How the Coronavirus Affects Research at Colleges Worldwide
2020-06-07
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1The coronavirus crisis may have halted classes at many colleges and universities when their campuses closed earlier this year.
2But that is not the only problem the virus has created for the higher education community worldwide.
3In addition to study programs, there is other important work taking place at these schools: academic research.
4Even with some institutions now re-opening, their laboratories and the people who work in them may face restrictions on research.
5Suzanne Ortega is president of the Council of Graduate Schools, a not-for-profit group based in the United States.
6The council provides support to graduate school education and research projects.
7Ortega told VOA that just like for everyone else, the sudden, unexpected spread of the coronavirus came as a shock to U.S. academic institutions.
8Luckily, many schools have been developing crisis communication and risk management plans for years.
9Some acted quickly, deciding not just to send students home and move classes online.
10They also decided which research projects to continue and which ones could be delayed.
11"What happened at the institutional level really trickled down to the lab and the departmental level," said Ortega.
12The government agencies responsible for financing most academic research in the U.S. also announced action.
13The National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation extended time limits for when researchers need to show the results of their ongoing projects.
14The NIH and NSF, as the two agencies are known, also advised researchers on what to do in this situation.
15Some academics even decided to take their animal subjects home to care for them while campus laboratories are closed.
16Wendy Streitz argues there is no denying that the coronavirus crisis will create barriers for ongoing scientific exploration.
17She is president of the Council on Government Relations, a group representing 190 research-heavy colleges and universities in the United States.
18Delays in research can affect study findings, especially when materials must be observed continuously or have limits on their use.
19And travel restrictions make it unclear when field researchers studying animals or conditions in nature, for example, will get back to work.
20But as concerns about the effect of the coronavirus on the world economy turn into reality, there is also the financial question, Streitz says.
21The NIH and NSF are working to ensure that projects stay funded.
22But in Britain, Cancer Research UK and Macmillan Cancer Support expect to lose hundreds of millions of dollars in donations this year.
23The two groups are among the country's biggest private fundraisers for cancer research.
24"The research isn't getting done while people are idle. And when people get back to work ... there's no guarantee that the government's going to be able to come up with the funds necessary to finish the research. So I think, in the long term, we are going to see research projects that can't finish," Streitz noted.
25Another concern is over what effect this might have on researchers, especially those now taking the first steps in their scientific careers, says Joanne Carney.
26She is the chief government relations officer at the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
27Delays in research mean delays in meeting graduation requirements, she says.
28Also, delays of conferences and large meetings mean the new scientists will miss out on chances to meet others working in their fields.
29Carney says this might limit the ability of these men and women to advance in their careers.
30So could decisions by many institutions to temporarily suspend efforts to fill open positions.
31In fact, Australia's chief scientist has warned that the country's universities may lose as many as 7,000 research positions within the next several months.
32Travel restrictions have also limited the flow of international students, who represent many of the graduate student researchers in the U.S. and overseas.
33Yet Carney suggests there may be some good news to come out of this.
34She says active university laboratories are sharing equipment and their findings like never before.
35And many researchers who were studying other diseases are now lending their knowledge to the fight against the coronavirus.
36"This ... scientific knowledge that we are building every single day is going to continue to guide us and contribute to public health for decades to come," said Carney.
37I'm Pete Musto.
1The coronavirus crisis may have halted classes at many colleges and universities when their campuses closed earlier this year. But that is not the only problem the virus has created for the higher education community worldwide. 2In addition to study programs, there is other important work taking place at these schools: academic research. Even with some institutions now re-opening, their laboratories and the people who work in them may face restrictions on research. 3Suzanne Ortega is president of the Council of Graduate Schools, a not-for-profit group based in the United States. The council provides support to graduate school education and research projects. 4Ortega told VOA that just like for everyone else, the sudden, unexpected spread of the coronavirus came as a shock to U.S. academic institutions. Luckily, many schools have been developing crisis communication and risk management plans for years. Some acted quickly, deciding not just to send students home and move classes online. They also decided which research projects to continue and which ones could be delayed. 5"What happened at the institutional level really trickled down to the lab and the departmental level," said Ortega. 6The government agencies responsible for financing most academic research in the U.S. also announced action. The National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation extended time limits for when researchers need to show the results of their ongoing projects. The NIH and NSF, as the two agencies are known, also advised researchers on what to do in this situation. 7Some academics even decided to take their animal subjects home to care for them while campus laboratories are closed. 8Wendy Streitz argues there is no denying that the coronavirus crisis will create barriers for ongoing scientific exploration. She is president of the Council on Government Relations, a group representing 190 research-heavy colleges and universities in the United States. 9Delays in research can affect study findings, especially when materials must be observed continuously or have limits on their use. And travel restrictions make it unclear when field researchers studying animals or conditions in nature, for example, will get back to work. 10But as concerns about the effect of the coronavirus on the world economy turn into reality, there is also the financial question, Streitz says. The NIH and NSF are working to ensure that projects stay funded. But in Britain, Cancer Research UK and Macmillan Cancer Support expect to lose hundreds of millions of dollars in donations this year. The two groups are among the country's biggest private fundraisers for cancer research. 11"The research isn't getting done while people are idle. And when people get back to work ... there's no guarantee that the government's going to be able to come up with the funds necessary to finish the research. So I think, in the long term, we are going to see research projects that can't finish," Streitz noted. 12Another concern is over what effect this might have on researchers, especially those now taking the first steps in their scientific careers, says Joanne Carney. She is the chief government relations officer at the American Association for the Advancement of Science. 13Delays in research mean delays in meeting graduation requirements, she says. Also, delays of conferences and large meetings mean the new scientists will miss out on chances to meet others working in their fields. 14Carney says this might limit the ability of these men and women to advance in their careers. So could decisions by many institutions to temporarily suspend efforts to fill open positions. In fact, Australia's chief scientist has warned that the country's universities may lose as many as 7,000 research positions within the next several months. 15Travel restrictions have also limited the flow of international students, who represent many of the graduate student researchers in the U.S. and overseas. 16Yet Carney suggests there may be some good news to come out of this. She says active university laboratories are sharing equipment and their findings like never before. And many researchers who were studying other diseases are now lending their knowledge to the fight against the coronavirus. 17"This ... scientific knowledge that we are building every single day is going to continue to guide us and contribute to public health for decades to come," said Carney. 18I'm Pete Musto. 19Pete Musto reported on this story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. 20_______________________________________________________________ 21Words in This Story 22campus(es) - n. the area and buildings around a university, college, or school 23academic - adj. of or relating to schools and education 24graduate - adj. of or relating to a course of studies taken at a college or university after earning a bachelor's degree or other first degree 25management - n. the act or process of controlling and dealing with something 26trickle(d) down - p.v. to spread from the upper levels of a society or organization to the lower levels 27fund(ed) - v. to provide money for something 28idle - adj. not working, active, or being used 29advance - v. to make progress 30contribute - v. to give something, such as money, goods, or time, to help a person, group, cause, or organization 31decade(s) - n. a period of 10 years