Science Market Update

One of our favorites.  See updates below!

This story not only amazed us but brought home how important the work of researchers and medical equipment technology developers is in real time, right now, for saving the lives of actual people.  Read the update below, too. -- 12/23/2011

What would the holidays be without food?  This obscure little blog seems ripe for reprint about now...(12/23/2011)

Originally published in June of 2011, we're reprinting this blog because watching thousands of people dance and sing makes us happy, and for those folks currently shoveling snow it's a reminder that summer will come again one day! --12/23/2011

At this time of year especially, our hearts seem to go out all the more to those in need, which is why we like this blog. We've updated the information below with a recent video which should bring a smile to your face. Please consider donating your excess inventory in 2012! --updated(12/23/2011)

Mayor Bloomberg recently outlined formal plans to capitalize on New York research and create a science and technology campus that will mirror what Stanford University is to the Silicon Valley.  Seventeen universities and institutions from around the world submitted proposals for the project.   Contenders included Stanford University, Columbia, and the University of Chicago, but Bloomberg announced on December 18th that Cornell University and Technion-Israel institute of Science and Technology would be partnering to develop the New York research hub. 

The new Leiden Ranking 2011/2012 measures the scientific impact and collaboration of 500 major universities worldwide. The new university scientific ranking system is based on 25 years of bibliometric work done at the Center for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS) of Leiden University. The system aims to provide measurements that are less subjective than those of other methods. For example, the Leiden Ranking does not use surveys and data provided by the universities themselves to determine a school’s scientific rank.

The recent news out of New York regarding SUNY Stony Brook's future could not be better: a private donation to the Long Island university of $150 million will not only secure the future of its science programs but will allow Stony Brook to move up in order of magnitude into the ranks of top life science research institutions nationwide.  The gift was made by the Simons Foundation, with the agreement by New York State that it will institute a new tuition structure for wealthier students and commit to a $35 million capital construction plan.  The gift will go towards insuring research excellence in the School of Medicine, hiring top research faculty, and recruiting the best graduate students.

Most Americans who celebrate Christmas look forward to getting a bushy conifer for their living rooms in December.  A fresh tree smells so good that we can almost believe we're in the woods.  Candle companies sell vast quantities of scented pillars with names like "Siberian Fir" for those folks who just can't get enough of the pungent green aromatic.  That being said, imagine getting an early gift of not one tree but 4,584 acres of prime California forestland?  That's what happened last month when the UC Center for Forestry was notified that it would receive two huge parcels of former utility land on which to conduct research. To be clear:

The Stevens Institute for Innovation at the University of Southern California (USC) recently released a detailed report on startup companies based on research initiated by their scientists. The study found that 39 USC startups raised more than $800 million over the past 15 years and more than $380 million of that was raised in the past 3 years, in the midst of the global financial crisis. While two companies have contributed over $100 million each to that total over the last 15 years, 18 other companies have raised more than $5 million each. Though startups that attract VC funding tend to be successful and attract large ongoing investments, funding sources have evolved from being predominantly VC-based to more broad-based, including greater reliance on private investors, government grants, and investments by corporations.  Furthermore, life science startups in particular are attracting increasingly large investments, whereas the average investment for non-life science companies has decreased.

Duke University Medicine is in the midst of a building boom that will transform the medical campus and bring together world-class care, research, and education like never before.  The $235M Cancer Center is scheduled to open on February 27, 2012. The Duke Cancer Institute (DCI) is one of only 40 centers in the country designated by the National Cancer Institute as a “comprehensive cancer center,” combining cutting-edge research with compassionate care.  The other buildings currently under construction are the Duke Medicine Pavilion (mid-2013) and the Learning Center (late 2012) which collectively represent an $880M investment in the Duke Medicine campus.

On November 9^th,, 2011, Weill Cornell Medical College celebrated the dedication of its new Belfer Research Building. Until that morning, the man behind a $100 million gift that will make the facility’s construction possible was a mystery. The ceremony, which took place on Weill Cornell’s East 69^th street campus, revealed that oilman Robert Belfer donated the large sum.

QPASS stands for Quantitative Parallel Aptamer Selection System, and bioengineers at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) and their colleagues at the Morgridge Research Institute in Wisconsin have just received $3.2M to pursue this research into development of a highly efficient system of generating nucleic acid molecules.  The end product will be a lab-on-a-chip microfluidic device for instantly detecting disease in a clinical setting, with results that are far more accurate and precise than previous technologies.

Current science events including life science product and technique seminars are one of the best scientific sales and marketing tools used by companies to gain exposure, establish credibility and build name recognition in research communities.

The Radiological Society of North America recently announced in a press release that patients at three major medical institutions now have the option of sending their medical images via the Internet through a secure network so doctors and medical providers can access them with patients’ permission.  The benefits of this new advance in technology are that patients gain more control over their medical images, and doctors from different hospitals can access important patient charts immediately in a medical emergency.

This week, as part of our Featured University Series, Biotechnology Calendar, Inc. would like to spotlight life science research activity at Ohio State University (OSU).

On October 21, President Obama presented the National Medal of Science awards to the 2011 recipients in a ceremony at the White House.  The award program is administered for the White House by the NSF to recognize individuals who have made outstanding lifetime contributions to science and engineering.