Michigan
Viewpoint: Scientific research is not waste. Funding cuts will harm Michiganders, economy
Science brought me to Michigan. Four years ago, I moved here to join MSU scientists studying plants in so many different ways, from sequencing DNA to measuring their traits in the field.
Now, I study how plants survive environmental challenges like extreme cold or drought. My work may help us produce resilient crops and protect wild plants from climate change. But I can only do this work because of the once-robust system of federal science funding that is now under threat.
The start of the second Trump administration has devastated science funding.
In January, researchers funded by USAID, including the Feed the Future Innovation Lab at MSU, received a stop-work order for their food security research. Funding freezes and staff cuts at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) are hindering cancer care and research.
And the NIH recently pulled funding that their own expert reviewers had already awarded to scientists studying LGBTQ+ health, setting a worrying precedent for censorship of any scientific topic the government dislikes.
These cuts to federal science funding harm Michigan.
In FY2024, over $1 billion of NIH grant funding went to Michigan, supporting $2.57 billion in economic activity and 11,810 jobs, according to United for Medical Research. These workers spend earnings in their community, supporting Michigan businesses.
Beyond funding research directly, indirect costs from funding agencies also support critical functions such as IT support, accounting and maintaining the buildings where we research, teach and learn.
In addition to economic impacts, scientific advances from federally funded research directly impact Michiganders.
Researchers in Michigan are using federal funding to uncover the relationship between cancer and the immune system, improve biofuel crop production, and study how climate change affects the water quality of our lakes.
In 2023, MSU scientists used federal funding to sequence the sour cherry genome. Breeders can use this genome to breed cherry trees that bloom later in the season, preventing late frosts from killing the buds so that Michigan farmers can harvest more cherries and make more money.
All this science protects our economy and our way of life.
Science funding also trains the next generation of scientists, preparing them for jobs in health care and other fields. One example of this is the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Research Experiences for Undergraduates program, which funds students to do a summer of mentored research at over 300 host institutions across the country, including MSU. They learn lab techniques and coding skills and help make new scientific discoveries.
I was fortunate to participate in one of these programs as an undergraduate, studying a protein that helps tomato flowers develop into fruits after pollination. Now, I’m an NSF-funded researcher, as are the undergraduate students I mentor.
Without NSF funding, opportunities like this would be available only to students who are wealthy enough to work unpaid. These trainees are the current and future scientific workforce, and that career path should be open to everyone.
Science funding is not government waste. The current administration’s threats to science funding risk health, businesses and educational opportunities for Michiganders. For our Lansing community, we all need to urge our representatives to protect American science.
Madison Plunkert is a biologist pursuing a plant science PhD at Michigan State University.
Michigan set a record for diesel fuel prices Sunday.
AAA reported Sunday afternoon the current average for diesel prices statewide was $6.01 per gallon. This beat the 2022 record of $5.96 per gallon, according to analyst Patrick De Haan of the Dallas-based tech company and fuel price tracker GasBuddy.
Sunday’s diesel average climbed 88 cents from last week and more than a dollar since the beginning of April, according to AAA.
The diesel surge comes as Michigan’s average for regular gas on Sunday topped $4.87 per gallon, 1 cent lower than Saturday’s average. Mid-grade fuel averaged $5.42 per gallon, while premium averaged $4.98 per gallon, according to AAA.
The averages for gasoline all were more than $1.60 higher than they were this time last year, according to AAA. Regular gas was 35 cents cheaper than the record $5.22, posted June 11, 2022.
Diesel prices affect construction, farming and trucking. Higher diesel costs for farming and trucking industries affect food costs, GasBuddy said.
“Higher fuel costs mean higher shipping costs for everything we buy,” according to GasBuddy. “More expensive diesel hits farm budgets and drives up food costs.”
De Haan said Thursday that the price surge was driven by fears that oil shipments will continue to be hampered in the Strait of Hormuz as the United States and Israel wage war with Iran. He said declining gas inventories and the temporary closure of three refineries in Illinois and Indiana earlier in the week contributed to the price surge in Michigan.
De Haan said Sunday’s diesel surge was a “perfect storm” of tight refining capacity, freight demand and global supply disruptions. Diesel inventories are below seasonal norms, meaning the market is vulnerable to refinery outages or shipping delays, Newsweek reported.
Even with the spike, De Haan said Michigan’s gas tax rate that went into effect at the beginning of the year makes the average price lower than if the spike had happened in 2025. Michigan’s 52.4 cents per gallon tax replaced the old 6% state gas tax Jan. 1.
“Diesel prices today are ~13.6c/gal LOWER than they’d have been under Michigan’s old 6% sales tax model prior to this year,” De Haan posted on X Sunday.
Regular gas in Michigan averaged $4.87 in Michigan on Sunday, according to AAA. It was 1 cent lower than Saturday.
De Haan said at that time he didn’t foresee increases as capacity in the Midwest returns to normal after the refinery in Whiting, Indiana, came back online.
mbryan@detroitnews.com
No. 1 UCLA baseball took the second game of their Big Ten Conference series 4-3 against Michigan State at Jeff Ishbia Field at McLane Stadium in East Lansing, Mi. on Saturday.
The Bruins remained undefeated in the Big Ten action by relying heavily on their pitching staff, just like they did in their series opener. In the second game against Michigan State, UCLA’s pitching staff limiting the Spartans success at bat to only eight hits over the nine innings.
All in the first
UCLA was aggressive in the top of the first and it resulted in them scoring all four of their runs off of four hits to give them a 4-0 lead. Payton Brennan and Cashel Duggar each delivered two-run singles for UCLA.
Spartans strike back
Michigan State got on the board in the bottom of the second with their only hit of the inning being a double that allowed their runner to cross home plate from second.
Hanging on to the lead
UCLA managed to keep the lead over the third and fourth innings with no runs being scored by either team. The Bruins had a hit in each inning and the Spartans had no hits in the third, but two in the fourth.
Walking to score
The Spartans scored their second run in the bottom of the fifth off of walk with the bases loaded. Michigan State was unable to put up more runs, despite the bases being loaded and UCLA was able to maintain the 4-2 until the bottom of the eighth.
One more in the eighth
UCLA gave up their final run in the bottom of the eighth with a grounded out giving the Spartans base runner to cross home plate. Despite Michigan State narrowing the score to 4-3, they were held without a hit in the bottom of the ninth and UCLA took their second win of the series.
The Bruins will aim for the series sweep on Sunday with an anticipated start time of 9:05 a.m. PT.
No. 1 UCLA baseball handled business over the last two innings against Michigan State to secure a 4-1 win in their series opener at Jeff Ishbia Field at McLane Stadium in East Lansing, Mi. on Friday.
The Bruins found themselves in a much more low-scoring outing than their 15-3 midweek affair against UC Santa Barbara. Against the Spartans, UCLA’s explosive lineup was held to just four hits over all nine innings, but the Bruins pitching staff fared better than Michigan State’s by only allowing two hits.
Scoreless start
Both UCLA and Michigan State had just one hit in the first three innings, as both teams attempted to find success at the plate. The result was the game being runless heading into the fourth.
Spartans strike first
Michigan State got their second hit of the game in the bottom of the fourth with a single, but it was enough to get their base runner across home plate for the first run of the game.
Offense continued to struggle
UCLA had their second hit of the game in the top of the sixth, but despite the rare hit, and multiple other runners getting on base, the Bruins nor Spartans could increase the score until the eighth inning.
Taking the lead late
In the top of the eighth, the Bruins’ batters awoke with a go-ahead two-run homer strike by junior first baseman Mulivai Levu and putting UCLA in the lead for the first time in the game.
Two more for good measure
The Bruins tacked on two more runs in the top of the ninth off of a double and a sacrifice fly to give them two more inusrance runs. The Spartans were held scoreless in the bottom of the ninth to give UCLA the win and keep their undefeated Big Ten Conference streak alive.
UCLA will play their second game against Michigan State on Saturday with an anticipated start time of 12:35 p.m. PT.
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