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A*STAR
Straight talk withGeorge Radda
Singapore, the fastest growing economy in Asia last year, has enjoyeda decade of free-flowing research funding. Money is still pouring in,but the question remains whether money can buy international-class science, especially after the sudden attachment of strings to grant money starting last fall. Perhaps the best person to answer this question is Sir George Radda (he received his knighthood in 2000). Radda was the chief executive of the UKs Medical Research Council (MRC) from 1996 to 2003. In his final year at the helm of the MRC, he had his first interaction with Singapores budding biomedical program as a member of the A*STAR Biomedical Sciences International Advisory Council. Shortly thereafter, Radda was asked to help with the next five years science and technology plan.
A pioneer in nuclear magnetic resonance imaging, he became the founding chairman of the Singapore Bioimaging Consortium, travelingto Asia nearly once a month before he moved to Singapore three years ago. In April 2009, he was appointed chairman of the city-states Biomedical Research Council (BMRC), which coordinates the country's biomedical activities and oversees institutes that comprise the Biopolis,a hub of more than 2,000...