Singapore biotech drive loses star Dolly-creator scientist
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By Daryl Lo
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - British scientist Alan Colman, who helped clone Dolly the sheep, is leaving Singapore, dealing another blow to the city-state's biotech ambitions.
Stem cell scientist Colman, who had been lured to the city-state with grants and research facilities, now heads a Singapore consortium in stem cell research. He will leave next May for the Stem Cell Centre at King's College London, the city-state's Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) said in a statement.
The latest move follows news in September that two other top British scientists, David and Birgitte Lane, will also leave next year, giving weight to the World Bank's criticism that Singapore's biotech drive was overly reliant on "footloose" scientists who could leave at short notice.
Over the last five years, Singapore has ploughed more than $2.1 billion into its biomedical sector, spending generously on start-ups, new labs and on luring top scientists such as Colman and the Lanes from the U.S. and Europe.
Colman, who came to Singapore in 2002, told Reuters in an separate email that he will be dividing his time between Singapore and London, spending about a quarter of his time in Singapore. "There will be scientific benefits to Singapore, I believe, from my move to London," he told Reuters on Tuesday.
But that argument cut no ice with the most outspoken critic of Singapore's biomedical policy: Lee Wei Ling, whose father Lee Kuan Yew founded modern Singapore and whose brother Lee Hsien Loong now runs the country as prime minister.
"How can you run research in Singapore on one-third or one-quarter of your time? You must be extremely efficient or not involved enough and so are not worth the money," Lee told Reuters.
"NO SIGNIFICANT RESULTS"
Lee, a pediatrician who heads the National Neuroscience Institute (NNI), said that it was an inevitable that foreign researchers "will go where there's money available" as more Western universities raise funding for biomedical research.
She had earlier called for a reassessment of Singapore's biotech strategy. She said that billions of dollars have been spent without achieving significant results.
"I stand by my earlier statements. The reason I spoke out was because I thought what was going on was very wrong, and I just hope my message sinks home with the policy makers," Lee said.
Lee, 52, lives with her father Lee Kuan Yew, who still holds an influential position in his son's cabinet with the title of "Minister Mentor".
"I'm speaking out as "citizen Lee", not as MM's daughter, or PM's sister, but as someone very close to the ground when it comes to research, so I know what's relevant," Lee said.
Asked if there were concerns about the growing exodus of foreign scientists, A*STAR Chairman Lim Chuan Poh told Reuters in an email: "We have always taken a pragmatic and flexible approach towards the hiring of top foreign scientists. The main focus is to find arrangements that enable them to be engaged in Singapore in a meaningful and impactful way."[/url] -
I can't find one ounce of reasoning to tell me an ex-CDF can have the requisite acumen and specialised knowledge to run A*Star.
Running the SAF and running an agency designed to nurture scientific talent are two different things. -
maybe he is looking at weapon grade virus.Originally posted by LazerLordz:I can't find one ounce of reasoning to tell me an ex-CDF can have the requisite acumen and specialised knowledge to run A*Star.
Running the SAF and running an agency designed to nurture scientific talent are two different things.
I thought SAR was a very effective Bio weapon with a very effecient delivery pathogens!
Something tell me she should have been LHL position rather than LHL? -
then get local scientist better, might produce much better results.Originally posted by kilua:By Daryl Lo
She had earlier called for a reassessment of Singapore's biotech strategy. She said that billions of dollars have been spent without achieving significant results.
"I stand by my earlier statements. The reason I spoke out was because I thought what was going on was very wrong, and I just hope my message sinks home with the policy makers," Lee said.
"I'm speaking out as "citizen Lee", not as MM's daughter, or PM's sister, but as someone very close to the ground when it comes to research, so I know what's relevant," Lee said.
Asked if there were concerns about the growing exodus of foreign scientists, A*STAR Chairman Lim Chuan Poh told Reuters in an email: "We have always taken a pragmatic and flexible approach towards the hiring of top foreign scientists. The main focus is to find arrangements that enable them to be engaged in Singapore in a meaningful and impactful way."[/url] -
We have always taken a pragmatic and flexible approach towards the hiring of top foreign scientists. The main focus is to find arrangements that enable them to be engaged in Singapore in a meaningful and impactful way
I'm sure many top scientist will be very glad with his understanding and charitable speech... -
If we really must go into biotech let us do it our way. There are many ways to go into any industry not necessarily the original researches.Originally posted by 4getmenot:I'm sure many top scientist will be very glad with his understanding and charitable speech...
For example, pharmaceuticals do not depend on all the original R&D inventions or discoveries to be successful. The original drugs made from patent right probably accounted for only a smaller proportions of its total outputs.
There ought to be a strategic master plan the way it was done by Winsemius in our first industrialization success. If we cannot have one of our ministers leading in such strategic master planning and implementation as Lim Kim San or Hon Sui Sen would have done let us not pay them the million dollars salaries.
It will be useless to keep talking like Philip Yeo or Lim Hng Khiang has been trying to do to create world-class original researches just for the sake of fame as it is obvious that for a small population we do not have the critical mass of Einsteins to compete with more advanced countries like the US or UK.
Dr. Lee Wei Ling is right - let us discard our ambition to lead in researches of this sort and just concentrate with doing what are more practical. Put a few practical people who know how to come up with good master plan for technology driven start-ups and let them do such restructuring of the economy and set targets failing which let us sack all the ministers in charge of industry or economic planning.
Or engage foreign talent ministers to do so who would not even ask to be paid million dollar salaries. -
Not enough peanuts for the monkeys on top. Now the question is how much peanuts must you pay for them to actually have great workable ideas which will benefit Singapore.
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what? what? what? talking about me, izzit ? hee...
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Power corrupts absolute power corrupts absolutely. This is the result of running a system that only measures by money and rewards to leaders. At every turn the leaders in charge are going to look at what they are doing and say "hey why am I doing this making big monies for the people". So there will be wayward thoughts of all kinds like "how about creating more profits for myself" "people are being ungrateful for my contribution".Originally posted by fymk:Not enough peanuts for the monkeys on top. Now the question is how much peanuts must you pay for them to actually have great workable ideas which will benefit Singapore.
So when we are going to run a system talking only of paying and retaining talents by monies, it is going to end up like this. If biotech investment is not producing results like world-class discoveries to justify the high rewards paid to scientists or pseudo-scientists, there will be a lot of such excuses being given "long term investments", ""gestation period of 25 years "
People are being taken fpr a ride and we the people cannot do anything about it.
When that happens more peanuts will have to be given to all the talents and scientists or talents to ensure half-results. If not the talents would let the whole biotech investments fail altogether. So please pay more peanuts if you want to get monkeys to achieve results. The talents will always know how to talk and get more from people even as they are enjoying all the opportunities in the first place to get what they have not to begin with.