E` ormai del tutto inutile, comunque questa è la risposta per lettera a Science che assieme a Cosmelli ed altri avevo mandato. Dato che la lettera non è passata attraverso questa mailing list, perché per cercare difare in fretta l'ho fatta circolare solo tra i volontari alla sua stesura, accludo il teso in coda. Questo anche in risposta alla polemiche sollevate all'interno della mailing list a proposito dell'articolo e delle fonti dell'estensore.

Dear Dr. Cosmelli,

Thank you for submitting an E-letter to Science responding to the News of the Week story, titled "Italian Parliament Passes Controversial University Reforms." We have read over your contribution, but will not be able to publish it. We are currently only posting those letters most likely to promote positive and stimulating discussion online. We are letting you know as a courtesy in case you wanted to seek another outlet for your letter.

Please do not reply to this email, as it will not be read by Science. Unfortunately the volume of submissions precludes specific discussions about individual submitted E-letters.

Sincerely,

The Editors Science Magazine

=================================================================================== "Comment to Italian Parliament Passes Controversial University Reforms" -----------------------------------------------------------------

We are deeply disappointed by your published report on the so-called reform of Italian Universities. The report seems to us rather unbalanced and surprisingly inaccurate. Let us explain some of the major misconceptions present in the report, with some explanation of the reasons for our disappointment:

1. Your report quotes Enrico Decleva, Rector (Chancellor) of the University of Milan and President of the Italian Rectors' conference (CRUI). Prof. Decleva, a strong supporter of the reform, was officially asked during the last session of CRUI not to speak any more about the reform on behalf of CRUI: Thus, the Decleva position is definitely not the position of even the whole CRUI. Furthermore many Italian scientists do not share the position of CRUI. Under their pressure, several Universities are indeed withdrawing their financial support to CRUI, a private organization that does not represent the opinion of our academic community in many issues, including the present so-called reform.

2. Your report is misleading when discussing research grants to our national scientific community. Nowhere in the text of the reform one can find any detail about the amount of money allocated for research, and from previous experience we know we cannot really trust any promise from the Government on such an important issue. Indeed the last national call for proposals (PRIN 2009, opened in April 2010) for research in all fields (from humanities to hard sciences, medicine etc) allocated by Ministry of Research, amounts to about 100 million EUR. However, we see that one year of funding has been already skipped, leaving the researchers without any support in between. The PRIN 2009 peer review (which occurs since several years for this type of projects) is expected to occur by mid 2011 but there is complete uncertainty about its future. This happens while roughly the same amount of money allocated for the PRIN projects has been given annually, without any competition or quality evaluation, to the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT, an Institute with a fairly narrow, application-driven mission). Such an Institute is run under the direct responsibility of the Minister of Economy (Mr. Tremonti), and remains untouched by the reform. We therefore face the absurd situation a chronic under-financing of the whole University research while IIT is possibly over-financed without any control on merit or performance.

3. The reform is a disorganized and contradictory set of vague rules, only to be implemented later on by specific operational decrees by a Government which is about to fall. More than 200 of such specific operational rules will be necessary to apply this reform in any practical way and, while waiting for them, many academic activities will be essentially blocked. There is a serious risk that no new positions, from post-doc grants to full professorships, will be available for at least a couple of years in Italian Universities. The REAL main goal of this Government is to justify and hide the cuts in ordinary administration financing, by some 20% in 4 years (Nature, 466 (2010) 16).

4. None of the problems the law is claiming to solve or change is addressed properly (while some serious new ones are created for the future of the "junior faculties"). The decisional power is given to Rectors and to the University Administrative Council, in which about 40% of the members will be "nominated" somehow - the law is very precise in irrelevant details, but vague on the important issues. The power of full professors is increased: they in fact will remain essentially in control the archaic method of career advancement.

5. The Minister claims she wants to promote merit in Academia, but she has not activated the Academic Evaluation Committee established by the previous Government, and publicly criticizes research projects ("wasted money") which have been evaluated by independent international referees, on her opinion just based on the project's title (a manner strongly reminiscent of the "soviet style" propaganda...).

6. While pushing for the reform, the Minister also proposes to officially approve (which means public financing) private or telematics Universities of very dubious scientific quality, founded or controlled by supporters of Mr. Berlusconi's party and by members of the current Parliament. At the same time, she is not assigning the indispensable funds for running of ordinary administration in public Universities (salaries included) relevant to the CURRENT fiscal year, 2010.

Last but not least: in the heavy climate of media-control exercised by Mr. Berlusconi, opponents of the "reform" do not have the possibility of expressing their views. Very recently, the pro-law initiative by 400 among professors and other "supporters", has been widely publicized. On the other hand, another document signed by more than 3000 professors and researchers at public Universities, including ourselves and other eminent Italian scientific personalities, in favor of a shared discussion on the reform, has been completely ignored by the media.

We could continue......but cannot abuse of your hospitality.

Carlo COSMELLI, Associate Professor of Physics, Sapienza Rome University

Franco GIANTURCO, Full Professor of Physical Chemistry, Sapienza Rome University

Alberto GIRLANDO, Full Professor of Physical Chemistry, Parma University

Giorgio PARISI, Full Professor of Physics, Sapienza Rome University

Claudio PROCESI, Full Professor of Mathematics, Sapienza Rome University

Laura SACERDOTE, Full Professor of Mathematics, Turin University

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