The scientific community—as well as much of the rest of the world—is trying to envision what a Barak Obama presidency in the US will mean. A new vBlog, sponsored by online magazine Slate, called ‘Grand United Weekly’, captures the optimistic speculation: federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, a tripling of money for National Science Foundation fellowships, a strong science and technology advisor and a doubling of investment in science and technology research over the next 10 years. There’s only one problem—most of these moves will require lots of money. And the US budget looks to be hamstrung due to a flagging global economy, a record federal budget deficit and a growing overall federal debt.

Physics Today takes a more wonky approach to what Obama’s science vision might mean in terms of appointments and policy.

Even before Obama is sworn in, there’s some good news for US science policy. The NSF is now requiring a section on mentoring in its grant proposals, according to the US National Postdoc Association.

And the US National Institutes of Health is trying to boost the amount of training grants for early-career professors.

In another kind of presidential news, a blogger at the Chronicle of Higher Education discusseses whether or not university presients are overpaid.