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BGA | BUSINESS IMPACT
aligned with national and international priorities but has been driven far more by individual curiosity. Such curiosity has been an immensely powerful and welcome force – essential for many vital areas of scientific advancement – but has often inhibited effective collaboration between universities and other key entities such as government, industry and business. This has reduced the possibility of game-changing discoveries and useful applications. The funding of university research can no longer be predominantly organised on a ‘let a thousand flowers bloom’ model. All efforts must be aligned to maximise our capacity to understand how our world is developing. The fundamental importance of human behaviour means that research in humanities and social science is more integral than ever to this objective. Medicine’s effective research contribution Medicine and health offer the best example. Their research contribution has directly created some of the most far-reaching, and positive changes in our society. The lives of millions of people have been transformed through achievements such as the sequencing of the human genome, stem cell research, treating HIV, Zika research, human papillomavirus vaccination, targeting cancer therapies, laparoscopic surgery, bionic limbs, face transplants and spinal cord stimulation. Public health research, for example in relation to contraception and smoking, has contributed enormously. They have all promoted significant increases in life
expectancy, lower child mortality, elimination of debilitating diseases and healthier populations across the world. Progress like this needs different levels of research. Groundbreaking basic science, like the discovery of DNA and the genetic code, cell behaviour, or the mapping of the workings of the brain, is essential. Application of such knowledge to particular health problems can identify solutions. Partnerships, for example with pharmaceutical companies, lead the way in finding new drugs or therapies. Research also identifies the propensities of specific population groups to particular health problems and seeks the best means of addressing this. In addition, universities educate health workers and help to create a more intellectually resilient society. Enormous areas of ignorance remain, in relation to the brain and dementia, for example. These need the same determined and focused approach, but this research- driven process is indispensable in helping the world to deal effectively with the health challenges that it faces.
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‘Research has historically not been aligned with national and international priorities but has been driven far more by individual curiosity’
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