A historic year for U.S. science

This year as usual, Science News covered the big advances across science, medicine and technology, including the next quantum revolution, soaring rates of cancer in young people, the addictive lure of ultraprocessed foods, the debut of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory and how science-based strategies can protect communities from wildfires. But the most consequential news of the year has been the assault on science by the Trump administration.

We started alerting readers to potential impacts of Trump’s second term on science immediately after the election, and have reported extensively on actions to overhaul the nation’s science priorities and impose major funding cuts, including on fields such as astronomy and health that have historically enjoyed strong bipartisan support.

We also went deep on the science behind hot button topics that surfaced, including the complexity of biological sex beyond male and female; the safety of antidepressants; the health effects of removing fluoride from drinking water; and the reasons for rising rates of autism, as well as the support that people with autism and their families say they need to thrive. 

In this issue, we provide perspective on this consequential year by zeroing in on four areas of science, asking researchers how their work has been impacted, what they’re doing to carry on and how they envision where their fields are headed next.

We also analyzed data from more than 5,300 National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation grants terminated or frozen by the Trump administration in 2025 and captured that analysis in a data visualization.

Associate news editor Christopher Crockett, who is also our resident data expert, collaborated with assistant art director Brody Price to create a sunburst graphic that conveys a large amount of information in two pages. Freelance data journalist Cam Rodriguez did a second analysis of the data, using different tools and a different programming language, to confirm the accuracy of our analysis.

And to end the year with a ray of hope, we introduce the five researchers we’re honoring as our 2025 Scientists to Watch. Each of these remarkable young researchers is clear-eyed about the challenges they face, and each is exhilarated by seeking answers to the big questions that their research poses. They are the future of science.