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- Nicole Tomczak-Jaegermann 1945-2022
- UBC Campus Vision 2050, in a word, lacks vision
- Louis Nirenberg (1925-2020)
- UBC: The ill-fated revolt of those who ought to know better
- Shiny, happy, oblivious science
- NSERC has lost its bearings … again
- The Learning & Research of the UBC Board of Governors (II)
- The Learning & Research committee of the UBC Board: What a difference a year makes (I)
- UBC: Failures in governance are slowing down the pace of academic renewal
- A research community at the mercy of a leaderless NSERC
- A busy first four months on the UBC Board of Governors
- Academic publishing in the time of sanctions and boycotts
- Maurice Sion: 1927 – 2018
- Robert M. Miura: 1938 – 2018
- When the Walls of Governance Come Crumbling Down
- Why I am voting against the tuition increases for domestic students
- Resignation of the director of the Wall Institute: The reaction
- Why I am resigning from the directorship of the Wall institute
- Accountability and Governance at UBC: Budget
- NSERC corrects a mistake, but many remain unaddressed
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Tag Archives: research
The Learning & Research committee of the UBC Board: What a difference a year makes (I)
“You had demanded to chair the Learning and Research Committee,” the Chair of the Board proclaimed at last week’s open meeting of a Board’s committee. You bet I did, I replied, “because the reason I ran for the Board one more time … Continue reading
Why I am voting against the tuition increases for domestic students
During my previous two terms on the UBC Board of Governors from 2008 to 2014, I always voted in support of the administration’s maximum government-allowable 2% increases in tuition fees for domestic students. But things are different this time. The … Continue reading
NSERC corrects a mistake, but many remain unaddressed
No, I am not talking about the sudden and probably more consequential recent change in NSERC’s leadership, but about an accounting mistake. Yes, it looks minor, but it speaks volume. As I mentioned in a previous post, I resigned last … Continue reading
Posted in Banff International Research Station, R&D Policy, Uncategorized
Tagged AARMS, BIRS, CRM, CTRMS, EG, Fields, LRP, Mathematics, MSLC, NSERC Discovery, PIMS, research, science, Statistics
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Is the BIRS programme multiple disciplinary enough for NSERC?
The programs of the Banff International Research Station (BIRS) in Banff and Oaxaca are supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), Canada’s Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), Mexico’s Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACyT), and the … Continue reading
Posted in Banff International Research Station, R&D Policy
Tagged Alberta, Conacyt, CRCC, NSERC, NSF, Oberwolfach, research, Tom Brzustowski
1 Comment
Overhauling NSERC is a long overdue national priority (I)
With an annual budget of $1.1 billion, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) is the agency through which the federal government funds advanced post-secondary research in science and engineering. Thousands of Canadian researchers rely on it, … Continue reading
Posted in Op-eds, R&D Policy
Tagged AARMS, BIRS, CANSSI, CRM, Fields, Innovation, Mathematics, Mexico, NSERC, NSF, Oaxaca, PIMS, research, science, Statistics
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Fettering unfettered research funding: The NSERC ways
Last week, I resigned from a committee that is supposed to liaise between NSERC and Canada’s Mathematics and Statistics communities. The reason? An unsettling lack of transparency, shoddy consultation, and poor decision-making by NSERC’s management in handling recent government budget … Continue reading
Posted in Op-eds, R&D Policy
Tagged Harper-Goodyear, Mario Pinto, Mathematics, Naylor report, NSERC, research, Trudeau, Unfettered Research Funding
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The Problem with Naylor’s Panel Report
The report of Naylor’s panel reviewing Canadian Science is out. It is an incredibly eloquent “plaidoyer” for basic research both in terms of its role, past and present, in the advancement of society. It is of course music to the ears … Continue reading
Posted in Op-eds, R&D Policy
Tagged CERC, CFERF, CFI, CRC, Kirsty Duncan, Naylor, research, science, SIF, Tri-councils
3 Comments
Canada has two ministers of Science, yet Budget 2017 barely mentions Science
University researchers across Canada are stunned and puzzled. What happened to Justin Trudeau’s Liberals promises to undo the damage that the Harper years inflicted on the nation’s research capacity? The Liberals campaigned to end the “war on Science,” yet they … Continue reading
Posted in Op-eds, R&D Policy
Tagged BIRS, CANSSI, CIFAR, cihr, CRM, Fields PIMS, Harper, Morneau, Naylor report, NIH, NSERC, research, science, Trudeau
2 Comments
UBC’s free fall in university rankings
University rankings may be questionable. Their evaluation criteria may be flawed or unrepresentative. They may be based on false or manipulated data provided by some institutions. They can even, occasionally, be bought. But the reality is that they do matter. … Continue reading
Posted in R&D Policy
Tagged Arvind Gupta, research, TA strike, UBC, University of Toronto, University rankings
7 Comments
Budget 2014 is nothing short of a paradigm shift for Canada’s research and innovation
The substantial investment in university research that the Canadian government announced today is not the only story in Budget 2014. A bigger story may be the pivotal moment and the policy shift that it represents for this government on a … Continue reading
Posted in Op-eds, R&D Policy, Uncategorized
Tagged ACRE, Arvind Gupta, Budget2014, CFREF, cihr, Innovation, IRAP, Mitacs, NSERC, research, RPP, SRED, SSHERC, Stephen Toope
12 Comments
Blame it on BIRS!
Where have you been? How come you haven’t been blogging lately, wrote a “Piece of Mind” loyalist. Why weren’t you at the PDE seminar, a colleague inquired. “On attend ton papier avec impatience,” wrote the editor of a special volume three … Continue reading
R&D front: Signs that government may be starting to get it
And no, I am not sending out a public bouquet to government à la Naylor-Toope. I am talking about a government that is starting to realize that it’s more important to tune into the dreams and aspirations of Canada’s research community than to … Continue reading
Posted in Op-eds, R&D Policy
Tagged Budget 2012, cihr, Death of evidence, Gary Goodyear, NSERC, research
5 Comments
Obsession
“His character is full of flaws, flittering from one obsessive behaviour to another, and he does this effortlessly.” Mathematics is back with a vengeance, taking up all of my mental space. The same obsessive behaviour that got me to write … Continue reading
Posted in Op-eds, Uncategorized
Tagged economics, Kantorovich, Mathematics, research
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Computer Science in the world of Gatorade and Disney
“Math and computer science are hard. Why bother?” read the caption, which appeared in the latest Forbes Magazine. The article entitled, “University of Florida Eliminates Computer Science Department, Increases Athletic Budgets. Hmm,” describes Dean Abernathy’s restructuring plan for the College of Engineering. “Any faculty … Continue reading
Posted in Op-eds, R&D Policy
Tagged Budget cuts, Computer science, education, politics, research, University of Florida, University of Rochester
1 Comment
Call your VP-Research before Friday the 13th at the Tri-council!
“My Mathematics” is going well lately. It is not always the case, so blogging has taken the backseat. It is unfortunate because much needs to be communicated before tomorrow’s meeting in Ottawa between the VPs-Research of Canada’s universities and Tri-council officials. … Continue reading
Posted in R&D Policy
Tagged academic partnerships, discovery grants, operational efficiencies, research, science
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Everything you wanted to know about GERD, BERD, GovERD and HERD
The UK department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) released its annual science, engineering and technology statistics, including a good deal of data on how much the G7 countries spend on research and development (R&D). Canada is fifth out of seven in the … Continue reading
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