India, US to sign pact on science and technology

Press Trust of India (India Defence) ^ | Press Trust of India

[Dyaus Pitar]

India and the US would soon sign an agreement on science and technology aimed at accelerating cooperation between scientists from both the countries in areas like space, energy, IT and nanotechnology.

The agreement would be signed by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Union Minister for Science and Technology Kabil Sibal during the latter's visit to the United States later this month.

The 'Science and Technology Umbrella Agreement' is expected to increase cooperation between scientists from both the countries working in government agencies, private sector, and academia in areas like basic sciences, space, energy, nanotechnology, health and information technology.

The pact, to be signed on October 17, will complement the activities of the Indo-US Science and Technology Forum, set up in 2000, by facilitating follow-up technical collaborations, the Indian Embassy said in a release here.

[Dyaus Pitar]

We should not be outsourcing research and hi-tech like this, should we?

[TaxesR2High]

The advantage in partnering with India is that a good portion of its ~1 billion population already speaks English. As far as potential transfers of high-technology, yes, that may be a problem, but also a deterrent to a potential Sino-Russian alliance. We're not creating enough engineers at home to handle the task ourselves I suppose.

[RockyMtnMan]

That would be because deals like this damage the value of an engineering degree for US residents. Who wants to major in a subject whose potential job market is full of cheap labor?

These "deals" have consequences and the sooner we realize it the better. We are in trouble as a nation if we cannot find a way for smart people (not business/marketing grads) to earn a living. Without a financial motivation no one in their right mind would go into such a complex field of study.