing chemicals can have serious sexual effects on lab animals, and that humans are frequently exposed to higher levels. The conclusion should be obvious, but one will have to fight all sorts of industry because these chemicals are mighty useful: plasticizers, herbicides, flame retardants, etc.
(Score: 2) by jmorris on Monday August 06 2018, @07:20PM
Cure homosexuality? You fool, it is heterosexuality they want to cure. Homosexuality is superior in every way! Once everyone is gay toxic masculinity, the patriarchy and all the evils of the Prog's worldview will be cured. Since humanity itself will go extinct the eco-warriors will even be happy.
Seriously though, as with most things SJWs are lying their asses off. They will loudly proclaim homosexuals are "born this way" as they actively 'recruit' as they normalize pedophilia and NAMBLA. "Sex before eight or its too late!" kinda gives NAMBLA's game away. Vast majorities of homosexuals report being molested as children by adult homosexuals. The truth is some are almost certainly "born that way", others can't be turned from preferring the opposite sex and there is a middle that CAN be turned with aggressive efforts. Of course I just pulled a -1 Troll or Flamebait mod for saying it.
But to really get the Triggering turned up to 11.... Imagine pre-natal testing that showed odds of being homosexual. Now imagine how fast every homosexual advocacy group becomes staunch Pro-Life zealots if such a test were developed.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by wisnoskij on Tuesday August 07 2018, @12:52PM
And what would you expect the researchers to do, turn down the free money?
Honestly, it sounds like the ideal situation to me.
> Identify Research Grant that is obviously going bankrupt in a few years.
> Get awarded grant for multi year project.
> Collect money.
> Get grant canceled, absolving you of showing any results.