Patrick R. LeClair, professor and department chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy of the University of Alabama, recently made the case for NIST research funding:

Imagine not having GPS to find a new destination, locate your smart phone or help soldiers navigate the battlefield. If President Trump’s fiscal year 2018 budget is implemented, which calls for a significant cut to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the cutting-edge work NIST is responsible for – such as the GPS — would be in great jeopardy.

The U.S. Senate recently voted to do the right thing by increasing funding for the agency while the House passed a bill that would cut funding for NIST. As chairman of the Commerce Justice, Science, and Related Agencies appropriations subcommittee, my senator, Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), can demonstrate tremendous leadership by supporting robust funding for the agency when the two congressional chambers iron out their differences in the respective bills. The current stopgap budgetary measure ends Dec. 8.

Read more: NIST research: Timing is everything