Congratulations to Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov for winning the Nobel Prize in physics for their work on graphene. You will have read about it here because this blog is at the cutting edge of science innovation!
Much has been made of the fact that they came to their discovery by ‘playing’ with sellotape and pieces of graphite. This is how a lot of science used to be done; clever people were given time and money to pursue their interests. Now scientists have to account for every penny and justify each line of research. It may be that this is an improvement in some ways but the UK will not maintain its fabulous position at the leading edge of science research if the funding from the state dries up.
The government is trying to pay off the nation’s debts and shore up the economy but if they cut science funding to the degree that has been suggested (25%) then there will be no new research. Science and innovation produce money for the country so it may well be that the government would be better off increasing science funding to pay off their debts.
Sadly, science is so poorly regarded in the corridors of power and in popular culture that it may be viewed as an easy target for money saving. There is not much you can do about it directly but you could talk to your parents. They could write to their MP and let the government know that there are people in the country who do care about the future of British scientific research. Get stirring things up guys!
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