Real Lives and White Lies in the Funding of Scientific Research 英文参考文献.docVIP

Perspective RealLivesandWhiteLiesintheFundingofScientific Research Thegrantingsystemturnsyoungscientistsintobureaucrats andthenbetraysthem PeterA.Lawrence* DepartmentofZoology,UniversityofCambridgeandMedicalResearchCouncilLaboratoryofMolecularBiology,Cambridge,UnitedKingdom ‘‘O,howfullofbriersisthisworking-day world!’’—William Shakespeare, ‘‘As You LikeIt’’ he took on a postdoc, Frieda, and a student, and they both settled in well. However, by mid 2007, K. began to worry about his future: although the BBSRC grant had run for less than two years, it was already high time to apply for another. He submitted a new appli- cation inOctober 2007 and, although it was well reviewed and received a high rating, he found out in spring 2008 that it was not funded. As an insurance, he had concocted a different project (you cannot submit todifferent agencies with the same plans) and sent it to Cancer Research, UK, in February 2008—this publishing or in the granting agencies— both of which, ironically, offer better working conditions and much better security of employment than research. Thatmorning,Friedahadbeenoffereda postasassistanteditorofajournal,andit wastimetoorganiseherleavingparty.So, on this summer day in 2009, K. has one studentleftinhisgroupandhasonegrant application outstanding. If he gets the grant, the salary dedicated for Frieda couldbegiventoanewpostdoc,butthat person would have to be trained all over again.Yes,thesecondhalfof2007andall of 2008 had been a nightmare—14 of these18monthshadbeenalmostentirely devoted to writing grant applications. K. nowseeshowhehaschangedfrombeing an enthusiastic scientist into an insecure bureaucrat. He feels he has lost much of his last 3 years and wasted his BBSRC grant, despite doing his very best (see Box1). It is a summer day in 2009 in Cam- bridge, England, andK.(39)looksout of his lab window, wondering why he chose the life of a scientist [1]. Yet it had all begun so well! His undergraduate studies inPraguehadexcited