Scientific progress and South Korean lesson

The prestigious collapse of expert Hwang Woo-suk and the fake human cell research work is one of the recent shocking events. This is also a lesson for Asian countries on the way to build knowledge economies.

It is possible that investment, facilities, in the long run, are not as important as an open environment, encouraging independent thinking and accepting diversity in opinion.

Hwang has been praised by the South Koreans as a national hero (Photo: BBC)

Commenting on the Financial Times today, the writer Guy de Jonquieres argues that it is not just the gray matter, infrastructure and government funding, but a culture that encourages independent, spiritual minds. healthy challenges and doubts. Thus can create a breakthrough science.

Learning about the case of Professor Hwang, it was found that he had not been subjected to peer review, but avoided criticism, thanks to the flattering press, the masses and the government admired.

Lesson for Asia

According to writer Guy de Jonquieres, South Korea is also constrained by another burden in most East Asian countries, which is "a rigid hierarchical society - often expressed in the structure of rooms. Scientific experiments - a society that values ​​obedience and respect for power, and discourages rebellion and public criticism. "

"Plus rote learning education, and so we have an environment that is hard for freedom of thinking."

To solve this problem, South Korea and Japan have divided many research programs into units that have been set up by their own agenda.

The two countries also encourage universities to compete based on quality, not quantity, research.

In China, there are plans to upgrade the quality of universities.

This plan is putting science over art rather than art, in part because the government thinks science is less likely to encourage political debate and criticism.

But according to Guy de Jonquieres, if science is separated from the mainstream of society, it risks becoming a government tool, rather than promoting knowledge and benefits to society.

"Saying so does not mean that big plans to promote science far away in Asia will fail. But the chances of success will be greater if science is found to develop freely in a less toxic environment. guess, less reverence and more doubts, open to diversity of opinions. "

In the mid-20th century, CP Snow, a novelist and physicist at Cambridge University, argued that the key to progress and solving social problems lies in abolishing the border between " two cultures " arts and humanities.

Snow wrote: "When you think of the long and dark history of mankind, you will see the number of hideous crimes in the name of obedience occurring more than crimes on behalf of rebellion."

Guy de Jonquieres's article concludes with the phrase "Asian policymakers need to remember this word."