Every year, the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) releases its U.S. Licensing Activity Survey. The most recent version provides information on fiscal year 2006 (see the Dec. 5, 2007 issue of the Digest) and contains data for 189 universities, hospitals and research institutions.
The advances being made in nanotechnology-based research are likely to impact most industry sectors eventually as more commercial applications are identified. As a result, the National Nanotechnology Initiative has been a research priority for the federal government for many years. Nanotech research is occurring around the world, but, at this point, the majority of effort is concentrated in several leading universities and private companies.
Using statistics from the National Science Foundation’s report Science & Engineering Indicators 2006, SSTI has prepared a table presenting 2003 state rankings for industrial R&D intensity - the ratio of industry R&D to gross state product (GSP).
Innovation Philadelphia, a nonprofit public-private partnership dedicated to growing the wealth and the workforce of the Greater Philadelphia Region, is seeking a full-time manager of marketing and communications to start immediately.
Dennis Cheek is vice president of education with the Kauffman Foundation.
Dr. Donald Daniel is the new CEO of the University of Tennessee Space Institute.
William Harris is the new president and CEO of Science Foundation Arizona, a recently formed nonprofit organization.
Dennis Cheek is vice president of education with the Kauffman Foundation.
Dr. Donald Daniel is the new CEO of the University of Tennessee Space Institute.
William Harris is the new president and CEO of Science Foundation Arizona, a recently formed nonprofit organization.
Matt Kramer stepped down from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) to become vice president of sales and marketing with a Plymouth health care provider. Kramer served three years with DEED.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute named Nag Patibandla as director of the Center for Future Energy Systems, a New York State Center for Advanced Technology.
The State of Maryland has created a new Small Business Programs unit as part of the Governor's Office of Business Advocacy and Small Business Assistance.
Team NEO appointed Thomas Waltermire as CEO of the organization, a private sector-led economic development organization that helps to grow companies in Northeast Ohio.
Janice Whitehouse was named president of CyberMichigan, an institute within the nonprofit Altarum.
The University of Texas at El Paso hired Tony Woo as the assistant vice provost for research and technology transfer.
An overwhelming majority of residents in Georgia see higher education as vital to the state’s economic growth and quality of life, as more educational attainment is aligned with higher incomes, higher levels of entrepreneurship and less government spending.
Though Silicon Valley and New England still dominate the U.S. venture capital landscape, several other regions - whether through local initiatives or the natural evolution of the economy - have emerged as respectable national hubs of investment over the last decade. Some areas, like San Diego, have seen greatly expanded investments and have joined the top tier of venture markets as VC firms turned their attention toward biotech.
Publisher's Note: SSTI notes with much sadness the March 5 passing of Indiana State Sen. David Ford, following a battle with pancreatic cancer. David was a good friend not only of SSTI's, but also of the tech-based economic development community across the nation. In addition to being a tireless and cheerful advocate for investing in science and technology, he was also a gentleman in the true sense of the word, and we miss him greatly.
Rice University invites applications for a Baker Institute Fellow (postdoctoral researcher) to lead a new and potentially long-term project sponsored by the Baker Institute of Public Policy, the Computer and Information Technology Institute, and the Fondren Library.
The Canadian Government this week released its budget for the 2008-2009 fiscal year, which includes several new TBED-related initiatives and increases in funding for a few existing programs. The government plans to leverage its relatively strong fiscal position by providing tax relief and paying down the national debt, while providing $606 million for workforce development and $440 for research over the next two years. Major science and technology (S&T) initiatives in the 2008 budget include:
Three states recently wrapped up their 2008 legislative sessions, resulting in the passage of operating and capital budgets for the upcoming fiscal year. State lawmakers approved funding for new and existing TBED initiatives aimed at diversifying the states' economies through increased investments in energy programs, higher education research initiatives and science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields.
South Dakota
Earlier this month, three universities - Stanford University, the University of Texas at Austin and the University of California, Berkeley - announced partnerships with the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), a graduate-level research university set to open in Saudi Arabia by September 2009. Each of the U.S.-based universities will assist with the development of the following initiatives within specific academic fields of study at KAUST:
The presence of "surrogate universities" - that is, nonacademic institutions able to attract a skilled workforce, produce marketable innovations and cultivate local entrepreneurship - have greatly influenced the growth of the tech-based economy of Boise and Idaho's Treasure Valley. Furthermore, distinctions in these surrogates' culture, innovation model and marketable products may help to explain the development of new technology firms in the metro area.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently announced the recipient universities to conduct security research through five new Centers of Excellence. These centers will develop new technologies to prevent natural and man-made disasters, improve government response to such crises and monitor the nation's shores and borders.
State universities and research programs depend on public support to develop and commercialize new technologies, but the actual science involved in these discoveries can seem intimidating and arcane to the layman. How then should a state go about engaging the public in scientific research?
Rob Atkinson resigned from the Progressive Policy Institute to become president of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, a new think tank.