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Universities of the future
August 3, 2021
Universities can be harbingers of change. We have seen how the Oxford and Cambridge universities contributed to the development of the United Kingdom; how Stanford and MIT have done the same for the US; and how the IITs helped boost Indian industry.
The associated technology parks with many of these universities have contributed to the emergence of thousands of industries in new and emerging fields that have earned billions of dollars for their respective national economies.
My association with the University of Cambridge goes back 56 years; this is reflected in my being awarded both PhD and DSc degrees by Cambridge University and being elected a Life Don at Kings College, Cambridge. I have therefore had the opportunity of watching its Science Park grow and contribute to the economic development of the United Kingdom.
Tough challenges
May 12, 2021
Universities in Pakistan have suffered greatly in the last three years because of the misguided policies of the Higher Education Commission and the failure of its leadership to convince the government to provide proper and reasonable funding.
The operational budget of the HEC has remained frozen since 2017, causing huge damage to the higher education sector. It was Rs63.18 bln in 2017-18, Rs65.02 bln in 2018-19, Rs64.10 bln 2019-20 and Rs64.10 bln in 2020-21. The grant per student enrolled has collapsed in dollar terms, which is relevant as research students spend most of the university funds for imported chemicals, solvents and equipment. It was $782 in the year 2013-14, but is now only $413 per student after seven years, although inflation and other factors should have led to its doubling in this seven-year period to about $1600 per student.
An amazing world
January 13, 2021
The socio-economic development of nations today hinges on the ability of their leaders to formulate suitable policies and transfer precious resources from various sectors to education, science, technology and innovation so that a strong knowledge economy can materialise. This is because natural resources have diminishing importance as ideas are transformed into novel products and processes.
About a decade ago, a team of 20 scientists led by Craig Venter in the US created the world s first synthetic life form in a landmark experiment. This opened the door for organisms that can be built in the laboratory rather than through evolution. Very soon afterwards, Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna discovered one of the sharpest tools in gene technologies. These molecular scissors, named CRISPR/Cas9, led to the two scientists being awarded the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. This exciting discovery allows researchers to alter the DNA of animals, p