SSTI Digest

Michael Anastasio is the new director of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, effective July 1. He was serving as deputy director of strategic operations for the lab.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is establishing three new research institutes that are designed to help strengthen the mathematical sciences as the backbone for U.S. scientific and engineering research. The three centers are expected to receive $24 million over five years. A fourth $9 million award renews for six years the operation of an existing mathematical center that integrates education with research.

An award to Ohio State University in Columbus will lead to a Mathematical Biosciences Institute for interdisciplinary work on problems such as neuroscience and cell processes. This institute will develop the quantitative culture within the life sciences by bringing together people from both mathematical and biological backgrounds. Postdoctoral scientists will be jointly mentored by a bioscientist and a mathematical scientist, and seminars and courses will be aimed at a joint audience.

Joe Raguso has left the California Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency to become vice president for strategic and corporate partnerships for SRI International. Raguso served the agency as Deputy Secretary for the Division of Science, Technology and Innovation.

The California Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency (TTCA) has released A County Level Analysis of California's R&D Activity 1993-1999, which, for the first time, offers California state and regional policymakers a county-by-county, instead of statewide or national, analysis of research and development trends.

The Analysis identifies $50.24 billion that California institutions secured in federal research support between the years 1993-99 (the latest data available). The Analysis includes unclassified research funding from 17 federal agencies on a county-by-county basis and details who performs the research including individual business, public and private educational institutions, federal government, nonprofit institutions, and state or local government.

California A $30 million tax break tentatively approved by the state Board of Equalization will benefit the software industry but hurt other groups, the San Jose Mercury News reported Tuesday. Software companies, which have lobbied for years with state tax officials on the tax code covering maintenance contacts, has wanted the tax on the contracts eliminated, the article states. Under existing law, entire contracts are taxed.

Lewis Attardo is the first director of the new Sacramento Regional Technology Alliance. Attardo formerly was a Florida-based private business and economic development consultant.

Ohio Proposes to Join Race With the growing need to identify cleaner sources of power, coupled with recent advances in alternative energy technologies, many states are targeting science and technology investments toward fuel cells. California, Connecticut, Massachusetts and New York all have made investments in fuel cell research demonstration or commercialization projects through energy related research funds. Michigan launched its fuel cell strategy in April (see the April 19, 2002 edition of the SSTI Weekly Digest).

Examples of specific fuel cell activities within the states include:

With a large land mass and a population surpassing the 21 least populated states and the District of Columbia combined, California has scores of public programs and nonprofit organizations dedicated to encouraging technology-based economic development on the state, regional, local and sub-local levels. Best practices in the field, then, could have applications in a number of other states and communities.

Sacramento's economic development director, Andy Plescia, is moving on to become a private development consultant.

Marguerite Wilbur has been named president and CEO of Joint Venture: Silicon Valley.

More than 60 presentations on patterns, or solutions to problems in a given context, figure to be the highlight of CPSR's 8th biannual Directions and Implications of Advanced Computing (DIAC) symposium, "Shaping the Network Society: Patterns for Participation, Action, and Change," being held May 16-19 in Seattle. CPSR (Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility) describes patterns as observable actions, empirical findings, hypotheses, theories or best practices that exist at all levels. Patterns can be global or local and theoretical or practical, according to CPSR. Some of the presentations at the DIAC-02 symposium have particular relevance to state and local tech-based economic development affects, including:

[Note: SSTI defines a technology council as a regional entity that is membership-based and independently funded with science and technology-based economic development as one of its primary goals. National trade associations and government-created technology councils which serve in an advisory or policy role are excluded from this discussion.]