The revival of a powerhouse.

This article reports that Germany is undergoing a science and technology renaissance under popular new chancellor Angela Merkel, who came to power in November 2005. Before becoming chancellor she spent many years as environment minister, where she is credited with helping foster the country's renewable technology sector, an area in which Germany is now a world leader. Merkel has pledged to increase research funding and continue building on a programme of reforms introduced over the past five years. For example, she has set out plans to improve technology transfer by abolishing Germany's rigid divide of basic and applied research, and by encouraging international collaborations in the country's many academic, public and industrial research institutions. Today, the country's successful R&D-intensive industries such as biotech, chemicals and automotives account for more than half of all industrial production in Germany. Meanwhile, Germany has aggressively marketed its world-class universities and research institutes to foreign students and research scientists.