In the list of countries that produced the most science in the world last year Brazil ranked 13th. The information was culled from the National Science Indicators, a statistical database on research and science that covers 180 different countries and measures scientific output in each one by the number of scientific articles published. In 2007, Brazil had ranked 15th.
Brazil produced 19,436 scientific articles in 2007 and 30,451 last year. The growth rate was 56%. After the increase, Brazil answered to 2.12% of scientific articles in the countries monitored by the database, according to the Brazilian government.
The countries topping the list are the United States, China, Germany, Japan, England, France, Canada, Italy, Spain, India, Australia and South Korea, in that order. Brazil comes next. After Brazil in the list come the Netherlands, in 14th, and Russia, in the 15th position.
According to the Brazilian minister of Education, Fernando Haddad, the expansion of the field in Brazil is due to the increase in budget of federal universities, the growth in number of Masters and PhD's in the country and the rise in number of scholarships granted by the Foundation for Improvement of Higher Education Students (Capes), among other factors.
Haddad claimed that should Brazilian scientific output maintain its growth pace, then the country may soon figure among the world's ten leading producers of scientific knowledge. The Capes is one of the main fosterers of research in Brazil.
Established in 1951, the Capes – Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior – Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel – operates as an arm of the Brazilian Ministry of Education and operates mainly in training to higher education and formation of Masters and PhD's. In 2007, Capes also started investing in the formation of teachers for infant, primary and secondary schools.
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