Crossing the Valley

The Obama administration is pouring billions of stimulus dollars into research on everything from medical science to alternative energy. It’s a windfall. The University of Washington alone could receive up to $300 million. What’s not to like?

Research, and the technology it produces, opens new frontiers, raises productivity and improves our quality of life. Apple’s iPod was the result of research sponsored by five different government agencies into such diverse technologies as magnetic storage devices, lithium batteries and liquid crystal display screens.

Unfortunately, it often takes decades to translate research results into tangible products. The tendency of research institutions to reward scientists for the papers they publish in journals rather than for the social impact of their research sometimes discourages them from doing the extra work required to apply their results to solving real-world issues. 

That’s a significant challenge. Continued government spending on research depends on support from a fickle public. Unless universities can show concrete results, funding for that research will eventually dry up.

 Fortunately, in our state at least, institutions are waking up to the importance of tech transfer. In his story on the subject, Paul Freeman describes how, under the leadership of Linden Rhoads, the UW has significantly improved its ability to identify and commercialize research results. Freeman also shows how Washington State University has created a new research institution that can better commercialize new discoveries.

While research is critical, let’s not forget about the tinkerers who turn these discoveries into usable products. America has a great tradition of inventors building better “mousetraps.”  These days, the tinkerer is more likely to be a software programmer who turns ideas or business models into products—think games, productivity tools and iPhone applications—that, overnight, can be offered to millions of customers over the internet.

That’s also good news for our region, since we have more programmers per capita than just about any other city in the country. In this month’s cover story, Bryan Corliss looks at how companies in our region are using software to transform old industries in such sectors as publishing and real estate.

 Software firms in our region are creating great wealth. Fortunately, they are investing much of that wealth into new research and technology. This money, much of it invested in startups through angel investment organizations in our region, helps entrepreneurs cross the “valley of death”—that tough period between the launch of a new product to its adoption in the marketplace. Our research institutions, with the right leadership, can make technology transfer even easier and contribute even more to this great cycle of wealth and innovation.

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