Canada is restructuring its National Research Council, which does in-house scientific research, funds external projects, and provides services to industry, to focus mainly on industry. The move is motivated by a wide recognition that Canada lags other countries in innovation, according to NRC president John McDougall. “We want to fill the gaps between discovery and things in the marketplace.” But researchers worry about the repercussions of what they see as yet another in a series of slaps the government has dealt science (see Physics Today, July 2012, page 20).
Unveiled on 7 May, the new structure of the NRC has been in the making since the release nearly two years ago of the government-commissioned report Innovation Canada: A Call to Action, which said Canada should identify strategic areas, streamline its interactions with companies, and focus more on commercialization. The NRC response includes a reorganization from 21 independent...
