While listening to NPR early in the morning, there was a analysis of the upcoming California resolution to award State and private grants to promote Stem cell research. Voters approved a $3 billion dollar resolution to fund additional research into the controversial scientific field more than 2 years ago. In the next few months, the beginning of those funds will begin to be distributed to various organizations and science facilities. While the bond measure was passed by the voters, state funds are as of yet unavailable to the measure as a number of anti-abortion and citizens' rights groups have appealed to the courts. The money being distributed currently is from private organizations and philanthropists.
While not solely a political move, the intended funds are not an indication that the state, governor or citizentry has complete approval for stem-cell research. A large portion of the allocated funds are being set aside to aid struggling labs and university research centers continue their work into investigating the intracacies of biological research as well as possibly find some alternative solution to the issue of harvesting the necessary materials from human stem cells. There was also the issue of decreasing interest in biological studies at the university. Given such a relatively new and unknown science combined with the swirl of political controversy surrounding it, enrollment in fields associated with stem cell and other microscopic research has been steadily dropping. Not surprisingly, any academic field with such an unpredictable future will be hard to recruit applicants for. THe state is hoping that by injecting funds into university labs and sciences, they would able to persuade future students to continue working in that field.
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4 comments:
Stem cell research will probably always be a hot button issue. The fact that this hot button issue is now making waves in California should provide us with a hint of whats to come. Usually California is ahead of the curve in liberal reformation, look at Arnold and you'll see a prime example. It'll be interesting to see how this all pans out in the next few years. The smart position taken by the advocates of stem cell research, to couple the issue within a larger scope of academia and research should help the stem cell research cause but ultimately time will tell the tale. I personally would like to know more concerning the facts of stem cell research. I'll note also that the debate in California would probably not occur here in Texas. Maybe in Austin, but Austin is a strange bird and by no means any where near an exemplar of Texas' moral-political imperative.
While stem cell research will always be controversial for some reason **cough**religion** the benefits of such inquiry is hard to deny. The ability to grow cells that can form into other cells of any type had unlimited medical application. Even though this idea raises questions with some, it will without a doubt become a staple of the medical community. The money is being allocated to a noble cause, and it will help to advance the field of stem cell research. Everyone that has been unsupportive of this research will be singing a different tune after their life is saved by stem cells.
"Few people are capable of expressing with equanimity opinions which differ from the prejudices of their social environment. Most people are even incapable of forming such opinions"
- Albert Einstein
To take alot of controversey out of this mess, I herd scientists were able to cultivate stem cells with normal body cells such as the skin. In doing this, religeous advocates may be more supportive in the measure and may spur a greater degree of funding.
Although stem cell research is in a state of stagnance, I feel it is a most worthy scientific venture. I know you spoke of a decline in biological and microbiological research but that does not seem to be the case at the University of Texas. Actually our school has moved away from specimen archival research and more towards this micro science research. We just opened a nanotech building and it seems to be flourishing. The futujre of scientific discover is a front us and I think it will be most positively achieved throguh this micro analysis of biological status. I hope this emergent private funding with aid in the discover of cures on a exponential scale.
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