A recent Pew survey reported that more than half of scientists (~55%) consider themselves Democrats, compared to about a third (~35%) of the general public. Blogger Chris Mooney at The Intersection also wondered why about 52 percent of scientists call themselves liberals, whereas only 20 percent of the public does so. S. Pelech outlines several factors that predispose its practitioners of science to be more "liberal" in their outlooks. He also questions generalizations about the differences between "Republicans" and "Liberals" in the US with respect to their perceived value of science, especially since both types of administrations have strongly supported scientific research activities in the past. Read More...

Tags: Politics, Scientific thinking

Karen Birchard at The Chronicle of Higher Education speculates that the victory for Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservative Party in the recent election might lead to increased investment in research, but Blogger David Ng at The Intersection, suggests the opposite — that a Conservative majority "is a step back for science" in Canada. He argues that "the Harper government has consistently ignored whatever sound utility the scientific endeavor can provide, and by doing so, has put the future of Canadian science at risk." S. Pelech comments that overall government investment in science in Canada has not really differed that much between the Liberal and Conservative Parties when they have been in power in the past few decades. However, he argues that the diversion of precious research dollars to initiatives such as GenomeCanada has most likely contributed to the decline of the biotechnology industry in Canada and the plight that most Canadian biomedical scientists face today in getting support for their research. Read More...

Tags: Grant funding, Politics