A devastating blow: personal reflections on Argentina's scientific decline

As an Argentine scientist, the defunding of CONICET and INTA feels like a blow to progress and our future. Despite free education, these cuts force talented researchers to seek opportunities abroad. Argentina's history of scientific achievement, from Nobel Prizes to COVID-19 vaccines, is at risk. Defunding science weakens our ability to solve problems and compete globally.

Mapping philanthropic support of science

While philanthropic support for science has increased in the past decade, there is limited quantitative knowledge about the patterns that characterize it and the mechanisms that drive its distribution. Here, we map philanthropic funding to universities and research institutions based on IRS tax forms from 685,397 non-profit organizations. We identify nearly one million grants supporting institutions involved in science and higher education, finding that in volume and scope, philanthropy is a significant source of funds, reaching an amount that rivals some of the key federal agencies like the NSF and NIH. Our analysis also reveals that philanthropic funders tend to focus locally, indicating that criteria beyond research excellence play an important role in funding decisions, and that funding relationships are stable, i.e. once a grant-giving relationship begins, it tends to continue in time. Finally, we show that the bipartite funder-recipient network displays a highly overrepresented motif indicating that funders who share one recipient also share other recipients and we show that this motif contains predictive power for future funding relationships. We discuss the policy implications of our findings on inequality in science, scientific progress, and the role of quantitative approaches to philanthropy.

Evaluation of the coordinated development between Chinese cultural industry and scientific & technological innovation

Based on the coupling and interaction relationship between China's cultural industry (CI) and scientific & technological innovation (STI), this study constructed an index system for their coordinated development. The weight of each indicator was determined by using the entropy value method (EVM), and the coupling coordination degree (CCD) model was used to calculate CCD and coordination degree of China's CI and STI from 2012 to 2020. On this basis, the key factors in the coupling effect were analyzed using grey correlation degree (GCD). The results demonstrate that: (1) there is a high-level coupling relationship between China's CI and technological innovation; (2) the level of coupling coordination between the two is generally on the rise, experiencing a development process from serious maladjustment to high coordination; (3) Industry resources, policy support and the cost of cultural undertakings are the endogenous factors restricting the development of CI, and the environment and output of STI are the key factors restricting the coupling and coordinated development of Chinese CI and STI.

Research sites get closer to field camps over time: Informing environmental management through a geospatial analysis of science in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica

As in many parts of the world, the management of environmental science research in Antarctica relies on cost-benefit analysis of negative environmental impact versus positive scientific gain. Several studies have examined the environmental impact of Antarctic field camps, but very little work looks at how the placement of these camps influences scientific research. In this study, we integrate bibliometrics, geospatial analysis, and historical research to understand the relationship between field camp placement and scientific production in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of East Antarctica. Our analysis of the scientific corpus from 1907-2016 shows that, on average, research sites have become less dispersed and closer to field camps over time. Scientific output does not necessarily correspond to the number of field camps, and constructing a field camp does not always lead to a subsequent increase in research in the local area. Our results underscore the need to consider the complex historical and spatial relationships between field camps and research sites in environmental management decision-making in Antarctica and other protected areas.

Higher education and science popularization: Can they achieve coordinated growth?

This study aims to explore whether higher education and science popularization can achieve coordinated growth with temporal and spatial characteristics. Selecting the provincial regions of the Yangtze River Economic Belt in China as cases with data from the national statistics administrations (such as China Statistical Yearbook), this study uses entropy weight analysis, TOPSIS, GM(1,1) gray prediction methods and coupling coordination degree model to evaluate the coordinated growth status. The key findings are: (1) the annual budget per student, and the number of science and technology museums affect both systems more obviously; (2) the overall performances of science popularization fluctuate more obviously than those of higher education; (3) the coordinated growth performances of the two systems in most regions remain mild fluctuations and keep relatively stable coordinated status, however, temporal and spatial variation tendencies do exist among regions. Therefore, corresponding countermeasures should be implemented: generally, national authority needs to involve in coordination activities among regions; the regions with satisfactory coordinated growth performances need more creative approaches to maintain the coordinated growth interactions; the regions at the transitioning status need to prevent the grade decline and upgrade the performances; the regions with lagging performances need to stop the decline and reduce the gaps with others. The novelties include analyzing the coordinated growth interaction mechanism between the two, selecting indices to assess the abstract interaction mechanism precisely, proposing suggestions based on temporal and spatial comparisons of the coordinated growth performances, etc.

Have FDI quantity and quality promoted the low-carbon development of science and technology parks (STPs)? The threshold effect of knowledge accumulation

In recent times, China has emphasized five major development concepts to promote high-quality development: coordination, green, innovation, openness, and sharing. As a metamorphosis of these ideas, Chinese science and technology parks (STPs) are gathering areas of high-tech industries and represent advanced productive forces. Their greenness, openness, and innovative developments herald the future development trends of China. Based on the data of 52 STPs in China from 2011 to 2018, this study analyzes the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) quantity and quality on the low-carbon development of the STPs. We use Hansen’s nonlinear panel threshold regression model with knowledge accumulation as the threshold variable. The results show the following: First, there are complex nonlinear relationships between FDI quantity, FDI quality, and the low-carbon development of the STPs. Second, FDI quantity has a significant positive impact on the low-carbon development of the STPs only when the level of knowledge accumulation is below a certain threshold. Beyond this threshold the effect is no longer significant. Third, FDI quality has a significant positive impact on the low-carbon development of STPs only when the level of knowledge accumulation is lower than a certain threshold; beyond which, the impact is no longer significant. These results can serve as a reference for China to effectively promote economic low-carbon growth of STPs and achieve green, open, and innovative development.

Fiscal Expenditures on Science and Technology and Environmental Pollution: Evidence from China

Studying the driving factors of environmental pollution is of great importance for China. Previous literature mainly focused on the cause of national aggregate emission changes. However, research about the effect of fiscal expenditures on science and technology (FESTs) on environmental pollution is rare. Considering the large gap among cities in China, it is necessary to investigate whether and how FESTs affect environmental pollution among cities. We adopted three kinds of typical environmental pollutants including sulfur dioxide (SO₂) emissions, wastewater emission, and atmospheric particulate matter less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter (PM_2.5). Using the data of 260 prefecture-level cities over ten years in China, we found that FESTs play a significantly positive role in reducing sulfur dioxide (SO₂) emissions and PM_2.5 concentrations, but fail to alleviate wastewater emissions. Specifically, for every 1% increase in FESTs, SO₂ emissions were reduced by 5.317% and PM_2.5 concentrations were reduced by 5.329%. Furthermore, we found that FESTs reduced environmental pollution by impeding fixed asset investments and by promoting research and development activities (R&D). Moreover, the impacts of FESTs on environmental pollution varied across regions and sub-periods. Our results are robust to a series of additional checks, including alternative econometric specifications, generalized method of moments (GMM) analysis and overcoming potential endogeneity with an instrumental variable. Our findings confirm that government efforts can be effective on pollution control in China. Hence, all governments should pay more attention to FESTs for sustainable development and environmental quality improvements.

NIH funding and the pursuit of edge science

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) plays a critical role in funding scientific endeavors in biomedicine. Funding innovative science is an essential element of the NIH's mission, but many have questioned the NIH's ability to fulfill this aim. Based on an analysis of a comprehensive corpus of published biomedical research articles, we measure whether the NIH succeeds in funding work with novel ideas, which we term edge science. We find that edge science is more often NIH funded than less novel science, but with a delay. Papers that build on very recent ideas are NIH funded less often than are papers that build on ideas that have had a chance to mature for at least 7 y. We have three further findings. First, the tendency to fund edge science is mostly limited to basic science. Papers that build on novel clinical ideas are not more often NIH funded than are papers that build on well-established clinical knowledge. Second, novel papers tend to be NIH funded more often because there are more NIH-funded papers in innovative areas of investigation, rather than because the NIH funds innovative papers within research areas. Third, the NIH's tendency to have funded papers that build on the most recent advances has declined over time. In this regard, NIH funding has become more conservative despite initiatives to increase funding for innovative projects. Given our focus on published papers, the results reflect both the funding preferences of the NIH and the composition of the applications it receives.

Scientists' political behaviors are not driven by individual-level government benefits

Is it appropriate for scientists to engage in political advocacy? Some political critics of scientists argue that scientists have become partisan political actors with self-serving financial agendas. However, most scientists strongly reject this view. While social scientists have explored the effects of science politicization on public trust in science, little empirical work directly examines the drivers of scientists’ interest in and willingness to engage in political advocacy. Using a natural experiment involving the U.S. National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship (NSF-GRF), we causally estimate for the first time whether scientists who have received federal science funding are more likely to engage in both science-related and non-science-related political behaviors. Comparing otherwise similar individuals who received or did not receive NSF support, we find that scientists’ preferences for political advocacy are not shaped by receiving government benefits. Government funding did not impact scientists’ support of the 2017 March for Science nor did it shape the likelihood that scientists donated to either Republican or Democratic political groups. Our results offer empirical evidence that scientists’ political behaviors are not motivated by self-serving financial agendas. They also highlight the limited capacity of even generous government support programs to increase civic participation by their beneficiaries.

France is wary of science and vaccines, global survey finds

Researchers attribute suspicion to institutional scandals.

Unpaid work and access to science professions

Unpaid work in the sciences is advocated as an entry route into scientific careers. We compared the success of UK science graduates who took paid or unpaid work six-months after graduation in obtaining a high salary or working in a STEM (Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematics) field 3.5 years later. Initially taking unpaid work was associated with lower earnings and lower persistence in STEM compared with paid work, but those using personal connections to obtain unpaid positions were as likely to persist in STEM as paid workers. Obtaining a position in STEM six months after graduation was associated with higher rates of persistence in STEM compared with a position outside STEM for both paid and unpaid workers, but the difference is considerably smaller for unpaid workers. Socio-economic inequality in the likelihood of obtaining entry in STEM by taking an unpaid position is a well-founded concern for scientific workforce diversity.

The graduation shift of German universities of applied sciences

In research into higher education, the evaluation of completion and dropout rates has generated a steady stream of interest for decades. While most studies only calculate quotes using student and graduate numbers for both phenomena, we propose to additionally consider the budget available to universities. We transfer the idea of the excellence shift indicator [1] from the research to the teaching area, in particular to the completion rate of educational entities. The graduation shift shows the institutions’ ability to produce graduates as measured against their basic academic teaching efficiency. It is an important advantage of the graduation shift that it avoids the well-known heterogeneity problem in efficiency measurements. Our study is based on German universities of applied science. Given their politically determined focus on education, this dataset is well-suited for introducing and evaluating the graduation shift. Using a comprehensive dataset covering the years 2008 to 2013, we show that the graduation shift produces results, which correlate closely with the results of the well-known graduation rate and standard Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). Compared to the graduation rate, the graduation shift is preferable because it allows to take the budget of institutions into account. Compared to the DEA, the computation of the graduation shift is easy, the results are robust, and non-economists can understand them results. Thus, we recommend the graduation shift as an alternative method of efficiency measurement in the teaching area.

Recognizing and Reducing Barriers to Science and Math Education and STEM Careers for Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders

Climate change is impacting the Pacific Islands first and most drastically, yet few native islanders are trained to recognize, analyze, or mitigate the impacts in these islands. To understand the reasons why low numbers of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders enter colleges, enroll in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses, or undertake life sciences/STEM careers, 25 representatives from colleges and schools in seven U.S.-affiliated states and countries across the Pacific participated in a 2-day workshop. Fourteen were indigenous peoples of their islands. Participants revealed that: 1) cultural barriers, including strong family obligations and traditional and/or religious restrictions, work against students leaving home or entering STEM careers; 2) geographic barriers confront isolated small island communities without secondary schools, requiring students to relocate to a distant island for high school; 3) in many areas, teachers are undertrained in STEM, school science facilities are lacking, and most island colleges lack STEM majors and modern labs; and 4) financial barriers arise, because many islanders must relocate from their home islands to attend high school and college, especially, the costs for moving to Guam, Hawai'i, or the U.S. mainland. Most solutions depend on financial input, but mechanisms to increase awareness of the value of STEM training are also important.