Jacob Carter

Research scientist, Center for Science and Democracy

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Jacob Carter is a research scientist for the Center for Science and Democracy at the Union of Concerned Scientists. In this role, Dr. Carter investigates how science is used in the policy-making process, focusing on issues of scientific integrity across the federal government. See Jacob's full bio.

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Photo: Audrey Eyring/UCS

Two Years of Attacks on Science are Putting Public Health and Safety at Risk

January 28, 2019 9:21 AM EDT

Today, UCS is releasing the report “The State of Science in the Trump Era: Damage Done, Lessons Learned, and a Path to Progress.” This report is truly a culmination of the state of science in the Trump era to date. In it, we have detailed the administration’s attacks on federal science and scientists during the past two years, highlighted successes that the scientific community and their supporters have had in pushing back against these attacks, and outlined a path forward for a new Congress to hold this administration accountable for these attacks.

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Photo: CMRF Crumlin/Flickr

Sidelining Science Hurts Children

October 11, 2018 11:30 AM EDT

When science is sidelined, there is often an underlying story of the people who are hurt by these decisions and it is often children. Read more >

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Photo: Wayne National Forest

This Beetle Lays its Eggs in Dead Mice Carcasses and then Covers Them With Mucus – But it’s Endangered and Important

September 5, 2018 1:37 PM EDT

The US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) rushed a scientific assessment on the endangered American burying beetle (Nicrophorus americanus) in Nebraska, seemingly because the agency didn’t want to disrupt agribusiness. Two biologists that were working on the assessment, Wyatt Hoback and Douglas Leasure, told the Washington Post that the FWS pushed them to conduct their science on an extremely constrained timeline. The beetle has been a source of contention in federal government research since 2013. The species was listed as endangered after 1989 when scientific evidence showed that the beetle had disappeared from over 90% of its historic range in the US.

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Photo: Wayne National Forest
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We Surveyed Thousands of Federal Scientists. Here are Some Potential Reasons Why the Response Rate Was Lower than Usual

August 14, 2018 2:49 PM EDT

In February and March of this year, the Union of Concerned Scientists, in partnership with Iowa State University’s Center for Survey Statistics and Methodology, sent a survey to over 63,000 federal career staff across 16 federal agencies, offices, and bureaus. Our goal was to give scientists a voice on the state of science under the Trump administration as we had during previous administrations. Read more >

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Photo: Virginia State Parks/CC BY 2.0 (Flickr)

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: The Results of Our 2018 Federal Scientists Survey

August 14, 2018 10:34 AM EDT

In February and March of this year, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) conducted a survey of federal scientists to ask about the state of science over the past year, and the results are in. Scientists and their work are being hampered by political interference, workforce reductions, censorship, and other issues, but the federal scientific workforce is resilient and continuing to stand up for the use of science in policy decisions. Read more >

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