They Build Spacecraft and Fight Epidemics; Shutdown May Scare Them Away

It’s a rare expertise, critical to everything from space travel to fracking, and it keeps him in steady demand as a contractor at NASA’s John H. Glenn Research Center. It has also put Dr. Costa, a United States citizen since August, within reach of his ultimate dream: working directly for NASA, a government agency as well-known as Coca-Cola back in his little Brazilian hometown. These days, though, Dr. Costa does not make the five-mile trip from his house to the center. Politics — even overheated, corroded, dysfunctional politics — are outside of Dr. Costa’s expertise.

Source: www.nytimes.com