Policy

Recent articles

Illustration of coins falling through space.

Establishing a baseline: Trends in NIH neuroscience funding from 2008 to 2024

Funding for neuroscience-related projects more than doubled in 16 years, rising from $4.2 billion in 2008 to $10.5 billion in 2024, according to an analysis by The Transmitter. That money went largely to private universities in coastal states.

By Natalia Mesa
10 November 2025 | 8 min read
Glasses with a pie chart in one of the lenses.

How have funding cuts affected early-career scientists’ futures?

Some say they feel terrified and anxious over all the uncertainty; many are thinking about leaving the United States, academia or science altogether; others plan to stay the course.

By The Transmitter
10 November 2025 | 9 min read
Illustration of two hands holding an abstract geometric object that resembles a human brain.

The state of neuroscience in 2025: An overview

The Transmitter presents a portrait of the field through four lenses: its focus, its output, its people and its funding.

By The Transmitter
10 November 2025 | 4 min read
A monkey brain slice.

Without monkeys, neuroscience has no future

Research in primate brains has been essential for the development of brain-computer interfaces and artificial neural networks. New funding and policy changes put the future of such advances at risk.

By Cory Miller, J. Anthony Movshon, Doris Tsao
10 November 2025 | 5 min read
Two test tubes filled with coins.

Which sources fund your neuroscience research?

Government sources are the main overall contributors to neuroscience labs, but funding breakdown varies across labs, career stages and neuroscience subfields, a survey by The Transmitter shows.

By Claudia López Lloreda
10 November 2025 | 5 min read
Comic strip-like illustration showing a scientist at the bench, pills and data, and a man holding a pill bottle and looking at his phone while smiling.

Our searchable repository of useful research can restore trust in federally funded basic science

Called U.S. Public Research Benefits, the database showcases the value of basic science in an easy and accessible format.

By Adam Charles
5 November 2025 | 6 min listen
Nonhuman brain slice.

Nonhuman primate research to lose federal funding at major European facility

The Dutch Senate has ordered the Biomedical Primate Research Centre in the Netherlands to shift its funding away from primate experiments by 2030.

By Lauren Schenkman
30 October 2025 | 4 min read
Hands cut up a pie chart with dining utensils.

NIH awarded 37 percent fewer neuroscience-related grants in 2025 than in past years

But the agency has spent nearly its entire budget for this fiscal year, which ends tomorrow.

By Natalia Mesa
29 September 2025 | 4 min read
Illustration of two researchers attempting to use a microscope that has been twisted into a knot.

International scientific collaboration is more necessary—yet more challenging—than ever

These partnerships accelerate neuroscience by enabling researchers to share resources and expertise, as well as generate more relevant and reproducible results. But new federal funding restrictions in the United States are putting such collaborations in jeopardy.

By Lucina Q. Uddin
15 September 2025 | 6 min listen
Collage of black researchers, buildings at HBCUs and scientific equipment.

Building the future of neuroscience at HBCUs

Black In Neuro is launching a new program to help historically Black colleges and universities advance neuroscience research and education, focusing on cross-institutional collaboration, joint curriculum development and improved mentoring initiatives.

By Jheannelle Johnson
8 September 2025 | 8 min listen

Explore more from The Transmitter

Two hands hold a paper airplane.

How will neuroscience training need to change in the future?

Training in computational neuroscience, data science and statistics will need to expand, say many of the scientists we surveyed. But that must be balanced with a more traditional grounding in the scientific method and critical thinking. Researchers noted that funding concerns will also affect training, especially for people from underrepresented groups.

By The Transmitter
10 November 2025 | 11 min read
Composite of headshots of neuroscientists who passed away in the past several years.

The leaders we have lost

Learn more about the lives and legacies of the neuroscientists who passed away between 2023 and 2025.

By The Transmitter
10 November 2025 | 4 min read
Stack of papers.

What are the most-cited neuroscience papers from the past 30 years?

Highly cited papers reflect the surge in artificial-intelligence research in the field and other technical advances, plus prizewinning work on analgesics, the fusiform face area and ion channels.

By The Transmitter
10 November 2025 | 11 min read

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