Can patent insurance protect innovations from predators? Yes, particularly if innovators insure their innovation before rivals enter the market, according to Financing and the Protection of Innovators, a discussion paper by Gerard Llobet and Javier Suarez from the Centre for Economic Policy Research.
Homeland security R&D, high-end computing, the National Nanotechnology Initiative, and the President's Hydrogen Fuel Initiative are among the interagency R&D priorities that will receive a special focus in agency budget requests, according to a memorandum outlining the Administration's R&D budget priorities for 2007.
SSTI is proud to announce the addition of two new staff members to its team. Sheri Stickely will join SSTI on Aug. 15 as a Vice President. Sheri is leaving the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Technology (OCAST) to join SSTI. She has served most recently as Interim Executive Director and has been with OCAST since its inception in 1987.
While some state legislatures debate banning public funds for some or all stem cell research, others are using whatever funding tools they have available to advance the controversial science. Some states use tobacco settlement money, others use revenue bonds, and still others use direct appropriations. Some states use voter referenda while most stay within the traditional state legislative process. The newest twist comes from Illinois, where Illinois Gov.
The Oregon Legislature overwhelmingly passed S.B. 853 last week, creating venture development funds to facilitate technology commercialization for students and faculty at the state's seven public universities.
For many practitioners, the quickest summary of a recent 16-page analysis from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York might be "something has to change." Looking at job creation since the recovery began three years ago, Richard Freeman and William Rogers III state in The Weak Jobs Recovery: Whatever Happened to "The Great American Jobs Machine"? that this is the worst recovery in all post-World War II recoveries.
The quality of the economic performance assessment of federal programs has improved, but gaps still remain in the application of the measures used, according to the latest report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).
A new resource published by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) argues that indices claiming to measure the same thing - namely, the capacity or potential for economic growth - often vary widely in their results and are not effective yardsticks of economic potential.
The U.S. can watch as another country significantly expands its investments in innovation. This time it's France, as newly appointed Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin last month announced that the national government will double its funding from €500 million to €1 billion for the Industrial Innovation Agency (IIA), and give €350 million to the National Research Agency (ANR).
Just over two months ago, Acting Gov. Richard Codey announced budget shortfalls were delaying the state's $380 million stem cell research initiative (see the April 25 issue of the Digest).
In its third special session of the year, Mississippi legislators passed House Bill 3, an economic development package of grants and loans for high-tech and existing industry, including Gov. Barbour’s Momentum Mississippi Initiative.
Within days of taking office in January, Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. dismantled the Department of Community and Economic Development and promised to make significant changes to how Utah approaches wealth generation and economic growth.
The latest Fiscal Survey of States reveals that many states still face tough budget challenges, despite the fact that extreme revenue shortfalls of the past have subsided. The survey, which measures the fiscal health of states, is conducted semi-annually by the National Association of State Budget Officers (NASBO) and the National Governors Association (NGA).
Research continues to point to universities and public research organizations as the engines of innovation. But how does one build bridges between academics and industry that result in formal research agreements and specific problem-solving approaches? Two French studies suggest academic research with links to industry and across disciplines enhance the transfer of knowledge, focusing on directly applicable outcomes.
Recently released U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) data show Nevada outpaced all other states in the percent growth of its real gross state product (GSP) over the period 2000-2004. The western state's real GSP grew from nearly $74.8 billion in 2000 to more than $90 billion in 2004, a 20.8 percent change, based on 2004 estimates.
Building high-quality communities is the underpinning of long-term economic development, suggests new Southern Growth Policies Board research.
The Board of Directors of the EAST (Environmental And Spatial Technology) Initiative invites applications for the position of President/Chief Executive Officer. The EAST model, a result of a collaboration between business and education, is intended to provide K-16 students with access to resources not available in the traditional educational setting.
Your kids may not be bored of summer yet, but if you're an avid bird watcher, you know the season has already changed to fall as Yellow Warblers and several species of shorebirds begin their migrations south by July 4.
As the House passed its version of the fiscal year 2006 defense appropriations bill last Monday, "Little R, Big D" once again may describe the country's R&D priorities for the largest component of the federal budget.
With hopes of creating a geographic concentration of academic and private bioscience research and commercialization, the Louisiana legislature ended its 2005 session with passage of a bill creating a new development authority.
Technology commercialization can be a slow and arduous process, often taking years to reap the benefits of the investment. Recognizing that defense technology innovations move too slowly from the lab to the field, Congress created three programs within the Department of Defense (DoD) to speed and enhance the transition.
With SSTI's compilation of the FY 2003 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) proposal and award statistics by state, tech-based economic development programs - specifically SBIR assistance and outreach efforts - now have the requisite data to evaluate conversion trends for most agencies during the four-year period 2001-2004.
The San Antonio Technology Accelerator Initiative (SATAI) Network, a nonprofit organization, is accepting applications from qualified candidates to fill the position of President and CEO. The SATAI Network seeks someone with strong leadership and team-building skills, as well as experience in linking venture capital to venture creation and cultivating an environment and resources for start-up enterprises.
SSTI's annual conference is already considered by many to be the nation's premier educational and networking experience for the tech-based economic development community. However, the ninth annual conference to be held October 20-21, 2005 - keeping with years past - gives certified economic development professionals even more reason to attend.
After being struck down by the Iowa Supreme Court in 2004, the state legislature recently passed legislation re-creating a $500 million version of its Grow Iowa Values Fund. The bills commit $500 million over 10 years to support tech-based economic development and other economic development initiatives. Gov. Tom Vilsack signed the measures on June 10.