Ambition for prestige put TÜBİTAK into a pathetic state

TÜBİTAK President Nüket Yetiş and State Minister for Science Professor Mehmet Aydın participated in the event. I couldn’t make it though I was invited. As far I as see through the news stories, Aydın delivered a meaningful speech at the EP. He said Turkey aims to be in the first 15 countries making the highest investments into science, technology and innovation in the upcoming periods. Aydın added that Turkey wants to make contributions to the European objective to catch the United States in science by 2020. The Turkish R&D Day at the EP is the day that Turkey says "I am in for science and technology" through TÜBİTAK.

Visit by European Research Council

Exactly one-and-a-half months after this significant day, the Darwin scandal emerged. TÜBİTAK’s 42-year-old monthly magazine Bilim ve Teknik (Science and Technology) is being censored for the first time. TÜBİTAK Deputy President Ömer Cebeci interferes and changes the cover of the issue having the picture of this British scientist. Since Cebeci is not fond of Darwin’s evolutionary theory, he applied the censorship, so it’s been claimed. The incident has caused a stir both in Turkey and in the world.

On the same days, TÜBİTAK was hosting the European Research Council, or ERC, for a scheduled meeting this week. The ERC was founded in 2005 with a budget of $7.5 million and the objective of providing support to individual academic research studies. It’s being administered by the Scientific Council and consists of 22 renowned scientists.

The ERC held its extraordinary meetings previously in Paris and Berlin. The third one is in Istanbul and this is important for Turkey. TÜBİTAK organized the "ERC 2009 Turkey Conference" at Harbiye Military Museum in Istanbul the other day. The guest of honor was ERC. Conference convened to bring European top-level science and research directors and Turkish universities together and let them know each other closely.

In fact the ERC President famous biologist Professor Fotis Kafatos and his delegation were hosted by the presidents of Koç, Sabancı and Boğaziçi universities in three consecutive nights. Distinguished Turkish scientists, who have the ERC’s support, were among 600 participants at the conference. It is said in the press bulletin TÜBİTAK sent that the ERC meeting in Istanbul will add prestige to Turkey and to the Turkish institution. Unfortunately, TÜBİTAK seeking prestige put itself into a pathetic situation.