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reports and analyses of the forces driving science and technology investment in Canada
editor: Mark Henderson How it looks to me.... by Mark Henderson FEATURE REPORTS | RESEARCH BRIEFS | PERSONALITIES How it looks to me.... by Mark Henderson, editor, RE$EARCH MONEY Canadian purveyors of international science and technology (IS&T) seem to confound their political masters. Conducted in a wide variety of ways with a host of different colleagues, groups or nations, IS&T a difficult activity to quantify. And that soft status can be dangerous when government is looking for places to cut. Yet the such callous treatment afforded IS&T during Program Review is now coming home to roost. Links have been broken and Canada is increasingly trapped on the inside looking out. Those who understand how international S&T contributes to scientific knowledge and economic prosperity have been quietly expressing their concern. And it appears they are being heard (link to item). Anecdotal evidence indicates that international linkages are on the upswing. This may be partly due to the easing of financial pressures initiated with the last federal Budget. But in the case of agencies like the National Research Council, the reason is more compelling. While the NRC is strapped for cash, it has recently forged a number of bilateral pacts with Asian nations because it believes they're vital. It's time government looked seriously at what constitutes Canada's international S&T effort, benchmark it against other nations, and act accordingly. Until then, Canada's ability to pick its niches and develop productive strategy will be hamstrung. Being a small nation doesn't mean we also have to be small-minded.
FEATURE REPORTS...
RESEARCH BRIEFS
Alberta receives $11.3 million in funding for technology centre The Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) is launching a $11.3-million Nortel Networks Global Communications Centre of Applied Technology, augmenting its $5.1-million contribution with $3.5 million in funding from the Alberta government and $2.75 million in in-kind support from Nortel Networks. The provincial funding will be used to purchase $2.5 million infrastructure, establish a $600,000 endowment for applied R&D and a $400,000 scholarship endowment. Nortel will provide a range of data, wireless and enterprise networking equipment and gets its name on the centre It is the second contribution Nortel has made to SAIT and follows last year's $2.1-million contribution of voice network equipment to upgrade the Meridian Education Centre. The Nortel Networks Centre focuses on applied technology training and technology development and provides the Alberta government with facilities to commercialize research....
MRC signs co-operation deal with Singapore medical institute The Medical Research Council (MRC) has signed a wide ranging cooperation agreement with Singapore's Institute for Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), for formalize a health research program focused on cancer, infectious diseases and new vaccines. The three-year pact includes academic exchanges and investment and commercialization linkages involving venture capital firms and biotechnology companies in both countries. The agreement solidifies an the two agency's economic links and ongoing working relationship that's been promoted by IMCB president Dr Chris Tan. Tan received MRC support while working at the Univ of Calgary's School of Medicine....
CITO pushes for more R&D spending on new digital media Communication and Information Technology Ontario (CITO) has appeared before government hearings into new media to push for more collaborative private and public R&D funding for the emerging sector to ensure that Canada becomes a serious global player. CITO president/CEO Peter Leach made the case for digital media before the CRTC during contentious a two-week hearing to develop a policy framework for the sector. He cited CITO successful collaborative R&D model for telecommunications and information technology and argued for its implementation for new media. The CRTC hearings are largely an exploratory exercise to gain better understanding of the scope and impact of new media, participating industries and potential competitive access issues. RE$EARCH MONEY publisher Evert Communications Ltd has recently launched Canadian New Media, a new publication exploring the unique issues facing the sector. Click here to view the current issue; to obtain a printed copy, contact Subscriber Services at (613)728-4621 or Email services@evert.com....
Canadian Intellectual Property Office puts patents on-line Industry Canada has launched a new on-line Canadian Patent Database designed for use by business people, inventors and researchers. Previously only available in paper files stored in Ottawa, the database allows bilingual access to a huge range of historical and current patents. The website was developed by the Canadian Intellectual Property Office in conjunction with IBM Canada Ltd and can be found at: http://cipo.ca/patents....
PERSONALITIESJames Rae has been appointed chairman and CEO of Vaxis Therapeutic Corp, a Queen's Univ spin-off developing products for the treatment of peripheral vascular disease states. Rae's appointment follows a $5-million investment in Vaxis (see realted item) and strengthen's the firm's management team for developing the early stage pharmaceutical firm. Rae was previously president/CEO of Cangene Corp and has held senior positions with G D Searle Ltd, E R Squibb and CIBA-GIGY Corp.... Kathryn Mikoski has been appointed director of operation for the National Research Council's Canada Institute for Scientific and Technical Information (CISTI). Mikoski's responsibilities include current awareness products such as the tables of content service and BiblioNet, a full service information tool for the IT and telecommunications industries to be launched in 1999. While at CISTI, she has led its document delivery service through the transition from photocopies to electronic ordering and delivery. Prior to CISTI, Mikoski was chief of the National Library of Canada's interlibrary loan division. She holds an MLS from the Univ of Western Ontario and a BA (Hon) from the Univ of Calgary.... ATI Technologies Inc president/CEO K Y Ho has been chosen as Canada's Entrepreneur of the Year, in honour of his achievement in building the firm from a small start-up to one of the world's largest computer graphics companies. The award is presented by the Entrepreneur of the Year Institute and supported by a variety of corporate sponsors. Earlier this year, Ho was chosen as the Ontario Entrepreneur of the Year, leading to his eligibility for the national award. ATI revenue and exports have topped $1 billion, with an ongoing topline growth rate of 30%. Ho recently concluded an agreement with General Instrument to provide ATI visual technology to million of set top boxes for US cable television users....
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