Biomed sector poised to shine but there are some worries

Click HERE
If can't access above link, click HERE

USeful quote fro BANG!:
"Do. Or do not. There is no try." So goes the famous quote by Yoda, the legendary Jedi Master of Star Wars fame.

Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star), the country's largest public sector research agency with over 5,000 employees

The biomedical sciences industry has become an integral part of the economy, comprising almost 4 per cent of Singapore's gross domestic product and employing almost 23,000 workers, many in high-skilled and well-paying jobs.

Jobs and manufacturing aside, the strong grounding in the life sciences is creating new opportunities for the country as well as helping to strengthen its defences against new threats caused by climate change.


Contribution to Food Security to enable Singapore's self-sufficiency:

Agriculture, for instance, is a relatively new area of focus for the nation. Yet the authorities have been confident enough to set a 30 by 30 goal, to produce almost a third of the food we need here by 2030, from less than 10 per cent now.

To achieve this in land-scarce Singapore, researchers and farmers will tap heavily the scientific expertise that has been honed in the last 19 years.

This includes genetics know-how that will pave the way for creating supercrops able to withstand increasingly erratic weather, as well as the skills to grow living cells on a large scale which could be used as food.

In fact, scientists in Singapore have started a company set to produce meat grown in the laboratory, while others are harnessing insects as a rich source of protein for feed stock.

What's more, solutions tried and tested here will not only help Singapore bolster food security, but can also be adopted in other cities facing many of the same global threats.

Qns: 
1. How far should countries aim to be self-sufficient? (Cam. 2011)
2. 'Governments should not meddle in what scientists do.' Comment.