By many measures, the United States has ceded its position as the global leader in science in technology over the past two decades, the renowned physician-researcher Harvey Fineberg told a Yale audience this week. Meanwhile, China has made stunning strides in a range of technological fields, including energy, computing, and artificial intelligence.
Speaking to a packed room in Linsly-Chittenden Hall Thursday, Fineberg likened the U.S.'s relationship to science in the modern era to a key moment during the Cold War.
"This is a Sputnik moment," he said, invoking the Soviet Union's successful launch of the first artificial satellite in space 1957, a historic technological achievement that caught the American public off guard.
Just as Sputnik sparked what would come to be known as the "space race," an era marked by dramatic American technological achievements, the U.S. can likewise catch countries like China in the modern race for technological prowess - including in artificial intelligence and clean energy - by investing in the right priorities and by tempering illusions about its own dominance, said Fineberg, a professor of health policy and management emeritus at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
But the implications are more important than simply gaining a competitive edge, Fineberg said. Investments in the best science - and the right values - will benefit all of humankind, he said.
