Piece of Mind

That was Michael Hartmer, director of the German Association of University Professors, commenting to Der Spiegel on the latest “textbook example of how not to manage the relationship between private industry and the academy”. A far cry from what was described to me by a “wheeling and dealing German mathematical entrepreneur”, back in 2007, as a major “coup” for German mathematics.  Indeed, what had started as a $17 million contribution from the Deutsche bank to Humboldt University to finance the application of advanced mathematical techniques to the world of finance, ended up with demands from the bank for the right to hire professors, to designate bank employees as adjunct faculty, to allow them to grade student work, to decide research topics and strategy, and even to disallow the publication of papers for as long as two years. Continue reading →

First there was the open letter to the industry minister by 327 mathematical scientists, including 27 Canada Research Chairs and 35 fellows of the Royal Society of Canada. Then came the public letter by 16 members of the Evaluation Group 1508 for Mathematics and Statistics, as well as various individual letters to Isabelle Blain. All convey serious concerns about the new evaluation procedures of the Discovery Grants and the disastrous funding decisions they caused in the 2011 competition. This eventually led NSERC’s President Suzanne Fortier to travel to the Edmonton meeting of the Canadian Mathematical Society on June 03, in order to “communicate directly with the research community, and not through blogs or letters to the press”. I wasn’t there, but Walter Craig, CRC, FRSC, Killam Fellow, and chair of the Math/NSERC Liaison committee was.  He filed the following report –that we are posting here with his permission– for the benefit of Canada’s mathematical research community. Continue reading →

NSERC’s President Suzanne Fortier will be making a presentation on June 03 at the Edmonton meeting of the Canadian Mathematical Society. The unexpected visit is undoubtedly related to the public letter by 16 members of the Evaluation Group 1508, which came on the heels of the open letter to the minister of industry by 327 mathematical scientists, including 27 Canada Research Chairs and 35 fellows of the Royal Society of Canada. Both public letters, as well as various individual interventions, convey serious concerns about the new evaluation procedures of the Discovery Grants. Dr. Fortier’s willingness to address these concerns head on, and in direct discussions with rank-and-file researchers, is surely welcome. Continue reading →

16 out of the 28 members of Evaluation Group 1508  (for Mathematics and Statistics) wrote the following letter to NSERC’s President Suzanne Fortier to “draw (her) attention to the distressing results of the 2011 Discovery Grants Program”.  It is a strong letter that reflects the anguish of a distinguished group of individuals who dedicated much time and effort to insure a fair granting process, only to see their meticulous work grossly distorted by a flawed system.
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Two months after the end of the 2011 competition for Discovery Grants, NSERC is yet to release the full data on its outcome. The reason given is that there is a gov’t-wide hold on releasing data/making announcements. However, colleagues who have “mined” the few data available have already observed three troubling policy decisions that are shaking the very foundation of NSERC’s new principles at Discovery, and leading to a generalized loss of confidence of the research community in NSERC’s new ways. It may be time to address issues of accountability, especially if NSERC-selected executive committees, who are neither recommended nor vetted by their research communities, are being led to make decisions with enormous consequences. Continue reading →

Canada’s mathematical sciences community currently faces many challenges. One that stands out particularly is the imminent elapse of the federal funding (about $5.4-million per year) for the MITACS Network of Centres of Excellence. This NCE currently supports 377 Canadian academic scientists working with 739 students, in partnership with over 650 sponsors in the private and public sectors. The next phase requires that the Canadian mathematical sciences community elevate its game, advocate for, and support transformational research while dealing with the Ottawa-induced addiction to easy money for fast solutions of trivial problems. Continue reading →

We are not used to see the normally confident scientists at the University of Toronto so agitated and angry at NSERC. Some of their mathematicians are screaming from the rooftops that the “NSERC Peer Review System is Broken for Mathematics“. We don’t have the full picture of this year’s Discovery Grants competition yet, but from what we know so far, they may have very good reasons for doing so. Continue reading →

Unlike the other parties, the Conservatives have now a 5-year track record on research policy. Their proposed 2011 budget may also be considered as their platform, at least for the short term. Their research policies are de-facto more detailed, hence more open to scrutiny. The Tories’ record is mixed: Continuation of successful federal programs, more government interference in research prioritization and targeted funding, less emphasis on peer-review and the Tri-council, resistance to basic research, new elitist programs, yet major support for colleges. Continue reading →