Viewpoint

The ‘democratic deficit’ in Brussels was all-too present in the shaping of Horizon 2020. Here’s what can be done to remedy the problem.

Girls outperform boys in STEM subjects, but don’t translate this potential into future careers. Now, Microsoft is pushing for more women in ICT

Management science in the Internet Age: The embarrassing fact is that this information-drenched world is too complex to manage. Computer-based decision support tools can help. But we must be sure to control them, says Helga Nowotny

In times of shrinking public spending, the 8th Framework Programme offers more money for R&D. With this show of faith comes an explicit new mandate for universities: Be engines of growth

The current US model for technology transfer isn’t working. Rather than depending on out-licensing to the highest bidder, universities should support researchers to turn entrepreneur and nurture their own start-ups, says Walter Valdivia

Researchers can still operate by the rules and norms of science, but under Horizon 2020 they have – with the exception of the ERC - no autonomy to decide what science they do and how the results are applied, says Professor Karl Ulrich Mayer, President of the Leibniz Association

Breakthroughs in Horizon 2020 are a bigger role for SMEs and simplification for all. But securing the benefits hangs on implementation. Parliament must track whether SMEs really do find it easier to get funding, MEPs said in a Science|Business webcast

It’s time for an end to the softly-softly approach: new laws are needed to force through the formation of the European Research Area, say MEPs

Key documents for Horizon 2020 are circulating on the Internet. The Commission needs to put order into the timely and fair distribution of this information.

Getting deal done with Canada after four years of negotiations shows big trade pacts are possible without undermining Europe’s consumer or environmental protection rules and provides a template for an EU-US agreement on trade