Science, technology, and the states

During the 1980s, states discovered a key to unlocking some of their stubborn unemployment and economic problems - science and technology. At the beginning of the decade, only nine states had technology innovation programs. By the decade's end, 45 states had such programs. North Carolina started the trend years earlier with its highly successful Research Triangle Park that links three nearby universities with high-technology industry drawn to the park. Other states, impressed with this success, sought to prove that they too could make a difference in economic development. The aim was to develop a high-technology base. Although the programs vary widely among the states, most fall under two broad categories: university programs and industry programs. University-based programs usually involve creation of interdisciplinary centers to conduct applied research on commercially attractive technologies and to transfer successful research to private industry. Industry programs typically involve venture capital, incubators, and technical assistance. Two issues loom large today among states sponsoring mature science and technology programs. The first is needed improvements in science and technology education in state public school systems, and the second is competition among states for such lucrative national projects as the Superconducting Super Collider. These issues are expected to gain momentum as consolidation and modification of such programs take place in the 1990s. -from Authors