Reactions to story from The e-Astronomer

• 

  Now I could be wrong. but...

  http://livingrealworld.blogspot.com/2008/05/now-i-could-be-w...
  11 days ago in Living in the Real World · Authority: 7

  somehow I feel that science funding woes are going to be low on the priority list for the government today. And so the news cycle turns... Perhaps Michael Merrifield has a point: I would therefore suggest that we forget all about CSRs, and start working on Tory science policy.
• 

  Still no analysis here

  http://livingrealworld.blogspot.com/2008/04/still-no-analysi...
  13 days ago in Living in the Real World · Authority: 7

  ...but there are community views all around. Andy Lawrence: If you were expecting a whitewash, think again. Its pure Semtex. Stuart at the Astronomy Blog is looking to the future: I hope the situation improves soon and everyone can get back to doing some real science. Chris Lintott seems unsure of the criticisms levelled the executive: And that’s it; the conclusion is nasty - calling for substantial changes in the way the STFC is run, and questioning Keith Mason’s ability to carry out these changes. I know that others will jump on these, and who knows, they may be right to do so. It’s a difficult call from my position, but to be honest I don’t care who is in charge. If we can just hang on until the Wakeham review, then the report would have done a great deal of good. Short and sweet from Chesneycat: Hell, YEAH! and Abso-bloody-Word. e_pepys with a view from the inside: I am impressed by how they seem to have grasped the essential issues and make excellent recommendations (and not just those that say we should be fully funded). My take? I think the report does a good job of getting to the root of the problem. Yes I have lambasted STFC and its embattled CEO but the issue has always been bigger than that; I have often described it as a two pronged problem. On the one hand you had the major cock-ups in handling the situation by STFC and on the other you had the settlement from DIUS and their inability to recognise the problem at any stage throughout this process. In the comments to his latest blog post Andyxl had this to say: You could see all this as a classical tragedy. The fall is determined both by the characters intrinsic flaws. and the historical dilemma they find themselves in. which has merit as a description of the situation. There are plenty of good recommendations in the report that should be followed up, though I am uninspired by the initial two responses from STFC, the first from the CEO and the second from council (on which the CEO also sits). I was particularly gobsmacked by this: The report calls for changes to STFCs management structure. This was addressed in February when our new executive board was announced. A restructuring of STFC is being implemented by Professor Richard Wade, STFC Chief Operating OfficerYou see the report says: We do not have any confidence that rearranging the responsibilities of the existing staff will solve STFC’s problems. There is, as noted earlier, immediate need for a Communications Director. However, the management failings at STFC go deeper than this. The events of the past few months have exposed serious deficiencies within STFC’s senior management, whose misjudgements could still significantly damage Britain’s research reputation in this area, both at home and abroad.See paragraphs 106 and 107. Note that the committee is saying that the rearrangement done in February was not enough. Yet in rebuttal to this Keith offers the argument that he has already addressed this by rearranging the management team in February. Can he not see how ridiculous that is? I would love to see how John Stewart of the Daily Show would cover this. My only conclusion from Keith's response is that he is treating the report with the same scorn that many in the community feel he treats us. Anyway, there you go, you got a little bit of analysis from me after all. More to come I am sure...
• 

  IUSS vs STFC

  http://www.andrewjaffe.net/blog/science/000354.html
  13 days ago in Andrew Jaffe: Leaves on the Line · Authority: 26

  Today's obligatory pointer to the latest on the ongoing UK physics-funding crisis: the "Innovation, Universities, Science and Skills" committee has released a pretty scathing report, mostly slamming STFC's handling of the situation (and refuting most of its arguments for how it got us into this mess to begin with). The BBC's Today show had interviews confirming these points with Committee Chair Phil Willis MP and Brian Cox. At this point, the best we could hope for in the short term would be a small amount of emergency funding to close some of the most gaping holes (and as a measure of good faith) and a major change in the STFC management structure. So far, they've said they want to "strengthen the management team", "consult more widely", and "improve... communication". We'll see. As usual, Paul Crowther collects all the relevant information and news, and Andy Lawrence has good commentary. Tags: DIUS, IUSS, STFC
• 

  Trouble at the top

  http://www.kodar.info/trouble-at-the-top/
  13 days ago in Demony wokół mnie » Demon · Authority: 1

  In my email this morning was a message of support for UK astronomy from a concerned citizen. Perhaps they had heard an interview on the Today Programme with Professor Brian Cox or seen the news coverage on the BBC, in the Times, in the Guardian and elsewhere. What made this particular Wednesday special is that the Parliamentary Select Committee of MPs that were investigating the STFC funding crisis have just released their report. I haven’t had chance to read it myself yet but I hear that it makes interesting reading and is not a whitewash. Of course, we should remember that Professor Keith Mason probably never wanted the crisis he is presiding over; the problem arises from the merger of PPARC and CCLRC and the subsequent funding settlement that the newly created (and unable to defend itself) STFC received from the Government. “; in merging two Research Councils, one research community has been saddled with the debt of another, despite assurances from the Government that STFC would be formed without any legacy issues.” - Select Committee Report Of course, the management of the crisis and lack of communication within STFC and the rest of the scientific community is the responsibility of the STFC management. As always, check out Paul Crowther’s renowned wesite for the full, gory details about the crisis. I hope the situation improves soon and everyone can get back to doing some real science. - source Original post by interia@firma.interia.pl (INTERIA.PL)
• 

  Trouble at the top

  http://www.strudel.org.uk/blog/astro/000812.shtml
  13 days ago in Astronomy Blog · Authority: 51

  In my email this morning was a message of support for UK astronomy from a concerned citizen. Perhaps they had heard an interview on the Today Programme with Professor Brian Cox or seen the news coverage on the BBC, in the Times, in the Guardian and elsewhere. What made this particular Wednesday special is that the Parliamentary Select Committee of MPs that were investigating the STFC funding crisis have just released their report. I haven't had chance to read it myself yet but I hear that it makes interesting reading and is not a whitewash. Of course, we should remember that Professor Keith Mason probably never wanted the crisis he is presiding over; the problem arises from the merger of PPARC and CCLRC and the subsequent funding settlement that the newly created (and unable to defend itself) STFC received from the Government. "; in merging two Research Councils, one research community has been saddled with the debt of another, despite assurances from the Government that STFC would be formed without any legacy issues." - Select Committee Report Of course, the management of the crisis and lack of communication within STFC and the rest of the scientific community is the responsibility of the STFC management. As always, check out Paul Crowther's renowned wesite for the full, gory details about the crisis. I hope the situation improves soon and everyone can get back to doing some real science. - source

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