[cmath] IMPORTANT: NSERC survey - A message from the NSERC-Math-Stat Liaison group

[Alan Kelm]

*A request from the NSERC-Math-Stat Liaison group*

This is a special plea to the mathematics and statistics communities.
NSERC, in its wisdom, has decided to evaluate its non-individual
Discovery programs (Institutes, sub-atomic physics, research ships, and
the like) by what is essentially a customer satisfaction poll. Leaving
aside questions of statistical accuracy, this certainly goes against the
basic principles of scientific evaluation, such as international peer
review. These points were made, to no avail. The result is that all the
Canadian scientists who are funded by NSERC, or who have applied
recently, will receive a questionnaire. (A version was received by some
of us under the signature of “Benoit Gauthier”). The relevant pieces for
us are on the institutes.

While there is no official competition between disciplines for these
resources, in an indirect way there always is. We are asking you to
*respond* to the questionnaire, and in doing so, to take a few seconds
to *remember* the scientific activities you have participated in, the
post-docs or students in your department that the institutes have at
least partially funded, the colloquia or the summer schools that they
organise, and perhaps also the extra cash they have managed to extract
from provincial governments or your universities for mathematics and
statistics. Also, perhaps, the international presence they give to
mathematics in Canada. In short, make an effort to remember. Your
answer, then, is of course your own...

There will also be a question about the math-stat long range plan (LRP),
and the allocation of funds that followed. They are asking about whether
funds should flow as a priority to individual grants or the institutes.
A somewhat leading question, asking people if they should receive more
money or if it should go to someone else; perhaps the context of there
being no real increase to our institutes in a dozen years, in spite of
there being a major addition (CANSSI) to the pool, should be borne in mind.

Thank you in advance for taking the time for respond.

NSERC-Math-Stat Liaison group

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