Will Canada's commitment to fund commercial research over basic science backfire?
Welcome to the Centre of Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine. As the name implies, the stem cell research lab in Toronto focuses on the commercial applications of science.
Peter Zandstra is a professor at the University of Toronto and Chief Scientific Officer at CCRM. He took our producers, Sujata Berry and Shannon Higgins on a tour.
This type of business-minded applied science has been a priority in Canada since 2006 when the Conservative Party came to power. It peaked in 2013 when the federal budget assigned every single dollar of new funding for research to commercially-focused applied research.
• Scientists urge government to fund basic research -- Bob McDonald/CBC News
Supporters of applied science say it is more efficient, less wasteful, and better suited to Canadian needs. But critics note commercially driven science is not what lures many people into science as a career; the exploration, the discovery, the science for science's sake. And historically, that search has led to the big - unexpected - discoveries.
- Daniel Guitton is a neuroscientist from the McGill Neurological Institute who does basic research and worries others won't get to join the quest for pure knowledge.
- Michael May is the President and CEO of CCRM, The Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine which hosts Peter Zandstra's stem cell work.
- Matthew Herder is a professor at the Faculty of Medicine and Law at Dalhousie University. He is also the lead researcher on a Canadian Institutes of Health Research grant examining the impact of commercialization on academic science.
In the spirit of full disclosure - Chris Hadfield has done research over the years that has been funded by both public money and private partnerships.
Should Canada be betting on practical and more commercially focused research?
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This segment was produced by The Current's Shannon Higgins and Sujata Berry.
