"We Are Now at a Perilous Moment in the History of Funding for Science in the United States"

That is the ominous statement made by Ray Orbach, Dept. of Energy Under Secretary. It was a remark made yesterday to the Universities Research Association.

It appears from the excerpt that he is very optimistic about the President's FY2009 budget. However, and this is a caution that everyone should heed, this is no guarantee that the legislator will pass the President's budget proposal. No one should be counting their chickens yet, and everyone must convey to the public and members of Congress why investment in basic research is crucial.

Zz.