 One argument that always seems to appear when analyzing the role of Muslims in the modern advancements and innovation within the STEM fields that science, technology, engineering, and mathematics is how the tally of Nobel laureates compares with that of the Jews over the last 120 years. Those criticizing the Islamic world might ask sarcastically, what have Muslims done as of late? What inventions have they come up with over the last 200 years? I look at this point of view and contemplate its purpose. I suppose it's meant to look down upon Muslims, to put them in what some people might believe to be the rightful place, a place of ignorance and lack of ingenuity, a position academically and intellectually lower than the other populations across the world, and mainly when compared against those in the West. But what allows this unfavorable opinion to even fester? What have Muslims done to deserve such an impression? Or better yet, what haven't they done? Well, unfortunately, there is truth to the fact that Muslims do indeed lag far behind the West, as well as other parts of the world when it comes to STEM innovation and advancement. Real numbers tell this story quite well. UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization data, shows that Muslim countries have fewer than 10 scientists, engineers, and technicians per 1,000 of the population, compared with a world average of 40 and 140 for the developed world. In addition, Muslim countries only have 600 researchers per 1 million people on average. Now compare that with 1,000 in Brazil and 4,000 in Spain and 9,000 in Israel. One single university, Harvard, from the early 2000s, year after year, outperformed the entire Arab Muslim world when it came to the generation of scientific papers. So, as hurtful as it is to admit, Muslims aren't performing remotely close to the global average when it comes to supporting, investing, and producing in the world of sciences, mathematics, and technology. The question is, why? How can a nation that was at the forefront and cutting edge of science, mathematics, and medicine up to the 15th century become so inferior in modernity? What were and still are the reasons that prevent Muslims from transcending the status quo that has haunted them for virtually half a millennium? Let's take a look at some of these reasons that have impacted the Islamic nation to this day, and ones that might also be limiting Muslims' abilities to break out within the foreseeable future. Since the Golden Age of Islam's end, prioritization of religious studies at the expense of the sciences has been a real factor in impacting the Muslim world's propensity to excel at innovation. With the challenges of reduced revenues, the caliphate was forced to abandon science all but entirely. Nizamiya schooling came into effect in the 11th century, where the comprehensive education of Islam had to be applied first and foremost. The matter in which religion would end up being instructed was more in line with memorization and exact recitation of holy scripture, accompanied by a limited, if not an inability to discuss and maybe even challenge the hadiths and the sharia being presented. This methodology of recitation reimposed its way into the modern system of Muslim education over the last two centuries, where science, mathematics, and the applied sciences were grasped and rewarded via the photographic delivery of their content and not necessarily through the understanding of their concepts. Such a phenomenon has led to an even larger absence of curiosity within the minds of Muslims, an absence that is much beyond the inconceivable questioning of why, and that is the questioning of how. How do things work in our natural world? So where did all the curiosity go? A second reason that supplements the first is the residual post-colonial mentality that Muslims struggle with to this day. Since the days of Napoleon Bonaparte's campaign in Africa in the late 18th century, the Muslim world has been in an irreparable state of shock. Due to this discovery of how vast a chasm existed between the science and technology of the West and that of the Muslim world. As indigenous people suffering under the suppression of the colonial powers, the Islamic nation went into rejection mode when exposed to the sciences of the West. Fast forward to the 20th century and the narrative flips. To when only the advice and expertise of the West is heard, taking predominance over any local expert opinion or experience. Muslims leave it to the Europeans, Americans and more recently the East Asians to invent, create, discover and produce, only for Muslim nations to consume without question. The third reason for the Muslim nation's crippled ability to innovate is due to the typology of nation they emanate from. In general, there are two types of Muslim nations with some minor exceptions. One is that wrestle with repressive regimes and others that prosper while in a state of lethargy. Repressed nations typically struggle with authoritarian or theocratic regimes that downplay the importance of education and research. The intent is to maintain as low a standard of education as possible thereby keeping the population codependent. And if somehow success was achieved within the STEM domains, immediate emigration would ensue. For the nations that were and are prosperous and especially ones who gained drastic wealth over the last 60 to 80 years, the problems were different. The challenge was in the absence of enthusiasm and commitment towards the seeking of knowledge. The passion necessary for all the learning and hard work that is associated with the STEM educational curriculums was at a minimum. In addition, the fears associated with the demanding work lifestyle of such professionals wrought about havoc with any aspirations for entry into this domain. In either case of Muslim nations, not many were incentivized to research, innovate, or produce. No real reason has impacted the lack of attention to the sciences as the lack of funding, money. And there are two aspects to that we must both recognize. First being that there is no real money being spent on the advancement of sciences anywhere around the Muslim world. Muslim countries spend less than 1% of their GDP on research and development. And consequently, their contribution to the world's scientific literature is also well below 1%. And the data backs this up. There are also rarely any jobs for those who excel within the STEM fields. And if they do indeed exist, then they are either low paying or low prestige. In either case, not a great option for a career. So if the reputation or a career path of a researcher or academic is non-existent, then how can we expect any up and coming youth to aspire to become a scientist or an inventor versus a government employee or a banker? There are no schools of thought that confirm the fact that Islam is indeed anti-science or more appropriately anti-STEM. On the contrary, Islam is a faith that prompts Muslims to engage proactively in the search of knowledge and to believe in the concept of the burden of proof. Science, medicine, and mathematics are about the how of the natural world and not the why. So we can't use the Islamic faith as an excuse for the Muslim world's situation when it comes to innovation. Nothing needs fixing here, except for the fact that when we do innovate and advance science, it should be done within the ethics and values of Islam. Muslims must also rid themselves of their inferiority complex towards the West when it comes to excelling at anything and everything. Time and time again, the West is providing the Muslim world with real-time examples that they don't know any better, be it dealing with pandemics or the handling of injustices of war around the world. There's not much that can be done with the repressive systems of governance that exists in today's Islamic world. But even with such limitations, education across all fronts must be addressed to rebalance what has been lopsided for way too long. The teaching of religion, liberal arts, and STEM even handedly and without conflict so that inspiration and passion can be instilled into Muslims from the very early stages of life. And if the Muslim world allows itself to break free from all these self-imposed limits it will find that there exists a substantial part of the population that craves discovery, hungry for knowledge and the exploration of our natural world and universe. Only awaiting the opportunity to prove to the world that by gaining knowledge, enhancing it, and finally sharing it it will be proven that medicine, mathematics, and all the applied sciences have always been an integral part of the Muslim identity. Thank you. And your patience. Bye-bye.