Stimulating revolutionary science with mega-cash prizes

Charlton, Bruce G; Andras, Peter

Abstract

We argue that the most ambitious science is intrinsically riskier science, more likely to fail. It is almost always a safer career strategy for the best scientists to seek to extend knowledge more modestly and to build incrementally on existing ideas and methods. Therefore, higher rewards for success are a necessary incentive to encourage top scientists to work on the most important scientific problems, ones where the solution has potentially revolutionary implications. We suggest that mega-cash prizes (measured in tens of millions of dollars) are a suitable reward for those individuals (or institutions) whose work has triggered radically new directions in science.

Citation

Charlton, B. G., & Andras, P. (2008). Stimulating revolutionary science with mega-cash prizes. Medical Hypotheses, 70(4), 709-713. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mehy.2008.01.001

• Journal Article Type: Editorial
• Online Publication Date: Mar 5, 2008
• Publication Date: 2008
• Deposit Date: Nov 10, 2021
• Print ISSN: 0306-9877
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Not Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 70
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 709-713
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mehy.2008.01.001
• Public URL: http://researchrepository.napier.ac.uk/Output/2809370