Greek scientists well represented in world research journals
Greek scientists between them published a grand total of 20,528 papers from 1994 to 2003, a considerable amount for a small country, given the some 4.3 million papers that were published around the world during that same period. Over half of the research is in medicine, in particular the rapidly developing field of biomedical research. A survey of Greece’s scientific research sector was headed by Professor Dimitris Trichopoulos of Athens University’s School of Epidemiology department, with researchers I. Skalkidis, A.E. Germenis, and N. Patsopoulos, aimed at placing more research papers from Greek foundations into the international bibliography. Professor Trichopoulos, whom a recent feature in the Harvard Public Health Review referred to as the «Ulysses of epidemiology,» said in an interview with Kathimerini that the Greek scientific community, although representing a small country, has a considerable presence in the international arena, despite insufficient state funding and technology and an absence of criteria for funding. Then there is the language problem, which restricts many scientists. «Often, state funding goes to organizations or to specific, well-connected individuals,» said the professor. «It is a Greek problem, but not restricted to Greece. Funding organizations are often staffed by those who are have not made any real contribution to research, while scientists who have been a credit to Greece are often not represented.»
