Smart Societies

4 Countries that are leaving Silicon Valley in their tracks

By Vivian Giang Every few months there seems to be another region somewhere in the world that claims to be the next Silicon Valley. Sometimes the new high-tech hub is hyped up, but other times, it’s evident that there’s something special brewing. These countries have digitized governments that will put our Healthcare.gov problems to…

Science in the time of elections

Science and Technology may not form part of the daily vitriol that is spewed in election speeches, but scientists need not despair By Pallava Bagla In the science section of their manifestoes, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) draws inspiration from an Islamic scholar, the Congress has almost forgotten about Jawaharlal Nehru’s ‘modern temples’ and the Aam…

Evolution of funds: New ways to spend big on public research

OECD countries are spending big on new forms of funding public research By Eugene Sebastian Alain de Botton once said that most business meetings involve one party elaborately suppressing a wish to shout at the other: “just give us the money”. Wouldn’t it be easier if it were just the case for public research funding?…

Saudi Arabia: A Kingdom in a hurry

By Eugene Sebastian The International Exhibition and Conference on Higher Education (IECHE 2014) that concluded in Riyadh on Friday was the biggest ever event for higher education held in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. About 450 universities and educational institutions converged at the annual event. The United States doubled its participation with more than 100…

China looks to science and technology to fuel its economy

Maintaining stability in the face of rapid change and growth, and proactively partaking in cooperative global ties in science and technology fields will be key in helping China become an innovation-based economy, according to Denis Simon, vice provost for International Strategic Initiatives at Arizona State University. One of the world’s leading experts on science, technology…

US again leads the world in patents; China surges past Germany

By John Zarocostas Herald Foreign Staff March 24, 2014 The United States retained its lead as the world’s most inventive country in 2013, accounting for 27.9 percent of all international patent applications, according to the World Intellectual Property Organization, which tracks patent applications in 148 nations. But China is closing fast, with a 15.6 percent…

‘Clubbing’ effect in China’s research surge

By Eugene Sebastian China’s scientific research is rising. In 2005, China ranked 5th after US, UK, German and Japan in number of scholarly publications across all disciplines. In 2010, it ranked second after the US. While China’s volume of publications continue to grow quickly, there is evidence to show that its quality is also increasing….

Science and technology policy: Where are we going?

Riwanto Tirtosudarmo, Jakarta | Opinion | Tue, April 01 2014, 10:34 AM In anticipating the upcoming change in government, over the last three months or so a debate has been underway concerning the increasingly neglected development of science and technology in this country. The discourse centers on the institutional arrangements of higher education such as…

The ‘Asianisation’ Of Global Innovation

By Dr. Dan Steinbock Since the 1950s, the United States and the West have set the standards for prosperity, productivity and innovation. But the share of Asia in global R&D is climbing; and based on recent statistics,the region could soon displace the West as the global R&D driver. Global innovation is shifting toward Asia and…

Patterns of university engagement in Brazil and China: Will history repeat?

By Douglas Proctor Government-led trade missions provide universities with a range of opportunities, from networking with participants from other industries through to direct and sustained contact (on the road) with ministers and their staff. However, they also throw down the gauntlet in relation to “announceables”. What in-country announcement will be best conceived to secure the…

Special Report: Indonesia’s graftbusters battle the establishment

A good article offering some insights into Indonesia’s battle against corruption by Kanupriya Kappro and Randy Fabi that appeared in the recent Chicago Tribune. Authours: Kanupriya Kapoor and Randy Fabi Indonesia’s Inspector General of Police had just withstood eight hours of interrogation on the night of October 5, last year at the Jakarta headquarters of…

Indonesia’s emerging voices

How is Indonesia responding towards growing pressures of East Asia financial regionalism? Why are Indonesian teachers resisting information and communication technology? In a more digitally connected Indonesia, why are large proportion of young adults in greater Jakarta still feeling disenfranchised? These are just some of the questions being tackled by Indonesia’s new voices – early…

Brazil’s Multi-Billion Dollar Education Industry: Shaping Futures, Changing Lives, and Minting Billionaires

Ricardo Geromel, Contributor Post co-written with Luke Barbara, an American entrepreneur based in São Paulo, Brazil. Brazil’s role as a global superpower is on an upward trajectory and the country will make numerous important contributions to the world in the 21st century. Many of these contributions will come from, and almost all will be connected to,…

Suzhou’s new forms of foreign university collaboration

Yojana Sharma, 08 November 2013 Issue No:295 Universities from a number of countries have set up branch campuses in China, hoping to tap into the country’s desire for a Western education and a large pool of middle-class students. But China wants new types of university partnerships that tie in closely with its aspiration to drive up…

The rise of international co-invention

The rapid rise of India and China as innovating nations seems to contradict conventional views of the economic growth and development process. India and China are still at the early stages of development, yet advanced nations are granting rapidly growing numbers of patents to inventors based in these countries. A new research analysis of U.S….