Intrinsic scholastic values are behind our success in science

They then immediately ignore their eminent scientific standing and fundamental training, and go on to confuse cause and effect: "If Scotland were to withdraw from the UK and create its own Scottish Research Council our research community would be denied its present ability to win proportion­ately more grant funding than the country contributes to a common research pool."

The ability to win such funding is not a function of the largesse of the UK Research Councils, it is rather a consequence of the quality of Scottish science, which in spite of the intrinsic dominance of the golden (Oxbridge/London) triangle and its inbuilt biases, nevertheless wins these funds.

The reasons for this may not be obvious to those who have little knowledge of Scotland's intellectual and university history, but for those us who have studied these matters, or imbibed from the font of the demo­cratic intellect from our Scottish primary school days, the reasons are quite obvious and intrinsic to our sense of Scottishness: that in Scotland education is valued for its own sake, and as a consequence has always claimed higher esteem and a share of national resources than elsewhere on these islands. It is because of scholastic values, not in spite of them, that "useful knowledge" drove the Scottish economy: disinterested curiosity is the parent of discovery; business-driven "impact" targets are its executioners.

Thus in Scotland, it can be argued plausibly (and indeed was argued convincingly by George Elder Davie) that Enlightenment values (from which science flows) permeated the five ancient Scottish universities earlier and more rapidly, with England and Wales retaining the ecclesiastical obscurantist model in its meagre two ancient institutions right into the 18th century. Meanwhile, in Scotland medicine, science and economics flourished - and engineering gained a substantial foothold, much earlier than in England and Wales.

That inheritance persists, and it is this rather than any largesse from Research Councils UK (RCUK) that explains our current success.

But this success, and the vital Scottish nature of our universities that has engendered it, is indeed under attack - but the danger resides elsewhere than independence.

I am looking at the most recent letter from Graham Raike, chairman of the Orwellianly entitled "RCUK Efficiency and Reform Group". This informs me of "outline plans for the extension of the RCUK Efficiency programme into the 2015/16 financial year: " The current efficiency programme runs to 2014/15, however the Research Councils will need to demonstrate continued efficiencies both in cash terms as well as evidence of cultural change".

Decoded, this means that the already brutal real-terms cuts to UK science funding are to be accelerated for the present funding year. This is bad enough. But the price of RCUK largesse is to be "evidence of cultural change". For the uninitiated, this means further imposition of the neoliberal agenda that is commodi­fying science and determining its value to society (and worthiness to be funded) largely in terms of a narrow estimation of its potential for economic impact.

The real danger to Scottish universities is not from independence, but from remaining within the declining, neoliberal UK.

Dr John O'Dowd,

3 Downfield Gardens, Bothwell.

IT is with great disappointment that I read the open letter by 14 of our senior scientists, including their complaint that our scientific associations will not provide unequivocal support to their personal opinions.

In my research career, I received funding from UK Research Councils, UK charities, the EU, the United States, international charities, Nato and industry. Only the former can be conceivably affected by indepen­dence. UK charities raise much of their funding in Scotland and will continue to do so (re-classified as international charities for those who think Scotland will be a foreign country) with funding flowing based on the quality of research proposals.

The Wellcome Trust is a global charitable foundation. The Medical Research Council is established by a Royal Charter, which states: "The council may pursue its objects in Our United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland or elsewhere." It would likely be problematical for either of these organisations to positively discriminate against Scottish research applications.

It is particularly disheartening that some of the cream of our scientific establishment seem to be placing their vote on the best way forward for five million Scots, solely on the basis of perceived self-interest. Their children and great grandchildren will not all be scientists.

Prof (Emeritus) WJ Harris,

18 Queen Street, Carnoustie.

I WAS more than a little surprised to read that a group of scientists is advocating that things stay the way they are at present in relation to research funding. I only hope they don't advocate such a hypothesis of "things are fine the way we are and anyway we can't find an answer on our own" in front of current and future students. The exceptional placings of Scottish universities in the QS World Ranking system and the high regard in which our universities are held throughout the world is more likely to come under risk from such pronouncements of negativity and stasis than any Yes vote.

Dr Graeme Finnie (Literature not Science),

Balgillo, Albert Street, Blairgowrie.

THE group of 14 learned men and women who signed your letter define the problem of support for Scottish science funding in today's terms, not a vision of a future independent Scotland. Let the academics argue over such minutiae as "the common research area called the United King­dom", there are bigger issues at play.

With food banks today's growth area, payday loan companies dominating our high streets and competing for retail space with charity shops, will either side argue that Britain is working in 2014? We need urgent reform to stem the tide of decline. We need banking reform, tax reform, legislation to tackle tax avoidance, land reform and so on.

Britain is not working in 2014. The SNP White Paper, Scotland's Future, does not address any of these fundamental questions. We need answers from Better Together and Yes Scotland on these issues.

With the independence referendum we have the chance to consider a better Scotland, a Scotland with reformed banks, a fair, proportional tax system with legislation to deal with tax avoidance; a Scotland that works for the people.

A prosperous economy will support academic research and maintain and improve Scotland's standing in the academic world.

John Black,

6 Woodhollow House,

Helensburgh.