Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Commentary
  • Published:

Reclaiming academia from post-academia

Nature Nanotechnology volume 3, pages 60–62 (2008)Cite this article

The increasing emphasis on commercialization and market forces in modern universities is fundamentally at odds with core academic principles. Publicly funded academics have an obligation to carry out science for the public good, and this responsibility is not compatible with the entrepreneurial ethos increasingly expected of university research by governments and funding agencies.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  1. Vogt, T., Baird, D. and Robinson, C. Nature Nanotech. 2, 329–332 (2007).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Science and Innovation Investment Framework 2004–2014 (HM Treasury, London, 2004); www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/media/5/B/spend04_sciencedoc_1_090704.pdf.

  3. Increasing the Economic Impact of Research Councils (Research Council Economic Impact Group, 2006); www.dti.gov.uk/files/file32802.pdf.

  4. Corbyn, Z. Times Higher Education Supplement 1 (12 October 2007).

    Google Scholar 

  5. Ziman, J. Real Science (Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge, 2000)

    Book  Google Scholar 

  6. Ziman, J. Sci. Eng. Ethics 8, 397–399 (2002)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Washburn, J. University Inc.: The Corporate Corruption of Higher Education (Basic Books, 2005)

    Google Scholar 

  8. Keeping Science Open: The Effects of Intellectual Property Policy on the Conduct of Science (The Royal Society, 2003); www.royalsoc.ac.uk/displaypagedoc.asp?id=11403

  9. Nelson, R. R. J. Tech. Transfer 26, 13–19 (2001).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Greenberg, D. S. Science for Sale (Univ. Chicago Press, Chicago, 2007).

    Book  Google Scholar 

  11. Fabrizio, K. R. Ind. Corp. Change 16, 505–534 (2007).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. http://sciencepublic.web.cern.ch/Public/en/About/BasicScience3-en.html.

  13. James, A., Horton, R., Collingridge, D., McConnell, J. & Butcher, J. The Lancet 363, 2–3 (2004).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Fisk, D. Phys. World 20, 16–17 (May 2007).

    Google Scholar 

  15. McMillan, G., Narin, F. & Deeds, D. Res. Policy 29, 1–8 (2000).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Tomes, A. Technovation 23, 785–792 (2003).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Liebeskind, J., Oliver, A., Zucker, L. & Brewer, M. Organ. Sci. 7, 428–443 (1996).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Narin, F., Hamilton, K. S. & Olivastro, D. Res. Policy 26, 317–330 (1997).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. McMillan, G. & Hamilton, R. D Scientometrics 72, 3–10 (2007).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Frontier Research: The European Challenge (European Commission High-level Expert Group, 2005); http://erc.europa.eu/pdf/hleg-fullreport-frontier-research-april2005_en.pdf

  21. Editorial. Nature 448, 839 (2007).

  22. Jones, R. A. L. Soft Machines (9 November 2007); www.softmachines.org/wordpress/?p=359

  23. nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/2007/maskin-slides.pdf

  24. Thomas, B. & Dorling, D. Know Your Place: Housing Wealth and Inequality in Great Britain 1980-2003 and Beyond (Shelter Policy Library, 2004)

    Google Scholar 

  25. Dorling, D. et al. Poverty, Wealth and Place in Britain, 1968 to 2005 (Joseph Rowntree Foundation and The Policy Press, Bristol, 2007).

    Google Scholar 

  26. Report of the Machinery of Government Committee under the chairmanship of Viscount Haldane of Cloan (HMSO, London, 1918).

  27. Calvert, J. Sci. Technol. Hum. Val. 31, 199–220 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Public Funding of Science (Prime Minister's Strategy Unit, 2006); www.number-10.gov.uk/files/pdf/06-09-29publicfundingofresearch.pdf

Download references

Acknowledgements

I acknowledge stimulating correspondence with James Wilsdon and Jack Stilgoe (Demos), Robert Doubleday (Cambridge University), Brian Wynne (Lancaster), Laurence Eaves, Michael Merrifield, Peter Milligan, Chris Satterley, Alison Mohr and Brigitte Nerlich (Nottingham), John Costello (Dublin City), and Richard Jones (Sheffield).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Philip Moriarty is in the School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK. philip.moriarty@nottingham.ac.uk,

    Philip Moriarty

Authors
  1. Philip Moriarty
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Moriarty, P. Reclaiming academia from post-academia. Nature Nanotech 3, 60–62 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2008.11

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2008.11

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing