科学基金与创新性研究——美国国家科学基金会支持变革性研究的相关政策分析

PUBLIC FUNDING AND INNOVATIVE RESEARCH—An Analysis on the Policy of Supporting Transformative Research at National Science Foundation of U.S.

本文从"范式"概念出发,区分了科学研究中的两种创新方式,即累积式渐进和革命性突破,指出科学资助机构在依靠以寻求共识为特点的同行评议机制来遴选具有非共识特征的革命性创新研究项目中所面临的内在困境。美国国家科学基金会从设立小额探索性研究项目到支持变革性研究的政策变迁表明,科学资助机构不仅要进一步改进同行评议机制以有效甄别创新性研究项目,而且应鼓励科学家敢于提出创新性想法,并通过设立多学科联合资助项目和组织"采砂坑"研讨会机制等方式来系统地培育和支持创新性研究。

Using the concept of Kuhn＇s ＂paradigm＂, the paper defines two kinds of innovation research, i. e. , accumulative progress and revolutionary breakthrough, and points out the inevitable dilemma that a research funding agency has to face when using its peer review system, which aims to seek for consensus, to identify innovative research proposals, which usually get contradictive comments from reviewers. Based on the analysis on the policy changes from setting up ＂Small Grant for Exploratory Research＂ to supporting transformative research at National Science Foundation of U. S. , it suggests that a funding agency should not only improve its peer review system to identify potentially transformative research, but also encourage scientists to submit their innovative ideas, and develop more measurements, such as multi-disciplinary joint funding project and workshops called ＂Ideas Factory Sandpit＂, to promote the support of transformative research.