“… Being so good at something and knowing so much about it that you are permitted to pronounce on it is a nice place to be. Our scientists are attempting to get into this space, to gain a world reputation for the quality of work that they do. They can’t do it in isolation, however – they need buildings and labs where they can do the research that will make them experts in their field. Science Foundation Ireland, the Higher Education Authority, the Health Research Board, the Research Councils, Teagasc, the Environmental Protection Agency and others have for the past number of years been doing just that, providing money and support to help our scientists to conduct world class research. Of course, nothing would be delivered without their own expertise and the contribution made by post-grads and post-docs who usually end up doing the donkey work. We are six or seven years – and close to €2 billion – down this road, so what have we got to show for the investment? Have we achieved expert status for the research coming from our labs? …” (more)
[Dick Ahlstrom, Irish Times, 2 March]