DEAR EDITOR:
It is regrettable that the President of the Republic uses his platform to discredit scientific work that results from state funding.
Consider the ERIS Millennium Nucleus, a project funded by the ANID Millennium Initiative (which is at risk of being discontinued). Its goal was to address a fundamental question: just as Darwin's "On the Origin of Species" revolutionized our understanding of human origins, what do we know about the origins of the matter that makes us up? How does heredity operate in the cosmos? To investigate this question, ANID allocated nearly $500 million.
ERIS, like many basic science projects, was not intended to generate profit, but to generate knowledge. However, it also created jobs and fostered human capital: researchers and students developed scientific careers that continue today, many of them thanks to ANID scholarships, which are also under threat.
The impact extended far beyond academia. Scientists, journalists, designers, business engineers, psychologists, and artists, among others, created the "Gen Universal" educational project, bringing materials and teacher support to remote schools in southern Chile. Because science is not just about accumulating data; it is about learning to think, understanding processes, making mistakes, and trying again.
ERIS achieved its standard level of scientific publication, but it also contributed to Chile's national image. Its advancements were showcased at…
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TO THE EDITOR:
It is regrettable that the President of the Republic uses their voice to discredit scientific work that arises from state funding. Consider the ERIS Millennium Nucleus, a project funded by the ANID Millennium Initiative (currently at risk of being discontinued). Its goal was to address a fundamental question: just as Darwin's "On the Origin of Species" revolutionized our understanding of human origins, what do we know about the origins of the matter that makes us up? How does heredity operate in the cosmos? To investigate this question, ANID allocated approximately $500 million. ERIS, like many basic science projects, did not seek to profit, but to generate knowledge. However, it also created jobs and fostered human capital: researchers and students developed scientific careers that continue today, many of them thanks to ANID scholarships, which are also threatened. The impact extended far beyond academia. Scientists, journalists, designers, commercial engineers, psychologists, and artists, among others, created the "Gen Universal" educational project, bringing materials and teacher support to remote schools in southern Chile. Because science is not just about accumulating data: it is about learning to think, understanding processes, making mistakes, and trying again. ERIS had its standard level of scientific publication output, but it also contributed to Chile's national image. Its advances were proudly displayed at the Osaka Expo and highlighted by media outlets such as TIME and the BBC. And yes, the project also resulted in a "valuable book."
Paula Jofré
Director of the UDP Astrophysics Doctorate and the ERIS Millennium Nucleus.
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