Government is always the major funding source for basic research, no matter whether it is in the US, China, and zny European country.
During the budget surplus era, the US NIH enjoyed the doubled amount of research funding. It issued many big research projects such as human genome project, etiology of cancer, and neuroscience. The biology is advanced immensely from these types of research.
This big science model is appealing because it can potentially achieve big success. It becomes fashionable in other countries. Unfortunately, things not always turn out the way people have expected.
During past few years, Chinese government poured billions of Yuan into basic science, mostly going into handful national laboratories. It may be good news for some researchers because now they have more than enough funding to do research. On the other hand, it drains out money for young investigators and small freewheeling research. It may hinder innovations among researchers because many of them are now working on government assigned big projects. Another danger is that those big projects may be ill defined and its consequence may be disastrous. Indeed, some big projects did end up nothing significant, and sometimes, humiliation.
The example of Dr. Hwang Woo Suk in stem cell research is an extreme of the failed big science business. Pushed by the government and his own ambition, Dr. Hwang went over the edge and humiliated himself and South Korea in front of the world.
On the other hand, big science means more government interference into science. The direction and achievement of basic research are then constrained by the government policy, ultimately, by the beliefs of the government leaders.
Past few years witnessed an unpleasant political intrusion into science in the US. For example, Bush is fond of saving virginity for the wedding in the promise of reducing the incidence of sexually transmitted disease and of improving the morality in the society. He allocated millions of dollars into virginity research, and deliberately played down the benefit of condom usage. He ignored the reality that 70% of teenagers will engage in sexual activities and put everything on the faith. Admittedly, his effort showed some positive influence. But compared with other methods, it is minimal.
Bush’s religious belief also made him claim that intelligent design is one type of evolution theory and morning after birth control pill is a murder. He practically slowed down the stem-cell research by restricting stem cell lines to the existing lines. His political background made him even worse. He refused to cooperate with other countries to deal with global warming and hushed dissenting voice among American scientists.
Will this occur in China? I don’t know. But it is well known that corruption widely spreads in the Chinese science community. Fabrication of data or fake reports was frequently exposed, but, sadly, without any punishment. In this environment, it is legitimate to worry about the birth of Chinese Hwang Woo Suk.
Government involvement is like a double blade sword: money is welcome, but political intrusion is no; a fair competition is healthy, but corruption is deadly.
Prescription? I don’t know.