Primary Source:  Choice Words with Choosy_Female 

I just returned from one of the most critical, but kind assemblages of experts. What was I doing? I was serving on a National Science Foundation (NSF) Panel where we were deciding what extremely few project pre-proposals would get even a chance at competing for funding with a full proposal.

To be clear: Lots of great science goes on around the US, but we simply don’t have the means to support it (or even the majority of it). Why? Our budget is insufficient.

Here’s where moving+panel experience= inspiration for this post.

I write my representatives pretty often (take that, Millennial-Haters!), and much of my writing is in support of science and education funding, as well as efforts to end discrimination. Because we moved to a new district, some of my representatives have changed. So I went searching…

Cue  https://www.govtrack.us/

Here you can look up your representatives’ contact information, voting record, efficacy, term and re-election dates, etc. You can get updates emailed in digest form, too.  A feature I found that makes me excited about this website is the ability to easily track committee work. In particular, I’m glad my new rep. also happens to serve on the budget committee. I suspect we’ll become quite close

Please, for what you care about, contact your reps. And if you’re a scientist, fan of science, or patriot, we can’t afford for you not to.

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Emily Weigel

Emily Weigel (@Choosy_Female) is Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Zoology and in the Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, and Behavior Program at Michigan State University. Originally from Atlanta, Georgia, she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Biology with a focus on interdisciplinary research from the Georgia Institute of Technology. At MSU, Weigel conducts research in the lab of Dr. Jenny Boughman and is affiliated with the BEACON Center for the Study of Evolution in Action. Her dissertation research focuses on how female choice and investment interact with male mating strategies. Additionally, Weigel’s education research asks how and why a background in genetics affects student performance in evolutionary biology. When not researching, Weigel enjoys playing soccer, surfing Netflix, and promoting STEM in the community.

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