There have recently been encouraging signs that science and technology are climbing back on to the international development agenda. There could not be a more dramatic -- or terrible -- illustration of the urgent need for this attention than the devastation that swept through many of the coastal communities of south and south-east Asia as a result of the December 26 tsunami.

More than six million children die each year in the developing world from diseases that could be prevented by simple interventions. While effective mechanisms for getting the result of biomedical research to the patients who could most benefit from it remains near the top of the priority list, little research is invested in the 'how'.

Mention the word policy and many scientists instinctively reach for their gun. The reality is that science needs policymakers as much as policymakers need science. The obvious reason is financial. Modern science is generally accepted as a public good -- an activity that benefits all members of society, rather than selective groups -- and, as a result, something that should be supported from the public purse.

However welcome the rush to make information readily available for all, there are several considerations that have to be taken into account.

There have recently been encouraging signs that science and technology are climbing back on to the international development agenda. There could not be a more dramatic -- or terrible -- illustration of the urgent need for this attention than the devastation that swept through many of the coastal communities of south and south-east Asia as a result of the December 26 tsunami.

More than six million children die each year in the developing world from diseases that could be prevented by simple interventions. While effective mechanisms for getting the result of biomedical research to the patients who could most benefit from it remains near the top of the priority list, little research is invested in the 'how'.

Mention the word policy and many scientists instinctively reach for their gun. The reality is that science needs policymakers as much as policymakers need science. The obvious reason is financial. Modern science is generally accepted as a public good -- an activity that benefits all members of society, rather than selective groups -- and, as a result, something that should be supported from the public purse.

However welcome the rush to make information readily available for all, there are several considerations that have to be taken into account.