Concerning Research Funding Fallacies

Jim,

Thanks for a more serious followup on your research and development article. I can now respond after picking myself up off the floor from laughter.

First, being a science teacher, I must object to your article title that the earth is shrinking. Indeed according to learned writings and study, the earth is gaining mass at the rate of about 100,000,000 kilograms per day (Mass of the Earth, The Physics Factbook™, Edited by Glenn Elert -- Written by his students). This is from star dust and the like falling into the atmosphere. And like you I didn't do any special research to discover this as I'd already seen it in preparing for a physics class on gravitational attraction.

You, of course, have the power to overrule the objection. :>)

Second, another thank you for your R&D thoughts. I recall the closure of UCC's R&D facility in Princeton a year or two prior to the IP merger. I remember thinking at the time: "What's up with this? Without R&D where's our future?" The rank and file didn't get a good story, mostly the same as the press and rest of the world at the time, to wit, not enough return on investment.

And last, I think you are spot on with your assessment on government funding. Here's another twist. I just finished a meeting in front of the Alabama Legislature Sunset Committee justifying the continuation of the Alabama Boiler and Pressure Vessel Board, of which I'm a member. (We succeeded). Dr. David Dyer is the board chair and the head of the engineering department at Auburn University. Anyway, Dr. Dyer has a senior design class for which he gets projects from industry sponsors. The sponsor present a design problem and the students go at it. Once in a while they produce a final, proven, and working solution. One successful effort Dr. Dyer described was a redesign of the extendable support legs for a crane. The students designed the new leg and had an installed working product in about 5 months. (They got an "A").

This brings me to a question. How do universities fit into the pulp and paper R&D efforts of the future?

See you at IPST.

Gene Canavan
Alabama
USA

Gene:

You are asking the question of the century (at least thus far). Regarding the example you gave concerning senior design projects, ABET Accreditation requires such projects in order to maintain accreditation. So, most schools have those. The "heavy-duty" research is, I fear, on the wane at the moment.

Jim

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