SSTI Digest

The latest issue of the National Commission on Entrepreneurship's E-News brought our attention to survey results revealing that, despite the media and Wall Street attention given to dot-coms, only 13.1 percent of recent college graduates would like to work for the start-up, Internet-based businesses given a choice. Fortune 500 companies were the preferred choice for 42.2 percent of the survey respondents, while 24.7 percent opted for small businesses (specifically not dot-coms). One-in-five respondents wanted to work for their own companies. Released in June, the survey was conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE).  NACE also released their annual salary survey for new college graduates in July. The results show starting salaries climbing for most disciplines -- not just the technical degrees. Top starting salary honors continue to go to pharmaceutical and engineering degrees but double-digit increases over last year were found for English majors (10.5 percent) and even political science grads (11.8 percent).  It's fortunate that today's graduates are…

The Technology Administration of the Department of Commerce has prepared a web-based database of public, private, and educational programs and activities dedicated to developing the information technology workforce. The site is searchable geographically, by program type, by sponsor, or by keyword. Entities are invited to add information for additional programs and initiatives to the site as well. More information is available at: http://www.go4it.gov  Our thanks to Keecia James at the Southern Technology Council for making us aware of this resource.

The National Governors’ Association (NGA) Center for Best Practices, with support from the Kauffman Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership (KCEL), will convene an 18-month policy academy this fall to help officials from ten states to develop strategies governors can use to support entrepreneurship. Idaho, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nevada, Utah, Washington and Wyoming were selected to participate in the policy academy project. "The policy academy will involve a high level commitment by the states to achieve demonstrable results," said incoming Center Board Chair, Michigan Governor John Engler. "Governors will appoint teams of eight to ten senior staff, cabinet officials and entrepreneurs who will work together as a state team, led by a Governor’s policy advisor. Each team will share information and gain perspective from similar teams representing other states." Academy teams will participate in two intensive three-day sessions. Teams will hold in-state planning meetings throughout the course of the project and technical assistance will be available. The Center…

DoD 2000 SBIR Phase I Awards Announced The Department of Defense has posted the Phase I selections for the 00.1 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program solicitation. Out of the 4,829 proposals received, DoD awarded 856 SBIR Phase I grants, which equates to a  17.73 percent success rate. The accompanying table presents both the distribution of awards and the number  of proposals submitted by state and by agency (# of awards received/# of proposals submitted). The state ranking corresponds to the number of awards received. Abstracts for each Phase I award can be found on the agency's SBIR-STTR website: http://www.sbirsttr.com DOE SBIR Commercialization Assistance RFP Released The Department of Energy, Office of Science, has released a notice inviting applications for the Commercialization Assistance Program (CAP). CAP is to lead to the successful commercialization of products, services, and technology developed through the DOE SBIR program. Applicants are to provide individualized assistance directly to DOE SBIR Phase II…

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, as big defense contractors closed their doors and unemployment climbed, San Diego looked as if it might not recover. Between 1990-1993 alone, nearly 60,000 high-paying jobs were lost to defense and aerospace cutbacks. Although the region had some of the ingredients to be successful (defense technologies, a strong university, medical and bioscience institutes, and a desirable climate), the players did not come together to face their economic woes. It took losing two major bids for federal R&D facilities to spur community leaders to action. Developing High-Technology Communities: San Diego, prepared by Innovation Associates for the Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy, tells the San Diego story with supporting statistics of how the region turned things around through technology-based economic development. With all of the elements in place, small technology businesses emerged to become the number one job creating mechanism for the San Diego area. By 1998, San Diego had 100,000 more jobs than it had in 1990, despite the defense cutbacks just a few…

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) requests cooperative agreement proposals to support an intervention epidemiologic research study of HIV/AIDS. The purpose of the program is to evaluate how different levels of antiretroviral therapy affect HIV-1 infection. Eligible applicants include public and private nonprofit organizations, governments, universities, research institutions, hospitals, and Indian tribal organizations. A total of $400,000 is anticipated to fund two awards. Proposals are due by August 17, 2000. To view the complete RFP, visit: http://www.cdc.gov and click on “funding.” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also seeks proposals for Injury Control Research Centers (ICRCs) to advance the prevention, treatment and control of injuries through multidisciplinary approaches. Funding will be provided to applicants in regions that do not currently have ICRCs as well as applicants in regions with centers that must re-compete for funding. Eligible applicants include nonprofit and for-profit organizations, including hospitals, universities, research institutions…

The July-August issue of Technology Review, MIT's Magazine of Innovation, includes a special report on university research. The TR University Research Scorecard, written by TR associate editor Rebecca Zacks, ranks the top U.S. universities for their performance in patent quality (called "technological strength") and licensing revenues. The results demonstrate number of patents issued does not necessarily equate to financial return to the universities. While the University of California and MIT dominate the patent quantity side of the equation, other institutions are earning more in licensing income. "Columbia, for example, ranks second in licensing income and makes nearly a quarter of its $260 million research investment back in royalties and fees, even though the school garnered only 34 patents per year on average from 1994 to 1998. Third-place Florida State University, meanwhile, rakes in an astounding 42 percent of its $112 million annual research budget through a mere 10 licenses or options deals," according to the article.  The complete article and tables can be viewed at…

According to a study by Scarborough Research, a market research firm, Salt Lake City leads the country with 73 percent of households owning a PC. San Francisco and Washington DC follow closely behind with 72 and 71 percent respectively. The average home PC penetration across the 64 metropolitan markets measured is 59 percent. The survey, which has been done since 1997, found even the lowest ranked cities were nearing 50 percent; computers are in the homes of 46 percent of 64th-ranked Charleston, West Virginia. The increasing importance of computers and the Internet also is evident. Two-thirds of all households with computers have Internet access. San Francisco, at the top of the list, has 75 percent of its homes with computers connected to the Net. The standings could change fast, however, with 19 percent of all households currently without computers planning to purchase one in the next year. The statistics and rankings for all 64 metro areas included in the study can be found at: http://www.scarborough.com/scarb2000/press/pr_hhpc_data.htm

Last week, Governor Gray Davis signed into law California’s $99.4 billion budget which provides nearly $305 million for science and technology related programs plus an additional $20 million in research and development tax credits. Specific  initiatives include: Improving access to computers and technology in the classroom such as expanding student access to advanced placement courses on-line, staff development and technical assistance, and final implementation of the Digital High School Program ($215 million); Creating three California Institutes for Science and Innovation on different University of California campuses ($75 million). The institutes will combine technological and scientific research as well as train and educate California’s future scientists and technology leaders; Supporting the New Economy Initiative for: space commerce and aeronautics; grants to match federal and private funds for the Next Generation Internet Centers; E-Commerce in Rural Economic Regions Demonstration Project; California Technology Investment Partnership Program;…

The 21st Century Workforce Commission has released its final report, A Nation of Opportunity, and recommendations for developing the nation's new high tech workforce. The report provides an analysis of how leadership in regional partnerships of education, business and government can effectively address critical shortages of skilled workers in information technology jobs. The Commission makes several recommendations for each of nine "Keys to Success" for overcoming the gap in IT workers and for increasing opportunities for changing composition of the American workforce and population. While intended to address IT, the report’s findings and recommendations have application across broader workforce issues in a knowledge-based economy. The Commission's nine "Keys to Success" are: 1. Building 21st Century Literacy 2. Exercising Leadership Through Partnerships 3. Forming Learning Linkages for Youth 4. Identifying Pathways into IT Jobs 5. Increasing Acquisition of IT Skills 6. Expanding Continuous Learning 7. Shaping a…

In an effort to provide quality, high-speed telecommunications services throughout the state, North Dakota has committed $3 million for the first phase of a broadband telecommunications network that is expected to cost the state $20 million when completed. When the first phase is finished later this year, 218 locations in 64 communities will be connected. “When complete, North Dakota’s network will provide the greatest universal access to high-speed telecommunication services of any rural state in the nation,” according to a Governor’s Office press release. The initiative has three goals: To design and implement a network that meets the needs of government and education To reduce telecommunicate rates by aggregating public demand To promote economic development by making broadband service more widely available The first 218 locations to be connected include state and local government agencies, colleges, and local schools. While the network is initially intended for public sector use, businesses and individuals are expected to eventually be able to buy access. …

Public and private sources in the United States invest approximately $45 billion each year into medical research, but attempts to measure the return on that investment have been few. Exceptional Returns: The Economic Value of America’s Investment in Medical Research presents a preview of the findings of nine economists from the University of Chicago, Harvard University, Yale University, Stanford University and Columbia University. The paper’s release is timed to be of value for the 2001 budget debates in Congress. In summary, the economists found: “Increases in life expectancy in just the decades of the 1970s and the 1980s were worth $57 trillion to Americans – a figure six times larger than the entire output of tangible goods and services last year. The gains associated with the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease alone totaled $31 trillion. Improvements in health account for almost one-half of the actual gain in American living standards in the past 50 years. Medical research that reduced deaths from cancer by just one-fifth would be worth $10 trillion to Americans…