News & Views item - July 2012 |
Is American Science in Decline?
In the heated debate over the state of US science, according to the publisher, Harvard University Press:
Alarmists
argue that the United States urgently needs more and better-trained scientists
to compete with the rest of the world. Their critics counter that, far from
facing a shortage, we are producing a glut of young scientists with poor
employment prospects. Both camps have issued reports in recent years that
predict the looming decline of American science. Drawing on their extensive
analysis of national data sets, Yu Xie and Alexandra A. Killewald have welcome
news to share: American science is in good health.
Is American Science in Decline? does reveal areas of concern, namely scientists’ low earnings, the increasing competition they face from Asia, and the declining number of doctorates who secure academic positions. But the authors argue that the values inherent in American culture make the country highly conducive to science for the foreseeable future. They do not see globalization as a threat but rather a potential benefit, since it promotes efficiency in science through knowledge-sharing. In an age when other countries are catching up, American science will inevitably become less dominant, even though it is not in decline relative to its own past. As technology continues to change the American economy, better-educated workers with a range of skills will be in demand. So as a matter of policy, the authors urge that science education not be detached from general education.
What the authors do not address is the problem of inadequate STEM education in the primary and secondary public schools and the detrimental effect on policy assessment and development by the nation's public and politicians.
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Yu Xie and Alexandra Killewald (Harvard University Press 240 pp, ISBN 9780674052420; list US$45.00)