Science Funding Has Increased This Year, But Is It Enough?

Research is the first thing to go in a company during tough times as well...

I am seeing that happen right now..

Short sighted, yes. But in our modern world very little is done with the long term in mind.

There are two legitimate roles for Government: One is defense, and the other is education.

Businesses and corporations, have cut back on their R&D Dollars, and turned to the Universities, since many Universities will do the R&D for them, financed by taxpayer money, or even tuitions.

I live in Carrboro NC, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a powerful institution that gets money from the State of North Carolina.

Duke is next door.

It appears to me that Duke sells, and the NC University System gives it away.

An increase is good.

How much to whom for what, is what I want to know?

I tell you, some of these academics live better than a lot of movie stars ever dreamed of.

Across the board though, respect and enforcement of intellectual property rights will do more for the US economy, than throwing money around.

P.S. I'll be glad to talk about this later, but I've been writing for awhile now, and need to watch TV. I recognize that I have not fully explained or developed my response. Possibly we will determine at least where the money is best spent, in order to get the appropriate amount.

Your question, "Is it enough" has merit. However, the "stimulus package" is designed to be exactly that - a "stimulus" package. I am in complete agreement that R & D is an important and often underfunded part of our future, but the stimulus package is designed to attempt to "stimulate" the economy. Unfortunately, R & D does little to get money flowing into the economy on a short-term basis.

The beneficiaries of R & D in the short term are those who are actually doing the research, the scientists, lab workers, etc. Very little money is flowing to the general public to implement the stimulation that the program is designed to accomplish. In the long term, stimulation from R & D and the cost to benefit ratio will be a much more important factor with the development of new products, new technologies and new mothods.

We are in a very complicated circumstance right now. We have a collapsing economy and a sympathetic collapse of industry. While I am skeptical that the stimulus package as it is now being implemented will accomplish the goals that the administration has set for this endeavor, I do understand the logic and the hope for this program and I am equally as hopeful as I am skeptical that the end will be met.

Further, I am of the opinion that a 50% increase in funding is no small increase. It may be that 50% of a small budget still results in a small budget, but it is a start in these trying times. I say be patient and allow the stimulus package to succeed or fail, as the case may be, and then petition for more money when and if it becomes available.