Philippa Stevenson: The dawning of 'McScience' age

There's a paradox in this month's marking of the 50th anniversary of Albert Einstein's death and in the year's celebration of his extraordinary contribution to science in just one year, a century ago in 1905.

Scientists the world over hope the focus on their wild-haired, pin-up boffin will encourage greater interest in science and prompt broods of budding scientists to join them.

But while serving scientists lament the lack of recruits to their ranks, they lament even more the move to what's been dubbed McScience - science captured by business and whose integrity is questioned.

Scientists are in a bind tighter than a burger in a bun. They despair that without a scientifically literate society, myth and magic will rule the day, and their numbers will continue to fall.

But many are so disheartened by their commercially focused work environments and a consequent erosion of trust in them and their research, that they discourage others from following their footsteps. Some have given up on science to pursue "better" careers.

In surveys of New Zealand scientists in 1996 and 2000, only a quarter said they would recommend science as a career to our young.

Last year, more than 700 scientists signed an open letter to then Science Minister Pete Hodgson warning that the country's short-term science funding system was driving researchers out.

Landcare senior soil scientist Craig Ross was a member of an advisory group to former Science Minister Simon Upton when the country's 10 (now nine) Crown Research Institutes (CRIs) were created in 1991-92.

He told the Herald last October that he "was quite optimistic at that time because it was quite a new direction and science was aligning itself much more closely with industry and moving the country forward".

Thirteen years later, he was disillusioned. "The free-market, competitive model has had all sorts of unforeseen consequences, a lot of which are pretty adverse. The key one is the standing of careers in science."

A New Scientist February editorial bewailed that "industry and academia have become so entwined that knowing which side of the divide a researcher comes from is increasingly difficult".

"The issue is important," the editorial stressed, "because the credibility of publicly funded, curiosity-driven researchers is at stake. If something is not done soon, public-sector researchers will be lumped in with private-sector scientists. They will not be trusted automatically - and neither will the governments that rely on their findings."

Scientists met Hodgson in December to discuss the issues raised in their letter and left the meeting determined to provide hard evidence of the failure of the commercial model for science.

Since then former MAF soil scientist Doug Edmeades, now a Hamilton-based independent fertiliser consultant, has written a rare analysis of the past 13 years of science under a commercial model, and suggested solutions in a recent NZ Science Review.

Ironically, Edmeades gets business from clients who no longer trust institutionalised scientists but says he speaks on behalf of his erstwhile CRI colleagues because they cannot.

He contends the commercial model fails because "science simply cannot be measured in the same way as most commercial activities dealing in tangible goods".

Science is just too unpredictable or, as the great man Einstein explained: "If we knew what we were doing it would not be science".

Edmeades joins others in suggesting eliminating the current policy / purchaser / provider split by amalgamating the Ministry of Research Science and Technology with the Foundation for Research Science Technology and bulk funding science providers by industry sector.

One body could oversee policy, funding priorities and allocation, research implementation and sector involvement, he says.

CRIs should be redirected to do the research the market cannot or does not want to do, while contestability and contract theory should be eliminated from science policy and management.

The profit motive should also be discarded. Profits could still be made, Edmeades says, but they would simply remain within the organisations.

Now the science buck has been passed to new minister Steve Maharey. Public Service Association organiser Malcolm Blair, who facilitated the open letter, says the PSA and scientists plan to re-start the debate with the new minister.