Similarly to other developing nations, Mexico is a country full of contrasts and contradictions; within the country there are many very backward conditions, and yet it strives to participate in advanced scientific activities.

The country has 95 million inhabitants, the median age of the population is 18 years, the fraction of teenagers that attend upper high school is 30% and the fraction of those in the 18-22 age bracket that attend college is 14%. Finally it should be pointed out that the expenditure in science amounts to 0.3% of the Gross National Product, GNP. These figures should be compared with developed countries, where 85 % of the youngsters attend high school, 45 % of those in the 18-22 age bracket attend college, and typically 1 % of the GNP is spent on science.