May 10, 2011
In response to (yet another) proposal to reorganize and redirect the U.S. National Institutes of Health, Russ Altman writes in Nature that
…it is crucial to separate the engine of discovery from the engine of application. Discovery is stochastic and opportunistic; application is the stuff of engineers. That is why attempts to over-engineer discovery fail and [...]
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November 27, 2009
Working as a young, self-funded, independent investigator, Charles Darwin formulated the theory of evolution by variation and natural selection.
Modern science funds independent investigators differently:
It has become increasingly difficult for young U.S. researchers to win funding for their ideas.
(See also: “More about less opportunity for young scientists”)
Unfortunately, our iconic images of great scientists distort perceptions of [...]
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