Sir, - I refer to the coverage of the new Foresight Foundation initiative and your editorial (March 10th). Your readers could be forgiven for assuming, based on the reportage, that research in Ireland is confined to the university and industry sectors. Nowhere are the institutes of technology mentioned, which is rather ironic given that the new Foundation is based on the technology Foresight Initiative report of ICSTI. Furthermore, there is no representative of the institute of technology sector named on the implementation group that will recommend on the structure of the Foundation and membership selection criteria.
There is an established and growing body of research activity in the institute sector. Such activity is not as extensive as in the university sector; given the strong teaching emphasis in the institutes, this should not be surprising. However, some world-class research is being done in the sector, and significant research funding is being attracted. It is unfortunate that the role of the institutes appears not to have been recognised in the Foresight initiative - the more paranoid among us may feel that the omission is deliberate (or perhaps your reporters just missed it)!
The apparent failure to include both sides of the Irish third-level education sector in such a significant national initiative only serves to reinforce the widespread misconceptions and prejudices about the Institute sector. At a time when commentators are increasingly recognising the key role played by the Institutes in building the Irish economy over the past three decades, this is a serious oversight. The Minister could redress the situation somewhat by seeking the appointment of a top researcher from the institute sector to the implementation group.
In your editorial you ask if there will be enough top-quality graduates available to carry the research forward - a fundamental question, as any research director knows. Part of the answer lies in encouraging more school-leavers to take undergraduate courses in the physical sciences. A strong undergraduate cohort will produce quality postgraduate students.
I must take issue, however, with your comment that "hightech computer, pharmaceutical and chemical companies . . . can depart as quickly as they arrive . . .". While there is much evidence of this in the computer/ electronics sector, companies in the pharmachem sector which have considerable investment in heavy plant do not leave so readily, and are usually around for the long haul. The Cork region is the centre of the Irish pharmachem sector, and major international companies such as Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, SmithKline Beecham, Schering-Plough (to name but a few) have been operating here for decades, providing secure employment and excellent career opportunities. Indeed, the security and quality of careers in the pharmachem industry is a "selling point" that I use in careers talks to second-level students! - Yours, etc.
DR John O. Wood, Head of Department, Dept of Chemistry, Cork Institute of Technology.