Frontier research a chance and a must

1. Polish Physical Society, General Assembly, IPSEC V Warsaw, 12 Sept 2005 Frontier research a chance and a must On the way to the ERC Jerzy M. Langer Ministry of Science and Information Society Technologies and Inst. Phys., Polish Academy of Sciences

2. Students in Poland a demographic projection

3. Why talented people go to basic research and stay there? Curiosity & internal must(a sense of a mission) Endless frontier Joy of discoveryamplified even after a small success Sense of freedom and uniqueness(membership to a better part of a society) Fame and recognition(less anonymity than on the applied side – everybody knows who invented transistor, but almost nobody can list, names of those who made transistors real purchasable devices)

4. Specificity of basic research • BR is generally done by small groups of researchers and very often in a solitude. • The research environment - a critical mass - need to exchange and confront views (dedicated meetings and workshops) - quality research laboratories

5. Usefulness of „basic science” Aaron Klug, 1982 People often ask what is the use of it. In a world where there are pressing problems, why doesn’t one devote one’s efforts to the practical benefits of mankind? I need only recall the answer of the great Michael Faraday, when at a public lecture he was demonstrating the production of electricity. - “Of what use is your invention, Mr. Faraday?” demanded an important lady. -“Madam”, he replied, “of what use is a new born child?”

6. Where researchers work (%) Source – EC Key Figures 2003-2004

7. Financing basic research (2001) Source – EC Key Figures 2003-2004

8. Is there a need for a new initiative at European level? ? YES

9. Support of basic research in EU opinion of scientists • 45 Nobel laureates – an appeal • European Science Foundation • Euroscience • ALLEA • Academia Europea • EMBO, EMBL • EURAB • ERC – Expert Group (a Mayor group)

10. ESF position paper

11. ERCEG position paper The ERC – a cornerstone in ERA The suggested target of 2 Billion Euros a yearfor the fundinglevel will give the ERC the desired impact. The total nationalfunding of national research agencies in Europe is estimated tobe in the order of € 40 bn per year.

12. EC Communication on BR

13. Frontier Research: The European Challenge High-Level Expert Group Report February 2005

14. European Challenges • Reinforcing excellence, especially in new, fast-growing research areas. • Staying ahead in a world of growing scientific and technological competition. • Linking science to technological innovation. • Competing for talent. • Encouraging greater investment.

15. The European added value High-Level Expert Group Report, February 2005 Encourage and support the finest talent:Open and direct competition will heighten the aspirations and achievements of European researchers, enabling the best talents and ideas to be reliably recognised from a larger pool, and thus raising the overall level of excellence in frontier research. Speed, agility and focus:ERC will be able to support the best ideas in frontier research, channel resources, and capitalise on the unique diversity of European research talent with a speed, agility and focus not always possible within some national funding systems. Status and visibility for research leaders:The ERC can confer status and visibility on European frontier research and the best researchers and their teams,. Dynamic structural effects on European research system:The ERC can catalyse the adaptation of national research structures to the evolving European Research Area. Economic benefits:The availability of new knowledge and the expanded, higher-quality pool of talented researchers funded by ERC can help to attract and retain more R&D-intensive firms in Europe, and to create a greater impetus for the establishment of research-based spin-offs. Societal benefits:The ERC can provide the opportunity to invest quickly in the knowledge base necessary to cope with the new and emerging issues confronting society.

16. The ERC – general principles • Bring a European context to the support of long-term, fundamental, curiosity-driven research. • Focus on excellence as the basis for its funding decisions • Competitive decision process with scientific community involved at all stages, including final decisions. • Significant degree of operational freedom, simplicity of procedures and transparency. • Financially meaningful budget. • Complementarity, and not competition with other major financial sources

17. The ERC – for whom and how? • Address exclusively the top level of researchers in Europe (groups but also individuals). • Age and origin must not be used as a criterion • All granting procedures must be highly competitive. • It will help create benchmarks. Support only the best individuals and groups, so that they can become even better.

18. Successful EU actions • Marie Curie awards • FET • NEST • Infrastructure support FP 6 • EURESCO Conferences • Forward looks • EUROCORES • EURYI (EUROHORC initiative)

19. Why then basic research is great chance in NMS? • There we are strongest. • It is fairly inexpensive. • It is a landmark of Polish „ivy league” of higher education and thus helps to train open minds. • A distance from science-driven research to applied is much smaller if a first step is at the highest level. • There will be a lot of resources in Europe, so we must get prepared to compete, and quickly. StrongestPhysics, Mathematics, Chemistry, Astrophysics MediumBiology, Earth Sciences, Medicine, some Engineering Sciences. Lagging most Engineering Sciences, Ecology. Strong nationallyArchaeology, Literature studies Sociology, History But uncompromised quality is absolute must

20. Science performance vs. country economy CITATIONINTENSITY GDP PER PERSON IN THOUSANDS US DOLLARS King D.A. (2004) Nature 430, 311-316

21. Polish position regarding FP7 15125/04 RECH Poland strongly supports the proposed inclusion ofbasic researchin FP7 and the earmarking of separate financial means for that purpose. Recognising a fundamental role of basic research for any progress of science, Poland fully endorses the proposed establishment of the European Research Council.

22. BR in FP7 - beyond the ERC Research programmes – GRANTS NOT CONTRACTS ! • Individual researcher support – grants, mobility schemes (no age restriction) • Research networking – when justified • Meeting and workshops • Research infrastructure – directly or via cohesion or structural funds (in less developed regions) • Dissemination of science information – link to the public • Research policy, benchmarking, foresight

23. ERC – the hope • Great expectations • Great challenge • However the ERC will not solve all problems • But ERC will contribute to the solution of many problems and issues • We must not only advocate for the ERC, but we all have to work for its success.