"During the WE, I heard on a French radio that Professor Luc Montagné, 2008 Nobel Prize of medicine for discovering HIV, was recruited by the University of Jiao Tong in Shanghai where a research institute bearing his name will be founded with a lot of resources both financial and researchers. From what the radio reported, he is the first Nobel Prize moving to China.

"Beyond China demonstrating an acute strategy to climb the value chain, the interesting point is that Prof Montagné, now 78, had to retire at 65 from Institut Pasteur in Paris having reached the mandatory retirement age; this show the stupidity of the rigid French (European?) system of forcing into retirement people who are willing to continue bringing their wealth of experience to the country when research is one of the key ingredient to ensure future growth and independence, not talking about past investments that helped Prof Montagné successfully pursue his research. At the time Prof Montagné brought his knowledge to the US to continue his research, and now is moving to China..."

David Fuller's view Good for the professor, although there is some irony to this story as China will not allow Liu Xiaobo, recent recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, out of prison.

I am against mandatory retirement ages, but I would be, wouldn't I.