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I don't really get why people would want to come to the US. Because there is more money here. In Russia, a biologist with half a century of experience working

by andreyf 18y ago

I don't really get why people would want to come to the US. Because there is more money here. In Russia, a biologist with half a century of experience working at Moscow State University (best university in the country, arguably Europe) makes about $120/month?

jrockway 18y ago
Why the US and not Europe, though?
- sarvesh 18y ago
  Even with all the problems with immigrating to the US, it still is one of very few countries that is welcoming to the immigrants in general. People in the US, a lot of them, have always put aside everything about where a person is from and look at him as a individual. This doesn't happen in a lot of places. Europe for most parts has been, so far, protectionist. When I decided to move to the US there weren't really a lot of options for me, Europe would have been a lot tougher.
  - jrockway 18y ago
    Yeah, I've noticed that Europe and Japan are almost impossible to move to. I think this is kind of dumb... if I am going to pay taxes in a country, who cares where I was born?
    - ido 18y ago
      > Yeah, I've noticed that Europe and Japan are almost impossible to move to. Why do you say that? I've moved here 4 years ago, it was a bit of a hassle to get the work permit, but it wasn't that bad. Basically if you can earn the equivalent of more than about ~45k usd/year, or are a student (and one of a few specific professions- like artists and musicians) it's not that hard to get into the EU. And coming here with a tourist visa and staying until you manage to get a work permit is much easier than in the US - even getting a tourist visa can be quite difficult in the US, where as as long as you are from a 1st world country you don't even need to apply for one to come to the EU.
- andreyf 18y ago
  Actually, my family lived in Germany for three years before moving to the US. The decision to move was mostly because of funding - my dad made a lot more money in the US, with more opportunities to advance, and more leeway in what he got to research than he did in Germany. This isn't to say that the US is the only place to do good research - there is tons of great work being done at top universities around the world. However, the US seems like the single country with the most research opportunities. In the end, I'd imagine it's about money - I don't have time to find specific figures, but I imagine in the US more money is spent on basic research than other countries.

by andreyf 18y ago

jrockway 18y ago

Why the US and not Europe, though?

sarvesh 18y ago
Even with all the problems with immigrating to the US, it still is one of very few countries that is welcoming to the immigrants in general. People in the US, a lot of them, have always put aside everything about where a person is from and look at him as a individual. This doesn't happen in a lot of places. Europe for most parts has been, so far, protectionist. When I decided to move to the US there weren't really a lot of options for me, Europe would have been a lot tougher.
- jrockway 18y ago
  Yeah, I've noticed that Europe and Japan are almost impossible to move to. I think this is kind of dumb... if I am going to pay taxes in a country, who cares where I was born?
  - ido 18y ago
    > Yeah, I've noticed that Europe and Japan are almost impossible to move to. Why do you say that? I've moved here 4 years ago, it was a bit of a hassle to get the work permit, but it wasn't that bad. Basically if you can earn the equivalent of more than about ~45k usd/year, or are a student (and one of a few specific professions- like artists and musicians) it's not that hard to get into the EU. And coming here with a tourist visa and staying until you manage to get a work permit is much easier than in the US - even getting a tourist visa can be quite difficult in the US, where as as long as you are from a 1st world country you don't even need to apply for one to come to the EU.
andreyf 18y ago
Actually, my family lived in Germany for three years before moving to the US. The decision to move was mostly because of funding - my dad made a lot more money in the US, with more opportunities to advance, and more leeway in what he got to research than he did in Germany. This isn't to say that the US is the only place to do good research - there is tons of great work being done at top universities around the world. However, the US seems like the single country with the most research opportunities. In the end, I'd imagine it's about money - I don't have time to find specific figures, but I imagine in the US more money is spent on basic research than other countries.