Debunking the "Woke Science" Narrative: A Closer Look at NSF Grants

A Flawed Approach to Identifying "Woke" Grants

Senator Ted Cruz recently released a database of over 3,400 National Science Foundation (NSF) grants, totaling over $2 billion, which he labeled as promoting "woke" ideologies. However, a closer examination reveals a significant flaw in the methodology used to create this list.

A random sample of 100 grants from the database paints a very different picture. Instead of being rife with "neo-Marxist propaganda," 40% of the grants were standard scientific research with no "woke" elements. Another 20% were borderline, often dealing with topics that could be perceived as political, but still primarily focused on legitimate scientific inquiry. Only the remaining 40% actually contained elements that could be considered "woke."

Gaming the System: The Inclusion of Irrelevant DEI Statements

The abundance of non-woke grants on the list stems from a simple, yet revealing, practice: researchers adding a perfunctory sentence about benefiting women and minorities to unrelated grant proposals. This suggests researchers felt compelled to include such statements, perhaps believing it would increase their chances of securing funding in the current climate.

One example is a grant focused on security exploits in energy harvesting systems. The technical details occupy the bulk of the abstract, only to be followed by a tacked-on sentence about promoting equitable outcomes for women in computer science. This pattern repeats across numerous grants, highlighting a potential systemic issue.

False Positives: Misinterpreted Terminology and Context

Beyond the inclusion of irrelevant DEI statements, other grants were flagged due to the misinterpretation of scientific terminology or the research context. For instance, a grant studying beetle horn development was flagged because it included the term "cis-regulatory," along with a mention of promoting "diversity"—referring to beetle phenotypes, not social diversity. This demonstrates the superficiality of the criteria used for identifying "woke" science.

The Actual "Woke" Grants: A Nuanced Perspective

While the database does contain genuinely "woke" grants, not all of them are inherently flawed. Roughly half fall into the category of STEM outreach programs that, while perhaps overly focused on underrepresented minorities, aim to increase participation in science. A smaller percentage, about 10-20%, do represent the type of frivolous research Senator Cruz likely envisioned, with topics such as exploring different dimensions of "Blackness" in STEM.

A Question of Competence, Not Ideology

This analysis isn't defending woke science. Even a small percentage of frivolous grants represents millions of taxpayer dollars wasted. However, it highlights a concerning lack of rigor in the effort to identify and address the issue. A proper review of these grants doesn't require a herculean effort. As this review demonstrates, a relatively small investment of time can effectively separate the wheat from the chaff.

"It reflects poorly on the Biden administration that you could only get a grant to cure cancer if you suggested you might teach an underrepresented minority child about it. But surely it also reflects poorly on the Republicans when they propose its cancellation just because it did include the sentence about minorities." - Author of original article

Ultimately, the issue is not just about the presence of "woke" grants, but also the incompetent handling of the situation, potentially jeopardizing valuable research in the process.