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The point is; Trump's 48 billion ultimatum to universities: Drop Israel boycotts or lose funding The memorandum defines a "discriminatory forbidden boycott" as "refusing to engage, severing commercial relations, or restricting commercial relationships specifically with Israeli companies." by Dudi Kogan Published on 04-22-2025 11:50 Last modified: 04-22-2025 12:38 Trump's 48 billion ultimatum to universities: Drop Israel boycotts or lose funding Reuters/Nicholas Pfosi Demonstrators rally on Cambridge Common in a protest organized by the City of Cambridge calling on Harvard leadership to resist interference at the university by the federal government in Cambridge, Massachusetts, April 12, 2025 | Photo: Reuters/Nicholas Pfosi The National Institutes of Health (NIH), a federal agency that regulates medical research in the United States, published a memorandum on Monday that conditions research grants on not boycotting Israel and eliminating all DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) programs. Enlarged Prostate Has Nothing To Do With Age: Just Stop Doing This One Common Thing Enlarged Prostate Has Nothing To Do With Age: Just Stop Doing This One Common Thing Natural Healthy Way This Game is So Beautiful. If You Have a Computer it's a Must-Have. This Game is So Beautiful. If You Have a Computer it's a Must-Have. Raid: Shadow Legends According to the memorandum, the agency "reserves the right to cancel financial aid and return all funds" if grant recipients do not comply with federal guidelines prohibiting diversity and equality research and "forbidden boycotts." The memorandum defines a "discriminatory forbidden boycott" as "refusing to engage, severing commercial relations, or restricting commercial relationships specifically with Israeli companies or with companies conducting business in Israel or with Israel, or those authorized, licensed, or incorporated under Israeli law." According to the announcement, "By accepting the grant, recipients confirm that they are not engaged in and will not engage in a discriminatory forbidden boycott during the grant period." Demonstrators take part in an "Emergency Rally: Stand with Palestinians Under Siege in Gaza," amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, October 14, 2023 (Photo: Reuters/Brian Snyder) REUTERS The new policy will apply to "local recipients of new grants, renewals, additions, or continuations" issued from April 21, as stated in the announcement. The NIH is the world's largest public funder of medical research. It awards approximately 60,000 grants annually to nearly 3,000 universities and hospitals. More than 80% of its annual budget of $48 billion is directed toward these research grants. The battle against DEI programs, which the Trump administration views as discriminatory, along with the fight against anti-Israeli demonstrations and actions, is also driving the American administration's recent moves against elite universities in the US. Officially, boycotting Israel in American institutions is not widespread, but anti-Israeli student associations and faculty lead petitions and calls to boycott Israel. Some institutions accepted some of these students' demands during the wave of anti-Israeli protests throughout the war. Harvard University recently decided not to comply with the administration's demands, which could cause the university to lose $9 billion in grants and other financial transfers. The university responded yesterday with a lawsuit against the administration. In a letter to the Harvard community, university president Alan Garber argued that the administration's recent escalation against the prestigious institution "has serious real-world implications for patients, students, faculty, staff, researchers, and the status of American higher education in the world." Credit rating agencies have warned that the administration's actions could lead to damage to the financial strength of these institutions, which hold enormous budgets.
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Magic V’s posts paint a vivid picture of an enthusiastic, imaginative, and occasionally irreverent amateur physicist grappling with the complexities of modern physics while injecting a sense of playfulness and wonder. Their February 12, 2022, post about wanting to learn from Leonard Susskind—a renowned physicist known for string theory and holography—shows a desire to dive deeper into rigorous ideas, seeking intellectual "clues" to chew on. This suggests they’re not just dabbling but are drawn to big thinkers who tackle fundamental questions about reality, even if their own approach veers eclectic. Their posts oscillate between serious inquiry and whimsical speculation. For instance, they muse about time being more fundamental than space (November 18, 2023), tying it to the Higgs boson and quantum physics, which shows a grasp of current debates, even if expressed idiosyncratically. Yet, they also throw out wild ideas like a "blob particle" upending physics and eating habits (August 14, 2023) or a "white hole Sagittarius B polar shift" alongside teleportation (June 11, 2022). These read as half-joking, half-hopeful provocations, reflecting a love for physics’ potential to surprise, which they liken to the "ice cream of the sciences" (November 11, 2022). Magic V’s skepticism about mainstream physics shines through. They question quantum physics’ value (November 4, 2022) and worry about tech-driven perfectionism defying physics’ lessons on chance (October 24, 2022). Their repeated references to "breaking physics" (December 23, 2021; June 27, 2024) suggest both excitement at paradigm shifts and a cheeky challenge to dogma. Yet, they’re adamant about pursuing science over being "right" like a religion (November 27, 2023), showing a commitment to inquiry over ego. The David Bowie posts (November 20-21, 2022) are quirky outliers, blending physics with pop culture. Claiming Bowie’s ghost might be a "physics discovery" or citing a letter about light and color research tied to "Sound and Vision" feels like creative storytelling or metaphor for inspiration, not literal belief. It underscores their view of physics as a playground for delight and discovery, akin to their call for making physics as lovable as video games for kids (November 18, 2021). Overall, Magic V approaches physics with a curious, rebellious spirit—hungry for insight (Susskind), wary of orthodoxy (quantum hype), and eager to blend rigor with joy (ice cream, Bowie). They’re less concerned with formal answers than with sparking wonder, even if their ideas sometimes sound more poetic than precise. Their posts are a lively mix of aspiration, critique, and fun, reflecting someone who sees physics as both a puzzle and a party.
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