Tuesday, April 24, 2007
One for our side
On those exceedingly rare occasions when the outfit in DC actually gets something right, I'm obliged to cheer.
Bravo for the House! They just passed HR 363 by a wide margin, authorizing the National Science Foundation to give a special brand of research grant to young professors in engineering and science, with an emphasis on exploring new areas.
There's also a larger competitive prize for new solutions, though I'm not sure if this is part of 363 or a parallel Senate bill. Also passed was a bill pushing for better math and science teaching. The latter bill is not worth a cheer; it appears to be the usual increase in unionized teacher salaries, with no pressure for performance.
A government prize for the best solution to a specific problem is a highly effective way of stimulating research. The standard academic routine of peer review and tenure encourages dull sameness, while a prize encourages true competition.
We desperately need more competition and less sameness!
Personal note: I worked for a year under an NSF grant back in '93 or so; the idea was my own, and was in fact innovative, though it didn't turn out to be useful. NSF does this sort of thing well, so I'm confident that the new law will yield some valuable new knowledge. ¶ 4:06 PM
Bravo for the House! They just passed HR 363 by a wide margin, authorizing the National Science Foundation to give a special brand of research grant to young professors in engineering and science, with an emphasis on exploring new areas.
There's also a larger competitive prize for new solutions, though I'm not sure if this is part of 363 or a parallel Senate bill. Also passed was a bill pushing for better math and science teaching. The latter bill is not worth a cheer; it appears to be the usual increase in unionized teacher salaries, with no pressure for performance.
A government prize for the best solution to a specific problem is a highly effective way of stimulating research. The standard academic routine of peer review and tenure encourages dull sameness, while a prize encourages true competition.
We desperately need more competition and less sameness!
Personal note: I worked for a year under an NSF grant back in '93 or so; the idea was my own, and was in fact innovative, though it didn't turn out to be useful. NSF does this sort of thing well, so I'm confident that the new law will yield some valuable new knowledge. ¶ 4:06 PM
