The undoubted quality of Irish scientific research was on display this weekend as judging in the biennial Boyle Medal reached its conclusion.
Belfast scientist Prof John McCanny won through to capture the coveted prize, the medal and its accompanying €40,000 student bursary. The Queen's University Belfast computational physicist is an expert in "digital signal processing", finding ways to improve the movement of sound and video data through devices such as DVD and video players, mobile phones and televisions.
His chief accomplishments have been to build entire signal processing systems on to a single silicon chip and the development of microchips that carry number-crunching algorithms capable of speeding up the handling of data.
What all this means to the consumer is sharper sound from music systems, better quality television pictures and new services such as the ability to display high quality film clips on your mobile phone.
Prof McCanny was selected from a shortlist that included four other scientists based in Ireland, all of whom have remarkable technological achievements to their names. The international judging panel, which was chaired by Sir Dai Rees and included Prof John Enderby, Prof Dorothy Guy-Ohlson and Prof Dervilla Donnelly, struggled to choose from amongst this group of five such was the quality of their work. The award programme clearly shows that the long and illustrious history of Irish scientific endeavour remains alive and well in third level institutions right across the island.
Taxpayers in the two jurisdictions can take heart that the funds they provide in support of these fine researchers is money well spent. People should take pride in the work being done by Irish scientists and remain confident that the work they do leads to improvements in heath, communications and the welfare of society at large.
Yet can these and other scientists maintain confidence that their work is appreciated, given the uncertainties that surround State expenditure on research, at least in this jurisdiction? Funding through one key research programme run via the Department of Education and Science was partially suspended during 2003 and the research community fears this funding will not be resumed in 2004.
While funding for a second key programme, Science Foundation Ireland, remains intact, the Government's stop-go approach to funding could damage Ireland's reputation abroad as a good place to do science.