Writing software is sometimes necessary to achieve the objectives of a grant (even though this is not necessarily explicit). It’s not writing software that’s a problem, it’s reinventing the wheel; you should not focus on “scientists should not write software”, because that is obviously far from the truth.
For a scientist, writing useful software is a good way to get exposure, build a reputation and get citations. It’s an opportunity to do some different kind of problem solving than usual. It’s also a way of understanding how the software really work (which assumptions are built in, which methods are used, and how does it affect the software’s results?). This does help improve the quality of subsequent results.
A grant typically (there are exceptions, of course) lists things that are going to be studied. How the studying is done is typically down to the people doing the work. It certainly isn’t for grumpy old professors who hear a talk at a conference to judge.
For a scientist, writing useful software is a good way to get exposure, build a reputation and get citations. It’s an opportunity to do some different kind of problem solving than usual. It’s also a way of understanding how the software really work (which assumptions are built in, which methods are used, and how does it affect the software’s results?). This does help improve the quality of subsequent results.
A grant typically (there are exceptions, of course) lists things that are going to be studied. How the studying is done is typically down to the people doing the work. It certainly isn’t for grumpy old professors who hear a talk at a conference to judge.