Europe Enters "The War for Talent"

The European Research Council has set aside a new fund for "blue sky" research:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6399157.stm

The fund has been created to make Europe more economically competitive- the same rationale that gets used in the U.S. by people who have little knowledge of science and little more knowledge of economics. It was interestingly inaugurated in Germany- the birth place of academic scientific research with commercial application. From an economics standpoint, much needs to be done in Europe to make the transfer of academic research to commercial application more seamless. However, regardless of the rationale for creating this fund, the U.S. should take notice. The U.S. cannot expect to use Europe (or China or India) as a reservoir of ready-made scientific talent. The biggest thing to come out of this fund may have little to do with Europe creating "The next big thing" and everything to do with Europe holding on to its best and brightest.