THE CONTRIBUTION of science to the development of Jamaica has been less than satisfactory, says Professor Gerald Lalor, the director-general of the International Centre for Environmental and Nuclear Sciences at the University of the West Indies (UWI).Professor Lalor, who is also a past principal of the UWI Mona, was giving the Inaugural Francis Bowen Memorial Science Lecture at the Mona, St. Andrew campus last Friday night.
"If you measure our progress... it is reasonable, but if you look on the wider picture (globally) there is much cause for concern if indeed science is as important to Jamaica as all of us seem to believe," Professor Lalor said.
ADVANCES THROUGH SCIENCE
He noted that other places such as the United States, Europe, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore have made and have been making developmental advances through science and scientific research.
"Singapore today has decided, and put billions into it, that it shall become the biotechnological capital of the east," Professor Lalor said. He suggested that more should be done locally to advance the country through scientific research, especially as the local universities have proven their ability to turn out "very good students."
WHAT SCIENCE SHOULD
LOOK LIKE IN JAMAICA
During his presentation, Professor Lalor focused on physics, UWI, and what science should look like in Jamaica. He outlined the beginnings of the universe, through the 'Big Bang' theory, and explored the evolution of life forms among other scientific discoveries.
Professor Lalor's lecture is expected to be documented and distributed to schools across the island, allowing students easy access to the presentation. The Francis Bowen Memorial Science Lecture will be held annually in the memory of the legendary Dr. Francis 'Bo-Bo' Bowen, who was head of the Physics Department at UWI during the 1950s.
