futurebeachbum
Beach Fanatic
There's a good, nonpartisan analysis by Business Week on how we've lost a lot of basic scientific R&D and how bringing it back could help us repair the economy and regain a lot of lost jobs. Its also kind of a history lesson on how government and industry were able to partner together successfully in the past on R&D and do great things.
The article is Where Have You Gone, Bell Labs?
One small quote from near the end of the article.
The article is Where Have You Gone, Bell Labs?
One small quote from near the end of the article.
HOW TO GET BACK ON TRACK
We can't do this as a series of half steps that are expensive but ineffectual, that don't reach critical mass or critical rate of change. This middle-road approach might well describe NASA over the past 30 years?not a good model.
The better model is the previous U.S. business model, with a dynamic public-private network of labs and a venture-capital industry waiting downstream to commercialize ideas and turn them into large public companies that create hundreds of thousands of new jobs. Here's what's needed to get that model back on track:
Government can do a lot by, for example, refocusing DARPA on increasing energy security. But it cannot do it alone.
We can't do this as a series of half steps that are expensive but ineffectual, that don't reach critical mass or critical rate of change. This middle-road approach might well describe NASA over the past 30 years?not a good model.
The better model is the previous U.S. business model, with a dynamic public-private network of labs and a venture-capital industry waiting downstream to commercialize ideas and turn them into large public companies that create hundreds of thousands of new jobs. Here's what's needed to get that model back on track:
? Clear national goals in two or three key areas, such as carbon-free energy and preventive medicine.
? Government commitment of $10 billion a year above and beyond spending for national agencies to jump-start new industrial research labs
? Government tax credits for corporations that commit to spending 5% to 10% (or more) of R&D on basic research
? Government commitment of $10 billion a year above and beyond spending for national agencies to jump-start new industrial research labs
? Government tax credits for corporations that commit to spending 5% to 10% (or more) of R&D on basic research
Government can do a lot by, for example, refocusing DARPA on increasing energy security. But it cannot do it alone.