This scares me, too.  Kids are too into Paris Hilton and not into science.  We prevent people with technical skills from coming into this country b/c our immigration policy is FAIL. 

"Ms. Estrins book is the latest call to action during the last several years by scientists, technologists and political leaders worried about the countrys future competitiveness in technology. In 2005, the National Academies published Rising Above the Gathering Storm, a report requested by Congress, which found that federal financing of research in the physical sciences was 45 percent less in 2004 than in 1976 and that 93 percent of students in grades five through eight learn science from teachers who do not hold degrees or certifications in the topics. In 2007, the book Innovation Nation by John Kao, a business consultant, revived the debate."

Another Voice Warns of an Innovation Slowdown - NYTimes.com