An interesting wealth transfer

Also in this week's C&EN, an interesting article by Jean-François Tremblay about Macau (a major gambling destination in Asia), this funny tidbit:

Macau’s $30 billion annual casino revenue pays for most of its government budget, which means that, indirectly, the casinos pay for scientific research in the city. The tax revenues provided by gambling are so large that the 600,000 residents of Macau not only pay no income tax but also enjoy free health care and receive a check of $1,000 per year, courtesy of the Wealth Partaking Scheme policy. 

Scientists seeking funding for specific projects obtain it through Macau’s Science & Technology Development Fund (FDCT), a government agency with a budget of $28 million per year and climbing. This may not seem like a lot given that the budget for the National Natural Science Foundation of China—one of the main funding agencies in the country—is $4 billion. But Macau’s FDCT funds researchers in a relatively small city where only two universities, already well endowed, engage in scientific research. FDCT funds about one-third of the requests it receives.

One-third! That's pretty good. "Your gambling dollars at work."