it could be argued that we don’t just need an elite: we need a reasonable number of institutions in which there is a strong research environment, where more senior researchers feel valued and their graduate students and postdocs are encouraged to aim high. Our best strategy for retaining international competitiveness might be by fostering those who are doing well but have potential to do even better

If incentives play an important role in theproduction of novel ideas, this heroic story might be atypical. In this article, we provide empiricalevidence that nuanced features of incentive schemes embodied in the design of research contractsexert a profound influence on the subsequent development of breakthrough ideas.

Mario Capecch