Formation of startups and new companies
Commercial exploitation of science, technology, and novelty
System of laws, regulations, strategies, and funding priorities
Discovery and creation of new knowledge of the natural world
Technological Advancements in the world.
Growth of Science & Innovation in the Muslim WorldWe have a lot of stereotypes among of which is that Muslim women are repressed and do not get a chance to reach their full potential in their chosen fields, especially in the science fora. The session on the growth of science in the Islamic world, at the Euroscience Open Forum 2012 in Dublin, sounded intriguing and interesting for me as a a woman science journalist.
The topic being addressed was about the social and political shifts in the wake of the regional revolutions we are witnessing, as well as studying the place that science, technology and innovation have in the growth trajectory of the Islamic world. Countries like Saudi Arabia and Qatar are pouring funds into universities and building technology parks. But what about countries like Indonesia and Egypt?
Both speakers at the session – Priya Shetty and Michael Bond, freelance science writers from London, had differing tales to tell. Shetty had done a three-month research project on the issue in Indonesia. She was eloquent about the beauty of Indonesia and the country’s natural resources, however she said her research showed that the country hadn’t caught up with the 21st century in terms of moving forward after President Suharto resigned in 1998. “Indonesia lags behind other ASEAN countries, in fact after President Suharto, the country’s progress has gone into a tailspin and the development has stopped for the last 20-25 years. Indonesia isn’t getting it right and there is a big disconnect between policies and implementation,” revealed Shetty.
Is Indonesia Suffering?
She went on to say that Indonesia just produces and exports its raw materials, and research is at a very basic level. If anything, she said scientists are totally neglected and if anyone goes abroad on a government scholarship, they are expected to come back and work twice as long as their stay abroad for the country.
By Dr. Athar Osama
On 12 April 1961, Russia’s Yuri Gagarin became the first man to orbit around the earth in Space. Soon after, United States launched its own quest to conquer space. Kennedy’s vow to send a man to the moon before the end of the 1960s, unleashed an unprecedented race to gain and demonstrate scientific knowledge and technological knowledge between the two super powers.
Soon enough, American Neil Armstrong took the ‘one small step for a man,’ that became ‘a giant leap for mankind’ and rest, as they say, is history. The 1970s became a decade, when man dreamt of venturing farther and farther, into the exciting corners of the galaxy and creating co...
Himmler ordered secret research into how malaria-infected insects could be sent behind enemy lines, research reveals
By Philip Oltermann
The Nazis considered using mosquitoes as biological weapons during the second world war, research has revealed.
Towards the end of the war, scientists at an institute in Dachau conducted research into how malaria-infected insects could be kept alive for long enough to be released into enemy territory.
In January 1942, the leader of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, ordered the creation of the Dachau entomological institute. Its official mission was to find new remedies against diseases transmitted by lice and other insects: German troops were o...
Efforts to build innovation systems are too government-centric and tend to ignore a key ingredient — the private sector, says Dr. Athar Osama.
Recent years have seen a number of Islamic countries embarking on efforts to create and strengthen innovation ‘ecosystems’. But their delivery record has been mixed.
A couple of years ago, Malaysia created Agensi Inovasi Malaysia (AIM), under the Prime Minister’s office, to bridge the gaps in its innovation system. And plans are afoot in the United Arab Emirates to create an innovation agency to supplement or replace its Technology Development Committee (TDC). While in Pakistan, efforts to create the Pakistan I...
The Islamic world’s current science effort is on life support and without major ‘surgery’ could be yet another policy failure, says Athar Osama.
In 2007, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) created the Science, Technology and Innovation Organisation (STIO) to jumpstart science cooperation among its 57 member countries. Three years later, a founding meeting approved an annual budget of US$70 million, with four founding members — Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and and Syria — committing US$5 million each to the budget.
To date, 20 countries have joined STIO — but none has honoured its financial commitment, according to the organisatio...
By Zakri Abdul Hamid –
Science Adviser to the Prime Minister of Malaysia
For Malaysia, the past three decades have been a period of rapid and sustained growth. Measuring growth with the traditional Gross Domestic Product yardstick, Malaysia’s economy has increased more than a hundredfold. Over the past four decades, we have averaged nearly 7% annual growth. Poverty rates have fallen from 49%, to less than 4%. Per-capita GDP has risen from US$370, to more than US$9,000.
This growth has been matched by a fundamental change in the structure of our economy. Like many Asian countries, we have moved from a basis of agriculture and raw commodities to a multi-sector eco...
By: Dr. Athar Osama
Muslim-Science.Com met with Tan Sri Dr. Omar Abdur Rahman, Mahathir’s Science Advisor for over a decade and half and, the “prime mover” behind Mahathir Mohammed’s vision of a Knowledge-driven Malaysia. A deeply humble man, Tan Sri Omar insists that Mahathir was a science policymaker par excellence in his own right and that he would hardly have needed a science advisor. However, he played a critical role in providing scientific credibility to Mahathir’s plans and helping the Prime Minister reach out to the scientific community to build support for his policies.
As Malaysia’s first and longest serving Science Advisor – a position t...
