The Department of Commerce's Office of Technology Policy (OTP) recently released a policy paper that suggests the global environment affecting U.S. technology policy is changing rapidly, and policymakers are operating without current data or up-to-date conceptual frameworks.
Price Waterhouse recently announced that venture capital investments hit an all-time record in the second quarter of 1997. Total investments exceeded $3.18 billion, a 13% increase over the $2.80 billion reported in the second quarter of 1996, which held the previous record. These findings were released in the Price Waterhouse Venture Capital Survey, a quarterly report of venture capital investments throughout the United States.
The Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced that, for the first time, its computing resources will be made available to academic researchers. The California Institute of Technology, Stanford University, the University of Chicago, the University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign and the University of Utah were selected as DOE's Academic Strategic Alliances Program (ASAP) Centers of Excellence.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has announced that, as a first step in the transition from paper to electronic exchange of information, it is reformatting the current Notice of Grant Award (NGA) form.
Effective October 1, all NIH grant, cooperative agreement, and fellowship awards will be issued in a letter format. The new letter-format NGA will no longer provide
The Modernization Forum, a national association for the manufacturing extension community, seeks a project manager to join its team of professionals who work with the manufacturing extension community nationwide.
On Tuesday, President Clinton signed two budget bills, approved last week by Congress: one aims to balance the budget by the year 2002, and a companion piece cuts taxes by a net $95 billion over five years.
The Department of Commerce is soliciting comments on its draft Strategic Plan, which enunciates a mission statement, strategic themes, and goals and objectives for its programs. This 122-page plan responds to the Government Performance and Results Act's (GPRA) requirement that each agency prepare a Strategic Plan that aligns its programs and activities to its mission. The GPRA identifies stakeholder consultation as a key part of this strategic planning process.
SSTI is pleased to be able to provide reports issued by the Carnegie Commission on Science, Technology, and Government. The Commission was created in 1988 by the Carnegie Corporation of New York to help government institutions respond to the unprecedented advances in science and technology transforming the world.
Robert A. Eisenstein, Ph.D., has been appointed Assistant Director for Mathematical and Physical Sciences at the National Science Foundation (NSF). The appointment will become effective September 8.
Ohio Governor George V. Voinovich, began his term as the National Governors' Association (NGA) Chairman at the association's annual meeting in Las Vegas this week. He succeeded Nevada Governor Bill Miller.
Governor Tom Carper, a Democrat from Delaware, has been chosen as the Association's Vice-Chairman. Governor Carper will become Chairman of NGA next summer when Governor Voinovich's term expires.
Rob Atkinson, the executive director of the Rhode Island Economic Policy Council, has announced his resignation. He has accepted a position with the Progressive Policy Institute, leading a new initiative on science and technology. As a result of his departure, the Council is seeking an executive director.
The State Science and Technology Institute (SSTI) recently released an issue brief that examines specific tax incentives offered by the states to encourage research and development (R&D) activity. The report, State Research and Development Tax Incentives, identifies tax incentives for R&D offered in 1996 by individual states and describes their major attributes. It also considers the use and cost of the incentives.
Apparently as a result of Secretary of Commerce William Daley's pledge to cut the number of political employees in the department, Graham Mitchell, the assistant secretary of commerce for technology policy, will lose his job at the end of September, according to published reports. It is unclear if the position is being eliminated.
Japan is on schedule to double the government's R&D investment by the year 2000, according to a June 13 National Science Foundation Issue Brief.
U.S. Secretary of Commerce William M. Daley announced several changes to the Advanced Technology Program (ATP) yesterday. The changes came as a result of a Department study reviewing the ATP. A number of the changes are designed to increase the role of the states in the program.
The Small Business Administration (SBA) is seeking nominations for the Tibbetts Awards to recognize outstanding technological innovation, economic impact, and business achievements of individuals and organizations associated with the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is looking for business and quality experts to serve a one-year term on the Board of Examiners that reviews applications for the 1998 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. The board consists of approximately 325 members, including nine judges and 60 senior examiners.
The National Governors' Association (NGA) and the federal government signed an agreement officially establishing the United States Innovation Partnership (USIP) on June 25, 1997. The USIP brings together the Governors and the White House to improve the operation of the national science, engineering, and technology system.
The Small Business Administration (SBA) held its annual Small Business Week celebration June 1-7. Small Business Week is designated each year to honor the nation's small businesses and to highlight their contributions to the national economy and their local communities.
David Guiliani, president and CEO of Optiva Corporation in Washington state, was recognized as the National Small Business Person of the Year.
Gary Bachula has been named the Acting Under Secretary for Technology for the U.S. Department of Commerce. Since joining the department in 1993, Bachula served as the Deputy Under Secretary for Technology, reporting to Mary Good. In that position he has been a strong supporter of SSTI and the U.S. Innovation Partnership.
The Maine Science and Technology Foundation seeks a high energy President and CEO who will work with a diverse, gubernatorially appointed Board of Directors and provide leadership to the staff in the areas of strategic planning, policy development, program oversight, finance and administration, and public outreach. MSTF is a state chartered, industry-led not-for-profit organization that stimulates science and technology-driven economic growth in the state of Maine.
R&D Magazine has released the results of a survey in which more than 80 percent of respondents think America will lose its competitive edge in industry within 25 years unless basic-research funding is increased. The survey consisted of a combination of research questionnaires and individual interviews with 4,000 researchers representing industry, academia, and government.
The Government Accounting Office (GAO) recently released its assessment of federal agencies' progress towards implementation of the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA). GPRA requires that executive agencies prepare multi-year strategic plans, annual performance plans, and annual performance reports. The agencies must submit a strategic plan to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and Congress by September 30, 1997.
Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis) has introduced the Commercial Space Act of 1997 (H.R. 1702) to encourage the development of a commercial space industry in the United States.
The Department of Defense has announced 30 projects selected for negotiation under the Commercial Operations and Support Savings Initiative (COSSI) of the Dual Use Applications Program (DUAP), the successor program to the Technology Reinvestment Project (TRP). The projects could receive close to $100 million in DUAP funding.