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Argentina election: front runner vows to slash science funding (www.nature.com)
submitted 2 years ago by to c/science@lemmy.world
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[+] -30 points 2 years ago (2 children)

I mean, is Argentina really gonna advance science more than any of the richer Western nations. If I lived there, I would absolutely prefer that the government focus more in housing, agriculture, education, and infrastructure.

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  • [–] 30 points 2 years ago

    housing, agriculture, education, and infrastructure.

    Those are not science-free topics.

    If I lived there

    Purely out of my own curiosity, have you been to or lived in Argentina or have relatives who live/lived there?

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  • [–] 26 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    I would absolutely prefer that the government focus more in housing, agriculture, education, and infrastructure.

    How do you think improvements in building materials and construction techniques are developed? Science!

    How do you think we develop more hardy crops that can withstand diseases and produce higher yields? Science!

    How do you think we improve infrastructure design to do things like improve traffic flow or get higher yield from water recycling plants? Science!

    Saying that the government should focus on certain issues rather than science misses the point that science is a part of how you make improvements and change over time.

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  • [+] -18 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (2 children)

    I think you‘re not getting the point of their comment: argentina is not going to lead the world in science, let them focus on getting back up from the ground.

    Edit: since the metaphor seems to be going over people‘s heads: I think the commenter meant to say science is important but a country that has many more pressing issues should be allowed to focus on using the knowledge it already has instead of being forced to contribute to advancing humanity by spending a lot on science for the moment. Obviously, I‘m not the commenter. I‘m just seeing something in the comment that the person answering didn’t comment on.

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  • [–] 19 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    Who are claiming anything about "leading the world in science"? That is not why you fund science.

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  • [+] -10 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    It was a metaphor. The commenter before me likely tried to say „let them focus on more pressing matters like basic infrastructure“.

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  • [+] -6 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    Yes this is exactly what I meant. Everything Argentina needs has already been discovered/developed. Let them spend their money on manufacturing, not research

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  • [–] -1 points 2 years ago

    Happy to help. I think we’re also in agreement that this is not a permanent solution since every country needs to have people doing science to develop new ways but I get the point of it not being top priority right now. :)

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