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Letters and Blogs
(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-07-28 07:52 Plagiarism can't be ignored A national survey in the field of science and technology recently came up with a shocking result: almost half of the scholars polled claimed that plagiarism and fabrication are prevalent. Despite public anger over academic corruption, the cases of plagiarism exposed so far are only the tip of the iceberg. At least five reasons can be identified for the academic corruption. First, the evaluation mechanism of research institutions attaches more importance to quantity rather than quality, impelling those eager for quick success and instant benefits to indulge in falsification and plagiarism. The second culprit is the bureaucratization of the academic system. Some scholars spend more time on winning bureaucratic promotion than on working on their academic project. Third, the contaminated academic atmosphere and lack of education on applicable academic criterion forces some scholars to take shortcuts in research, without the least shame. Fourth, the prevention and punishment mechanism is powerless. Hardly any plagiarist is forced to apologize to the public or resign, because their institutions are nontransparent and tend to conceal the corruption. Fifth, acquiescence and connivance are causing widespread academic corruption. There may be several ways to fight plagiarism. But, first of all, administration should be separated from academic study. This should be followed by reform of the evaluation system, which puts too much stress on papers. And last, there should be clear regulations to define and punish wrongdoing. Ba Tu http://blog.sina.com.cn Divert liquidity to real economy Comment on "Beware housing bubble"(China Daily website) Recovery is everything we want, but bubbles are definitely the things we hate, especially housing bubbles. Skyrocketing house prices not only severely affect the welfare of the masses, but also jeopardize economic recovery. While we take measures to restrain the rising house prices, it is imperative to find the right outlet for the current seemingly excessive liquidity. First, find new points of economic growth. The field of alternative energy technology seems a great choice for us. Investing in this field would not only alleviate the current liquidity pressure in the housing market, but will considerably benefit us in the long run. Second, expand the area in which private capital has market access. If healthcare, railway, communications, and related fields are available to private capital, the stocks and the housing market would not be flooded with huge amounts of hot money, rendering the formation of bubbles impossible or more difficult. Third, widen channels for money to enter small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). If more funds are not lent to SMEs, fresh blood would get pumped into them, employment rate and consumption would steadily increase. Zhang Xiaodong via e-mail (China Daily 07/28/2009 page8) |
