Knowledge, Networks and Nations

Knowledge, networks and nations surveys the global scientific landscape in 2011, noting the shift to an increasingly multipolar world underpinned by the rise of new scientific powers such as China, India and Brazil; as well as the emergence of scientific nations in the Middle East, South-East Asia and North Africa. The scientific world is also becoming more interconnected, with international collaboration on the rise. Over a third of all articles published in international journals are internationally collaborative, up from a quarter 15 years ago.
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ISLAMIC WORLD: Strong science in Iran, Tunisia, Turkey
(University World News) Iran, Tunisia and Turkey are among a number of countries beginning to challenge the dominance of established powerhouses of scientific research, according to major a new report that has identified rapidly emerging nations “not traditionally associated with a strong science base”.
Although traditional ‘scientific superpowers’ still lead the field, a report released this week by Britain’s Royal Society – roughly equivalent to the country’s Academy of Sciences – looked beyond the more commonly documented challengers to Western science domination such as China, India and Brazil.
It found that Iran has been expanding fastest in the number of scientific papers published in peer-reviewed journals, growing from just 736 in 1996 to 13,238 in 2008.
29 March
Royal Society’s Knowledge, Networks and Nations report: would Einstein get funded today?
(The Telegraph) The West is losing ground in the scientific research race, a Royal Society report reveals, and it’s much harder to get backing for blue-sky thinking, says Michael Day.
28 March
China leads challenge to “scientific superpowers”
(Reuters) – China and other emerging nations such as Brazil and India are becoming leaders in science to rival traditional “scientific superpowers” like the United States, Europe and Japan, a top British academy said on Monday.
A report by the Royal Society science academy also found some rapidly emerging scientific nations not usually associated with a strong science base, including Iran, Tunisia and Turkey.
The report, entitled Knowledge, Networks and Nations: Global scientific collaboration in the 21st century, stressed the growing importance of international cooperation in the conduct and impact of science, and its ability to tackle global problems like energy security, climate change and loss of biodiversity.

Background
On the outskirts of Shanghai, 1,500 researchers are working in a state-of-the-art Intel research facility that was built from scratch in just five months. In Brazil, a consortium of 80 organisations has teamed up to invest $3 billion in biotechnology. And in Qatar, a 2,500 acre ‘Education City’ is the product of a government pledge to spend 2.8 per cent of GDP on research.
Wherever in the world you look, new entrants are reshaping the landscape for science and innovation. But what do these changes mean? How should policymakers, scientists and business leaders respond? And how do we strike the right balance between competition and collaboration? Wherever in the world you look, new entrants are reshaping the landscape for science and innovation. But what do these changes mean? How should policymakers, scientists and business leaders respond? And how do we strike the right balance between competition and collaboration?
The Royal Society has launched a major new study which will attempt to answer these questions. Knowledge, Networks and Nations, in co-operation with Elsevier, will map and analyse where, why and by whom science is being carried out around the world, and how this is changing. It will examine how international networks of collaboration are changing the way in which scientific research is conducted and funded, and the implications of these developments for global decision makers in science, business, NGOs and government.