Leading Article: Hidden treasures

The new funding allocations for universities following the 2008 research assessment exercise are depressing news for some highly rated institutions, most notably for Cambridge and for Imperial College London, the UK's powerhouse of science and technology. Although very superior, Imperial's high reputation for research was inconsistent across all of its departments, with notable blemishes in some areas of medicine. Research funding was also cut for the London School of Economics, but in its case, it was a victim of the decision to protect investment in science and technology.

So, we have been witnessing a redistribution of funding. This was to be expected following the new RAE rankings last December, which used a different methodology that rewarded islands of excellence in a much wider range of institutions. Thus Coventry University's research money almost doubled, and Lincoln's increased more than six times. The Higher Education Funding Council was right to find a new way of measuring quality. The old one – based on an average in different areas – concealed mediocre research. The new one uncovers some real gems.