The main issue here is that C/C++ is more widely used, which means it shows up more often in research papers and more people at universities know how to read/write it. FPC would be a good alternative, but it's hard to convince people because pascal became populair in the 80s and most people still have that picture in mind. If it was something brand new, it would be way easier.

One thing that strikes me though, is that most people here seem to think that pascal is "the" language (ok, it's a pascal forum haha) and also that learning languages is hard. I've experienced that once you know the concepts it's not that hard to learn C/C#/Java/Python/Ruby etc etc.. I'd advice everyone to do so. I see languages as tools and every tool has it's pro's and con's. Knowing a bunch of them makes you a better programmer, because you will see how each language would solve a problem, which allows you to pick the right tool for the right job.
It's true that pascal has a lot of features and power, but it's not neccesarily a reason to "not learn" other languages. The biggest advantage of having a "big toolbox" is that you can easily work together with other programmers, and have fun (which is where programming is all about ) , without having to debate about the language to use. There is no "best" language.