ABSTRACT
As we have seen in Part Three, some public support for basic research activities has actually proved to be essential even in less developed countries whose main concern is with the import, imitation, assimilation and improvement of technologies already available from outside. At least some minimal research activity in universities and public laboratories, together with the education and training of some postgraduate students abroad is essential simply to gain points of entry and depth of understanding. At later stages, with the gradual improvement of facilities and the upgrading of standards, the science system in such countries may make an increasing contribution to the advance of world science, but world scientific publication is still dominated by a few countries (Table 16.1).
