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'The Better World Project' Examines the Impact of Technology Transfer
While it is safe to say that new medicines, electronics, educational tools and other inventions have improved the lives of countless people, a new project by the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) describes more than 100 such breakthroughs that probably would not exist if not for the practice of technology transfer.
In The Better World Project, launched Friday by AUTM, readers can learn the stories behind the Google™ search engine, Honeycrisp apple, V-chip, cochlear implant, Habitrol® nicotine patch and other products used in health care, environmental protection, agriculture, safety and 16 other fields.
"This project will pique the interest of anyone who's ever wondered 'Where did that come from?'" AUTM President John Fraser said in a press statement. The project shows how technology transfer - the process of licensing and commercializing academic research - contributes to the economy and supports new discoveries, Fraser added.
A key element of the project is The Better World Report, a book containing 25 technology transfer cases contributed by AUTM members in the U.S. and Canada. Another important component, a Reports From the Field publication, includes 100 short stories about products used in areas such as biotechnology and veterinary science. The stories, contributed by academic institutions in the U.S. and Canada, show the breadth of academic research, AUTM states.
Both The Better World Report and Reports From the Field are fully searchable via an online database that is soon expected to include stories from Europe, Asia and Australia. Print copies of the reports, the online database, and licensing success stories from the United Kingdom are available at http://www.betterworldproject.net.