To the editor,

When it comes to making it through tough economic times, Steve Jobs knows what hes doing. During the dot-com crisis, his strategy was to invest, increasing the R&D budget to get ahead of the competition. And thats exactly what we did. And it worked. And thats exactly what well do this time. says Jobs.

Much like Apple, America has some of the best human talent in the world. Instead of investing in research, we are cutting the amount that we spend on it. We have left our world-class scientists without the funding to pursue the research they are trained for.

The foundation for innovation is research; investing in it can help pull America out of the current financial crisis more quickly than any bailout package. Through the Your Candidates Your Health initiative Rep. Jim Moran told Northern Virginians that he will be an advocate for research in the new Congress. The 111th Congress and the Obama administration must move quickly to invest in our research infrastructure,from the NIH and CDC to NASA and the Department of Energy.

Here in Virginia, investment in research means grants for our universities and industries; NIH funding for the University of Virginia was $158 million in 2007. Virginia Commonwealth University received $65 million. In 2008, the DOE granted $112 million for energy science and research in Virginia. Research funding means improved health. It means cleaner, more efficient energy. It means jobs.

Using a strong business model like Apples, we can stimulate our economy with investments in research. Rep. Moran and Senators Mark Warner and Jim Webb, take our message to Capitol Hill. Northern Virginians know that we can rely on research-driven innovation to help us through a recession. Your efforts to secure funding for science and innovations in health will ensure our physical and economic well-being.

Michael Kalutkiewicz
Director of Government Affairs for theInternational Association for Dental Research, Alexandria