Lilia Xie

On Saturday, I will be joining the March for Science — a series of rallies and marches to be held in Washington, New York City, Princeton, Trenton, Atlantic City and more than 500 other cities across the globe to celebrate science and to defend the vital role it plays in our health, economies and governments.

My story begins 18 years ago when my family moved to Holmdel, across the road from the Horn Antenna. Shaped like a megaphone, this hulking steel structure helped physicists from Bell Labs in the 1960s measure a cosmic echo from the first moments of the universe. For their work, which confirmed the Big Bang theory, Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson won a Nobel Prize in Physics.

Today, as a chemistry Ph.D. student at MIT, I feel that growing up in the literal shadow of the antenna shaped my path in an auspicious way. From a young age, my neighborhood made me curious about science and showed me New Jersey’s rich history of discovery and innovation. My dedicated teachers in the Holmdel public school system nurtured this initial interest into a passion for science. When I attend the March for Science Saturday, I will be marching for the opportunities that science helps to create for us all.

The importance of science extends far beyond our nation’s universities and cities. Science permeates the places we interact with on a daily basis, as I learned first-hand growing up in Holmdel. On a field trip to Sandy Hook in the fifth grade, we waded into the tide, seeing and feeling the effects of conservation efforts on the biodiversity and health of the Jersey Shore. In the organic chemistry class I took with Josephine Blaha in my senior year at Holmdel High School, we made our own biodiesel from vegetable oil, learning about alternative fuels and other local sustainability initiatives.

Our health and economic well-being are intimately tied to scientific progress. Medical researchers across the country are working tirelessly on treatments for conditions such as cancer and Alzheimer’s disease that affect millions of Americans. Applying their advances will be integral to maintaining the excellence of our health care systems in Monmouth and Ocean counties. The technologies underpinning many of New Jersey’s businesses, from pharmaceuticals to telecommunications, evolved from discoveries made in basic scientific research.

In the midst of increasingly heated public discourse on science, it is important to remember that science itself is not partisan. Microbes do not care whether you are red, blue or other. Whether we watch Fox or CNN, the same laws of physics govern data transmission to our TVs. Supporting science research does not further the agenda of any one political party. Rather, it is a long-term investment into uncovering knowledge about the way our world works, and applying what we learn to improve how we live our lives.

I also believe we have a responsibility to base our actions and policies on the needs of the next generation. Science education ensures that today’s students will be tomorrow’s leaders in an increasingly technological world. Environmental research and policies based on scientific evidence will help preserve the resources they will inherit. Finally, I can personally attest to the fundamental value of learning about science and the scientific method. It instills curiosity, discipline and, most importantly, appreciation for the beauty of unexpected truths.

Without a doubt, the communities I grew up in made me the scientist I am today. I am confident in saying that science also continues to improve our communities, making them more vibrant and prosperous places to live. I encourage you to join me in standing up for science — by participating in one of the local marches or by sharing your own story about why science matters to you. Together, let’s make sure we can make the discoveries that will lay the foundation for a brighter future.

Lilia Xie is a 2010 graduate of Holmdel High School and received her undergraduate degree from Princeton University in 2014. She is currently a graduate student studying the electronic properties of porous materials at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.