SSTI Digest

Savannah, Georgia

CyberGeorgia, a pilot effort of the Georgia Department of Industry, Trade and Tourism (GDITT) and the Business and Education Technology Alliance of Southeast Georgia to create more tech-based companies outside the Atlanta metro region, was launched last month in Savannah. According to the April 17 issue of the Augusta Chronicle, the program will include an incubator, investment matching services, intellectual property assistance, and a connection between the area

universities and new tech businesses. If successful, GDITT anticipates creating similar centers in other regions of the state, the paper reports.

Washington Technology Center is seeking someone to become the first full-time program manager for the Northwest Energy Technology Collaborative. The Collaborative is a public-private partnership committed to accelerating the emergence of the Pacific Northwest's energy technology industry. The Collaborative seeks to build market-based programs that support businesses, entrepreneurs, investors, researchers and policymakers to address challenges facing this emerging industry. The successful candidate will have demonstrated his/her effectiveness in building high-impact, effective partnerships and will bring exceptional communication skills, energy and business understanding to the position. Responsibilities will include raising additional funds to make the position permanent. The full job description can be found at: http://www.watechcenter.org/wtc/employment.html

Marv Clement, former manager of Entrepreneurial Programs at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Washington, retired in April 2002.

Marv Clement, former manager of Entrepreneurial Programs at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Washington, retired in April 2002.

Bob Filka, vice president of strategic initiatives for the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, is leaving to become chief operating officer of the Michigan Broadband Authority Board. William Rosenberg will become the new board's first director.

Alex Fisher, chief of staff for Tennessee Governor Don Sundquist, is leaving to become the director of technology transfer and economic development at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Molly Lambert, secretary of the Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development since 1998, is resigning July 1 to become head of the Vermont Captive Insurance Association. The Agency is comprised of the Departments of Economic Development, Tourism and Marketing, and Housing and Community Affairs.

Dramatic increases in research and development (R&D) investments during the past decade, largely from industry, have contributed to U.S. standing as a global economic power, according to Science and Engineering Indicators 2002, a biennial report of the National Science Board. The U.S. had $244.1 billion in R&D investments in 1999, an increase of nearly $33 billion from 1997, the report shows. In addition, the U.S. accounts for 44 percent of the total worldwide investment in R&D — an amount equal to the combined total of Japan, the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany and Italy.



R&D investments by U.S. industry, S&E Indicators reports, have contributed to a steady stream of innovations and spurred economic growth, increasing per-capita income. The report adds that changes in the conduct of research and development also have led to transformations in other areas, including a growth in science-based patents and an increased level of high-tech exports.



Meanwhile, the balance of R&D investments continues to shift, according to S&E Indicators. As industry R&D grew to nearly 75 percent of the national total by 2000, federal expenditures remained essentially flat over the past decade. Since 1980, the share of basic research to total national R&D has risen from 14 to 18 percent. Federal research expenditures in life sciences also rose from 41 to 47 percent of the federal total between 1990 and 2000, but the combined share of physical sciences and engineering in federal research total dropped from 37 to 29 percent in the same period.



On the state level, California remains the leader in the level of R&D investments, S&E Indicators reports. The state's $48 billion mark in 1999 reflects a 15.1 percent increase over its $41.7 billion level in 1997. Michigan, with $18.8 billion in 1999, shows a 34.3 percent increase over 1997 and remains second overall. Similarly, New York is still third, showing $14.1 billion as the level of its R&D investments in 1999.



Rounding out the top 10 states are Texas ($12.4 billion), Massachusetts ($12.2 billion), Pennsylvania ($10.7 billion), New Jersey ($10.5 billion), Illinois ($9.7 billion), Washington ($8.3 billion) and Maryland ($8 billion). Among the top 20, nine states hold the same ranking in 1999 as they held in 1997. Arizona (14) and Georgia (20) entered the top 20 in 1999, replacing Indiana and the District of Columbia.



S&E Indicators also highlights trends among the nation's workforce and education system. Additional findings include:

Defense Concedes: Will Honor 2.5% Set Aside

Mid-April letters from the Department of Defense to Senator John Kerry (D-MA) and Senator Christopher Bond (R-MO), respectively chair and ranking member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, marked the end of a four-month standoff and a $75 million win for small tech firms across the country. At issue was whether an eleventh-hour insertion in the 2002 Defense Appropriations, which effectively halved the SBIR obligation of the Missile Defense Agency (see the 1/11/02 SSTI Weekly Digest for the original story), also reduced the entire Defense Department's requirement to award 2.5 percent of its extramural R&D to small companies through the SBIR program.



Dov S. Zakheim, Under Secretary for Defense (Comptroller) and Chief Financial Officer, wrote in the agency's response to a Jan. 29 letter from the two Senators, "We have spent a good deal of time reviewing both the proviso in the 'Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation, Defense-wide' appropriation in Public Law 107-117 and the provisions of the SBIR program (15 U.S.C. 638(f)). As a result, I can assure you that the Department intends to comply with the provisions of the SBIR statute."



What is not disclosed in the letter and will require further investigation by the Small Business Administration or Congress, however, is how the Department will meet the $75 million obligation. The most likely scenario is assessing the full amount from the Missile Defense Agency, as would have been required before the rescission. Other options include distributing some or all of the burden across other Defense components.



...and other SBIR News



NSF Matching SBIR Phase II Grantees to VC

The National Science Foundation has launched NSF SBIR Matchmaker, an effort to connect interested NSF SBIR Phase II grant recipients to strategic investment partners for early stage capital. The goal is to increase the likelihood of commercialization of successful technologies resulting from NSF SBIR research.



Prospective investment organizations and strategic partners must have a focus in one or more of the four technology focus areas: electronics, biotech, information technology, or advanced materials and manufacturing. SBIR Phase II grantees must meet several criteria for inclusion in the program.



More information is available at: http://www.eng.nsf.gov/sbir/matchmaker.htm

Two recent studies on Internet usage in Maryland and Maine offer detailed maps of broadband infrastructure. The studies offer some insights on how businesses and, in the case of Maryland, private citizens are accessing the Internet. Specific findings are not presented below; however, each of the studies are available in their entirety via the links that follow the respective summaries.



eReadiness Maryland

 The first-ever, comprehensive statewide study on Internet usage, access and infrastructure among Maryland's businesses and households became available April 18. eReadiness Maryland: Assessing our Digital Opportunities includes the survey results of 1,422 households and 1,126 businesses, real-time dial-up connection speeds from 24 locations and previously unavailable maps of fiber infrastructure, DSL service and cable modems.



The study provides statistical indicators for both businesses and households. Analysis on Internet connectivity and a national comparison is emphasized for the former. For households, eReadiness Maryland relates computer use to families' income and educational attainment levels. The regional variation of computer and Internet usage in Maryland is given for both businesses and households.



To fund eReadiness Maryland, TEDCO contributed $100,000 and leveraged $100,000 from the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration, $110,000 from industry sponsors and $45,000 from the State of Maryland. Another $50,000 reportedly will be provided to commission an in-depth study on the need for high-speed bandwidth in Western Maryland. For this project, TEDCO has committed $25,000 and has obtained a matching grant of $25,000 from the Appalachian Regional Commission.



eReadiness Maryland is a two-phase study designed by the Technology Policy Group of the Ohio Supercomputer Center and managed by the Maryland Technology Development Corp. With Phase I of the study completed, Phase II will be a series of regional briefings to review the findings and discuss policy recommendations. The complete text of eReadiness Maryland is available at: http://www.marylandtedco.org/home.html

The National Science Foundation reports the number of doctorate awards from U.S. universities in physics, after hitting a record high in 1994, fell 22 percent by the year 2000. Doctorates in engineering declined 15 percent by the year 2000 from the 1996 peak.



The declines were a result of a decrease of awards made to non-U.S. citizens, according to the April InfoBrief "Declines in U.S. Doctorate Awards in Physics and Engineering." Specifically, 59 percent of the decline in physics awards and 74 percent of engineering doctorates are accounted for by non-U.S. citizens, especially from several East Asian countries. Drops in students from China represented half of the total decline for doctorates in physics. The percentage of doctorates in physics awarded to U.S. citizens remained relatively flat during the period, accounting for 50.97 percent in 1994 and 51.62 percent in 2000. Actual values for doctorates to U.S. citizens were 789 in 1994 and 622 in 2000.



Two-thirds of the decline in engineering doctorates is explained through decreases in students from China, South Korea and Taiwan. U.S. citizens earned a high of 2,739 engineering doctorates in 1997; the total fell to 2,206 by 2000.



The issue brief, based on NSF's Survey of Earned Doctorates for 2000, is available at: http://www.nsf.gov/sbe/srs/infbrief/nsf02316/start.htm

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.



Last week, Governor Gray Davis announced the 12 winners of the 2002 Governor's Technology & Innovation Awards, which honor non-profit organizations, public-private partnerships, educational institutions, individuals, and philanthropic programs that help foster California's tech-based economy in exemplary and innovative ways. The program is administered by the Division of Science, Technology and Innovation of the California's Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency.



Award winners — which include a business incubator, a high school principal, a workforce training program, community tech-access programs, a public-private science education collaborative, a trade organization, and a science learning center — will be featured in a "Governor's Technology & Innovation Compendium of Best Practices." Recipients include: