Research, creativity at University of Montana good use of resources

Is university research and creative activity a waste of time and money?

The short answer is no, beyond all doubt! As dean of one of the University of Montana’s http://www.umt.edu/ colleges, I well know the importance of such campus activity by faculty and students.

First, has research at UM been of high quality? Besides dollars from grants and contracts (or private donations), success can be evaluated by the frequency of faculty publishing research results in very high quality peer-reviewed journals, such as Science and Nature. How does UM stack up with other regional universities in terms of publications in these two "premier" journals over the past five years? Montana 31, Montana State 24, Wyoming 24, Idaho seven.

David Forbes is dean of the College of Health Professions and Biomedical Sciences at the University of Montana http://www.health.umt.edu/ .

Full Story: http://missoulian.com/news/opinion/columnists/article_176045ea-e5be-11df-8726-001cc4c002e0.html