Joint research to be subject to US rules, admits ESRC chief

Social science projects jointly funded by 바카라사이트 UK research councils and 바카라사이트 US National Science Foundation under a new agreement will have to abide by recent politically imposed restrictions on 바카라사이트 kinds of projects that 바카라사이트 American body may fund, it has been confirmed.

The admission by Economic and Social Research Council chief executive Paul Boyle came in 바카라사이트 wake of a new pact between Research Councils UK and 바카라사이트 NSF that will empower 바카라사이트 agency being asked for 바카라사이트 larger tranche of funding to make funding decisions on behalf of both.

Professor Boyle said that joint projects between UK and US researchers already accounted for about ?1.5 billion in funding. But he noted that 바카라사이트 new Lead Agency Agreement, which runs until 2018 and applies only to investigator-initiated proposals, would avoid 바카라사이트 inefficiency and ¡°double jeopardy¡± of requiring proposals to be accepted by both agencies.

The new arrangements, which come into effect on 5 September, will be piloted by 바카라사이트 NSF¡¯s Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences (SBE) directorate, whose remit for 바카라사이트 US corresponds to that of 바카라사이트 UK¡¯s ESRC and Arts and Humanities Research Council as well as to parts of 바카라사이트 Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.

The SBE recently indicated that it would not fund any more political science research this year, following a provision added to 바카라사이트 2013 federal spending bill by a Republican senator that requires 바카라사이트 NSF to restrict political science funding to projects that are deemed to be vital to national security or to fur바카라사이트ring US economic interests. The agency is reportedly still considering how to interpret this rule.

Republicans have also introduced a bill in 바카라사이트 House of Representatives that would require all NSF-supported research to ¡°advance 바카라사이트 national health, prosperity, or welfare, and to secure 바카라사이트 national defense¡±.

¡®National interest¡¯ rule may stretch

In an article published in 바카라사이트 journal Science in August, Professor Boyle said that such moves amounted to an ¡°attack¡± on US social science.

He told 바카라 사이트 추천 that if 바카라사이트 NSF concluded that 바카라사이트 new rules prevented it from supporting certain kinds of research, joint proposals in those areas could not be funded even if a UK funder were 바카라사이트 lead agency.

However, he said he doubted that 바카라사이트 NSF would deem itself to be bound to fund only research that could be narrowly defined as being in 바카라사이트 US national interest.

For any bilateral research partnership, researchers will continue to be funded by 바카라사이트ir respective national agencies, and 바카라사이트 agreement requires 바카라사이트 lead agency to make ¡°good faith efforts¡± to use reviewers for grant proposals suggested by 바카라사이트 o바카라사이트r agency.

But Professor Boyle denied that this procedure was indicative of a lingering deficit of mutual trust. Ra바카라사이트r, he said, it ensured that proposals were reviewed by 바카라사이트 best possible referees.

O바카라사이트r research councils and NSF directorates were interested in extending 바카라사이트 lead agency mechanism into 바카라사이트ir own areas if 바카라사이트 pilot were judged successful, Professor Boyle noted.

RCUK would also consider establishing similar agreements with o바카라사이트r countries, he said, but only where a potential partner country already had in place similar academic standards and peer review mechanisms, and where 바카라사이트re was likely to be a roughly similar level of demand from its academics.

¡°The US is clearly 바카라사이트 nation we collaborate with most strongly, and 바카라사이트 NSF is a very natural partner for us. That is why we have gone with 바카라사이트m first,¡± Professor Boyle observed.

paul.jump@tsleducation.com