Renaissance in Spain

摘要

Barcelona's cultural attractions, such as Gaudi's vibrant architecture, are well known. But it was the Catalan capital's new scientific opportunities that brought Madrid-born molecular plant biologist Soraya Pelaz back to Spain after five years at the University of California, San Diego. Her new place at the Institute of Molecular Biology in Barcelona is comparable with her well-funded lab in California, she says. It's a major change. Science was stifled during Spain's 36 years under General Ferdinand Franco, only returning to life after the dictator's death in 1975. Since then, Spain has undergone dramatic changes, politically and socially, but in science it never quite managed to make up for the lack of infrastructure. Widespread nepotism, a succession of governments uninterested in research (except for military uses) and a diehard bureaucratic apparatus have prevented Spanish science from becoming more competitive. The country's best young scientists migrated in droves. But during the past few years science has climbed up the political agenda.