Government Policy
U.N. chemicals summit expected to adopt new controls
April 27, 2013 1:42 pm | by JOHN HEILPRIN - Associated Press - Associated Press | News | CommentsAt the start of a major conference to regulate chemical and hazardous waste safety, top officials voiced optimism Saturday that delegates will approve new international controls on several industrial compounds and agree to clamp down on some cross-border pollution.
NC renewable energy law diminished in House bill
April 4, 2013 9:24 am | by GARY D. ROBERTSON - Associated Press - Associated Press | News | CommentsA House panel on Wednesday narrowly approved an effort to scale back and ultimately repeal a 2007 law requiring North Carolina electric utilities to generate a percentage of their power through alternative sources and locate energy savings. The House commerce subcommittee voted 11-10 in favor of the bill that would cap renewable energy and efficiency requirements by power companies, electric cooperatives, and city-owned electric utilities at roughly half the level the law ultimately demands.
Obama to propose $100M brain mapping project
April 2, 2013 9:46 am | by NEDRA PICKLER - Associated Press - Associated Press | News | CommentsPresident Barack Obama is proposing a new research investment to map the human brain in hopes of eventually finding treatments for traumatic injuries and disorders like Alzheimer's disease and epilepsy. The president planned to propose an initial $100 million investment next year during remarks Tuesday morning. The White House said in a statement that the goal of the project—called the BRAIN Initiative for Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies—is "to revolutionize our understanding of the human mind" and create jobs.
Optimism in UN over 1st global arms trade treaty
March 27, 2013 9:25 pm | by EDITH M. LEDERER - Associated Press - Associated Press | News | CommentsThe first global treaty on regulating the multimillion-dollar arms trade appeared to be nearing consensus, supporters said, though worries remained that Iran, India, or other countries would back off an agreement that requires approval from all 193 United Nations member states.
Cyberwar manual lays down rules for online attacks
March 20, 2013 10:01 am | by Raphael Satter, Associated Press | News | CommentsEven cyberwar has rules, and one group of experts is putting out a manual to prove it. Their handbook, the Tallinn Manual, due to be published later this week, applies the practice of international law to the world of electronic warfare in an effort to show how hospitals, civilians and neutral nations can be protected in an information-age fight.
Researchers find German-made spyware across globe
March 13, 2013 5:28 pm | by Raphael Satter, Associated Press | News | CommentsA Canadian research center said Wednesday that it had identified 25 different countries that host servers linked to FinFisher, a Trojan horse program which can dodge anti-virus protections to steal data, log keystrokes, eavesdrop on Skype calls, and turn microphones and webcams into live surveillance devices. This finding doesn't necessarily mean those countries' governments are using FinFisher, but it is an indication of the spyware's reach.
Researchers map out an alternative energy future for New York
March 12, 2013 2:39 pm | by Rob Jordan, Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment | News | CommentsHydraulic fracturing may soon be approved for the state of New York. However, a new study finds that it is technically and economically feasible to convert New York's all-purpose energy infrastructure to one powered by wind, water, and sunlight. The authors say that overall switch would reduce New York's end-use power demand by about 37% and stabilize energy prices.
White House: Cell phone unlocking should be legal
March 5, 2013 10:07 am | News | CommentsAn Obama administration adviser says the White House believes smartphone and tablet users should be allowed to unlock their phones and use the devices on the network of their choosing. The administration's opinion on the matter also goes for tablets, since they are becoming similar to smartphones.
In death, Facebook photos could fade away forever
March 4, 2013 8:17 am | by Lauren Gambino, Associated Press | News | CommentsA grieving Oregon mother who battled Facebook for full access to her deceased son's account has been pushing for years for something that would prevent others from losing photos, messages and other memories—as she did. The Oregon Legislature took up the cause as well, only to be turned back by pressure from the tech industry, which argued that both a 1986 federal law and voluntary terms of service agreements prohibit companies from sharing a person's information. Still, lawmakers pushed forward, seeking to treat digital information, from photos to intellectual property, as material property for estate purposes.
U.S. may face inevitable nuclear power exit
March 1, 2013 10:13 am | News | CommentsIn a 2012 report, the Obama administration announced that it was "jumpstarting" the nuclear industry and injected significant funding into two new nuclear reactor projects in Georgia. But this investment—the first of its kind in three decades—belies an overall dismal U.S. nuclear power landscape, according to a recently published report. Where Japan and many European countries responded to the Fukushima disaster with public debate and significant policy shifts in the nuclear arena, the U.S. has scarcely broached the subject.
NSF, partners to expand access to publicly-funded research
February 25, 2013 10:13 am | News | CommentsLate last week, the National Science Foundation , along with federal partners, announced its commitment to expand public access to the results of its funded research. This announcement follows a memorandum issued from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy directing science-funding agencies to develop plans to increase access to the results of federally funded research and improve the management of digital data produced through such research.
Russia, Kazakhstan may manage space base together
February 15, 2013 8:39 am | by Peter Leonard, Associated Press | News | CommentsRussia may suspend its lease for some facilities at the Baikonur space complex in Kazakhstan, opening the way for its joint administration by the two countries, a senior Russian space official says. The launch pad for satellite-deploying Zenit rockets at the complex will be the first facility to be reviewed, Roscosmos deputy head Sergei Savelyev told the Ivzestia newspaper in an interview published Thursday.
U.S. weighs tougher action over China cyberattacks
February 1, 2013 4:06 am | by LOLITA C. BALDOR - Associated Press - Associated Press | News | CommentsHigh-level talks with the Chinese government to address persistent cyberattacks against U.S. companies and government agencies haven't worked, so officials say the Obama administration is now considering a range of actions. China-based hackers have long been an economic and national security concern, but as cybersecurity experts report an increase in attacks, U.S. leaders are looking at ways to better address the threat and analyze its impact.
Reduce greenhouse gas by exporting coal?
January 16, 2013 9:36 am | News | CommentsWestern U.S. coal companies looking to expand sales to China will likely succeed, according to Stanford University economist Frank Wolak. But, due to energy market dynamics in the United States, those coal exports are likely to reduce global emissions of greenhouse gases.
Congress extends tax credits for wind, biofuels
January 2, 2013 6:15 pm | by DAVID PITT - Associated Press - Associated Press | News | CommentsThe wind energy and ethanol industries celebrated a victory Wednesday with the inclusion of tax credit extensions in the tax relief bill approved by Congress, but that may not mean lost jobs will come back anytime soon. The measure approved Tuesday night as part of the bill extending tax cuts for most taxpayers also helps wind energy and ethanol producers by extending tax credits, most of which expired Monday.
Asia Drives Growth in 2013 Global R&D
December 18, 2012 8:16 am | by Martin Grueber, Research Leader, Battelle and Tim Studt, Editorial Director, Advantage Business Media | Articles | CommentsGlobal R&D spending is forecast to grow by 3.7%, or $53.7 billion in 2013 to $1.496 trillion, according to research by analysts at Battelle, Columbus, Ohio, and R&D Magazine, Rockaway, N.J. The largest share of this increase, $22.9 billion, is expected to come from China, which continues its decade-long annual double digit increases in R&D investments.
The Uncertain State of U.S. R&D
December 18, 2012 8:08 am | by Martin Grueber, Research Leader, Battelle and Tim Studt, Editorial Director, Advantage Business Media | Articles | CommentsThe watchword heading into 2013 is uncertainty, and the effect on the U.S. research and development enterprise is more unclear than ever. The current economic condition and uneasy prospects for the future combined with a federal government funding projection that could range anywhere from flat to significant declines have limited the prospects for 2013.
FY 2013 U.S. Federal R&D Funding: Uncertain Future
December 18, 2012 8:01 am | by Martin Grueber, Research Leader, Battelle and Tim Studt, Editorial Director, Advantage Business Media | Articles | CommentsWith significant fiscal debates ongoing, a detailed discussion of FY 2013 federal R&D funding would be of limited value at this time. Instead we highlight a few key issues and describe how the current budget will likely be developed. For an up-to-date analysis of federal R&D appropriations, we recommend the AAAS R&D Budget and Policy Program.
Expenditure Impacts of U.S. R&D
December 18, 2012 7:52 am | by Martin Grueber, Research Leader, Battelle and Tim Studt, Editorial Director, Advantage Business Media | Articles | CommentsR&D is generally a long-term investment, building upon the results of previous years' expenditures, leading first to the generation of new knowledge through basic research and ultimately to products and services through applied research, development, and commercialization. These are considered to be functional impacts—benefits that occur as a function of the R&D's completion and often at a scale much larger than the original investment.
Academic R&D Growth Slows
December 18, 2012 7:46 am | by Martin Grueber, Research Leader, Battelle and Tim Studt, Editorial Director, Advantage Business Media | Articles | CommentsThe amount of R&D funded by U.S. academia is forecast to increase by 2.1% in 2013 to $12.7 billion. The amount of R&D performed by U.S. academia (funded by all sources) is expected to increase by 0.4% to $66.6 billion. Both of these values generally are well below 3% or larger range in previous Global R&D Funding Forecasts.
Industrial R&D Perspectives and Forecasts
December 18, 2012 7:37 am | by Martin Grueber, Research Leader, Battelle and Tim Studt, Editorial Director, Advantage Business Media | Articles | CommentsIn the following ten pages the Battelle/R&D Magazine team presents information on five key industry segments within the U.S. and global R&D enterprise. These five have been examined over the past two forecasts, allowing us to identify and interpret the underlying trends and drivers of these segments' R&D spending.
Industrial R&D—Life Science
December 18, 2012 7:32 am | by Martin Grueber, Research Leader, Battelle and Tim Studt, Editorial Director, Advantage Business Media | Articles | CommentsIncreasing healthcare costs, aging populations, and rising prevalence of chronic diseases are among the factors that will continue to shape the direction of industrial life science R&D in 2013. Technology deployment in healthcare information technology and analytics will also have an increasing impact on research while contributing to efficiency and quality.
Industrial R&D—Information & Communication Technologies
December 18, 2012 7:25 am | by Martin Grueber, Research Leader, Battelle and Tim Studt, Editorial Director, Advantage Business Media | Articles | CommentsInformation and communications technology (ICT) continues to evolve into various form factors, platforms, and system configurations. Its expanding applications base includes increasingly high-performance and cloud-based computing systems, a massive infrastructure of mobile communications, global networks of sensing systems, military and defense networks, Internet-based control systems, and many more.
Industrial R&D—Aerospace/Defense/Security
December 17, 2012 7:55 pm | by Martin Grueber, Research Leader, Battelle and Tim Studt, Editorial Director, Advantage Business Media | Articles | CommentsCost containment will influence aerospace, defense, and security (ADS) R&D, where industry investment is linked to government needs and funding. In the west, large new weapon system development programs will continue to give way to technologies that extend the life of extant platforms. In space-related research, budget constraints at NASA may stimulate additional new private sector investment in the U.S. and abroad.
Industrial R&D—Energy
December 17, 2012 7:43 pm | by Martin Grueber, Research Leader, Battelle and Tim Studt, Editorial Director, Advantage Business Media | Articles | CommentsPrivate-sector energy R&D covers a diverse portfolio of technologies related to electricity generation and use, exploration and extraction, efficiency, clean and sustainable fuels, and transportation. Energy innovation can be influenced by public-sector policies, research, and funding which complements and stimulates industrial R&D.
