r&d

Grants made for stem cell research projects in 2008 through the Maryland Stem Cell Research Commission and the Maryland Technology Development Corporation yielded a return of nearly $3 million to state and local governments and supported more than 500 high-paying jobs, finds a recent impact report. A total $38 million was awarded to researches in 2007 and 2008 following the passage of the Maryland Stem Cell Act of 2006 and Gov. Martin O'Malley's $1.3 billion BIO 2020 Initiative in 2008, which includes $20 million per year for stem cell research.

Seven new research programs encouraging collaborative research across biology, behavioral sciences, global health and clinical medicine were announced last week as part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Common Fund Programs. The programs, which are scheduled to begin in 2010, expect to yield scientific discoveries and new and better treatments by capitalizing on emerging technologies. Programs to create a national stem cell center and increase capacity for global health research are among the new scientific initiatives.

In a report to the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget this week, the Louisiana Innovation Council set forth an agenda to recruit world-class researchers, establish centers of excellence, and facilitate university-based technology transfer. In a tight budget year, the council recommends using some of the remaining Louisiana Recovery Authority funds and private sector money to support the initiative with a minimum $15 million total commitment over three years.

A recent NSF survey found that between April 2008 and March 2009 Japanese R&D expenditures decreased by 0.8 percent to $188 billion compared to the previous year. Though this is the first decline in Japanese R&D spending in nine years, the rate of R&D investment as a percentage of GDP hit a record high of 2.78 percent. Read the full memorandum at: http://www.nsftokyo.org/rm10-02.pdf

Increasing life science and health-related research remains a major component of many state, local and university TBED strategies. Change in federal R&D obligations from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which includes the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, and Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality among other agencies, could be a good indicator of progress — or an indicator of the need to expand or amend those strategies.

Academic, industrial and federal R&D spending is surveyed annually by the National Science Foundation (NSF). Similar information regarding state R&D investments, however, only is captured periodically. The latest survey results, for fiscal years 2006 and 2007 were released this past December and used to create an SSTI Useful Stats table on state R&D intensity (see the Dec. 9, 2009 Digest). Is this information useful for state and local TBED practitioners and policy makers?

Despite the depth of the economic recession, preliminary estimates by the National Science Foundation indicate that U.S. R&D expenditures totaled $397.6 billion in 2008, up from $372.5 billion in 2007. This increase in overall national R&D performance represented growth in 2008 of 6.7 percent over the 2007 level. It also substantially exceeded the pace of growth in U.S. gross domestic product over the same year, which was 3.3 percent.

Current trends presented in the 2010 edition of the National Science Board’s biennial Science & Engineering Indicators suggest as early as the 2012 edition, the U.S. will no longer leads the world for a key indicator: total R&D expenditures – unless corrective action is taken.

Enterprise Florida released its latest five-year strategic plan for the state, calling for increased investment in STEM education, university research, commercialization assistance and early-stage capital access programs. Florida must diversify its economy and strengthen its high-tech industries in order to reduce the state’s reliance on population-based growth, according to the report. Enterprise Florida also endorses a cluster-based strategy to promote high-tech industries based on their relative levels of development in the state.

Gov. Sonny Perdue last week outlined an $18.2 billion budget for FY11 that reduces spending across several state agencies, including a $9.6 million reduction for R&D activities through the Research Consortium. The governor’s budget also would eliminate two science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) programs within the Department of Education.