ScienceOnline2010 – interview with Robin Ann Smith
Monday, March 8, 2010, 11:22 pmContinuing with the tradition from last two years, I will occasionally post interviews with some of the participants of the ScienceOnline2010 conference that was held in the Research Triangle Park, NC back in January. See all the interviews in this series here. You can check out previous years’ interviews as well: 2008 and 2009.
Today, I asked Robin Ann Smith from NESCent to answer a few questions:
TEDxTriangle: Old techniques and new technology to harness ideas
Monday, March 8, 2010, 8:38 pmFeeling dull and uninspired? Try to practice selflessness like a Trappist monk. Play a video game that does more than entertain. Doodle.
The three tips could have come from self-help books, a consultant or a mentor. Instead, they came from the first TED talk in the Research Triangle Park area. The all-day, free event Saturday at RTP headquarters attracted more than 150 people, who on a sunny and balmy winter day sat inside, listened, did the wave and talked to people they had never met before.
Amy Calhoun
Durham couple Amy and Eric Calhoun organized TEDxTriangle, an offshoot of the TED conference, over the past 10 months using word of mouth, Twitter and Facebook to recruit speakers. In the spirit of TED, whose motto is “ideas worth spreading,” TEDxTriangle brought together local speakers willing to share their ideas and insights.
“We’ve been TED fans for a long time,” said Amy Calhoun, who runs a management consulting business. The goal of the conference, she said, was to get attendees excited, plant seeds of passion and help people connect to solve problems. Read more…
Innovation, America and Engineering: NAE Grand Challenges Summit
Friday, March 5, 2010, 4:42 pm
Panelists at the NAE Grand Challenges Summit, Innovation in America. Left to right, Lynn Soby, vice president of innovation and commercialization at RTI International; John Chambers, CEO of CISCO; Jeff Wadsworth, CEO of Battelle Memorial Institute; and Senator Ted Kaufman (D-Delaware). Photo by Roger Winstead/NCSU.
RALEIGH — You may be familiar with the idea that American businesses – especially those tied to technology and engineering – fret that our country is losing its innovative edge on the global stage. And because innovation drives technological advancement and economic growth – one might even say, hegemony – it’s a looming threat that many in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields are scrambling to address.
But STEM fields are facing a crisis of their own – fewer graduates in the jobs pipeline compared to industry demands, and companies hiring foreigners for STEM jobs because they are better qualified.
Friday morning in Raleigh, a group of engineers from industry, academia and even government met to discuss the threat of America losing its global lead in innovation. The panel discussion was part of a Summit on the National Academy of Engineering Grand Challenges sponsored by N.C. State and Duke universities. (To learn more about the NAE Grand Challenges, go here.) Titled “American Innovation and Competitiveness,” the panel was chaired by Lynn Soby, vice president of innovation and commercialization at RTI International in Research Triangle Park. It was one of seven sessions spanning March 4-5. Read more…
ScienceOnline2010 – interview with Mark MacAllister
Thursday, March 4, 2010, 12:07 amContinuing with the tradition from last two years, I will occasionally post interviews with some of the participants of the ScienceOnline2010 conference that was held in the Research Triangle Park, NC back in January. See all the interviews in this series here. You can check out previous years’ interviews as well: 2008 and 2009.
Today, I asked Mark MacAllister, Coordinator of On-Line Learning Projects at the North Carolina Zoological Society to answer a few questions:
ScienceOnline2010 – interview with Andrew Thaler
Tuesday, March 2, 2010, 2:56 pmContinuing with the tradition from last two years, I will occasionally post interviews with some of the participants of the ScienceOnline2010 conference that was held in the Research Triangle Park, NC back in January. See all the interviews in this series here. You can check out previous years’ interviews as well: 2008 and 2009.
Today, I asked Andrew Thaler from Southern Fried Science to answer a few questions:
ScienceOnline2010 – interview with Andrea Novicki
Monday, March 1, 2010, 6:24 pmContinuing with the tradition from last two years, I will occasionally post interviews with some of the participants of the ScienceOnline2010 conference that was held in the Research Triangle Park, NC back in January. See all the interviews in this series here. You can check out previous years’ interviews as well: 2008 and 2009.
Today, I asked Andrea Novicki from the Duke CIT blog to answer a few questions:
RTP Weekahead 3/1
Sunday, February 28, 2010, 6:35 pmEvents taking place the week of March 1 in the Research Triangle area that are open to the public: Read more…
RTP Wrapup 2/26
Friday, February 26, 2010, 12:22 amA Senate committee report blasts GlaxoSmithKline for being more concerned about the sales of Avandia than about possible serious cardiovascular risks associated with the blockbuster diabetes pill. Also, two Research Triangle area companies developing new drugs sign deals.
Needed: Cash to pay for innovation
Thursday, February 25, 2010, 1:02 amA $500 ticket to the Biotech conference Monday and Tuesday offered face time with heavy-hitting investors. After an 18-month, deep recession that dried up funding for drug research and development nationwide, it was a lure that attracted Research Triangle area companies to the Raleigh Convention Center in droves.
The visitors made it clear they and other investors remain skittish, but they also noted signs of hope, such as the handful of initial public offerings by biotech companies in past months and an adjustment in venture funding last year in favor of early-stage companies.
Stephen Sands
“When we look at a year ago, we’re really all taking a breath of relief that the Dow [Jones stock index] is over 10,000,” said Stephen Sands, vice chairman of U.S. investment banking in Lazard’s healthcare group, who moderated a panel addressing the future of biotech funding at the conference. Read more…
