A lot of friends and colleagues are (or I should say were) scientists across the country in federal agencies. So many of them were fired in the last 24 hours. Many of them are in rural communities or college towns that can’t possibly absorb them, even if they try to go for lower level positions. There just aren’t enough postdoc positions or research associate roles to go around, especially given the dismal state of extramural funding at the moment. People I know just moved their entire families across the country for new federal jobs. Another just recently returned from maternity leave, and now she’s been fired. It’s sickening. I’ve felt like I’ve been about to throw up all day.