Exploring models of information behaviour: the ‘uncertainty’ project

This paper reviews a number of models of information behaviour and introduces a model based on the goal-directed behaviour of problem solving. A key part of the problem-solving process is held to be that of ‘uncertainty reduction’ and this aspect of the information seeking and searching process is currently being explored in a project supported by the British Library Research and Innovation Centre. Preliminary results from the pilot phase of the Project are presented which suggest possible lines of further investigation.     

‘The tyranny of distance’: Biotechnology networks and clusters in the antipodes

Regional governments around the world hope to become significant players in the world biotechnology industry through their support for local clusters. This article explores whether or not this is a realistic ambition. It does so through network analysis of biotechnology firms located in Melbourne, Australia, the leading biotechnology cluster in the Asia-Pacific. The article finds that the Melbourne cluster is characterized by both intensive regionalism and precocious internationalism, fuelled by ‘the tyranny of distance’ [Blainey, G., 1966. The Tyranny of Distance: How Distance Shaped Australia's History. Sun, Melbourne]. The regional ties are partial; the international ties are precarious. Support from venture capital and deals with big pharma are especially problematic. ‘The tyranny of distance’ is exacerbated by cultural dynamics, favouring ties with the US and UK rather than Japan and Korea, for example. In this context, making the cluster viable is an immense challenge, calling for imaginative and finely-directed public policy measures.     

The uniqueness debate in computer ethics: What exactly is at issue, and why does it matter?

The purpose of this essay is to determinewhat exactly is meant by the claimcomputer ethics is unique, a position thatwill henceforth be referred to as the CEIUthesis. A brief sketch of the CEIU debate is provided,and an empirical case involving a recentincident of cyberstalking is briefly consideredin order to illustrate some controversialpoints of contention in that debate. To gain aclearer understanding of what exactly isasserted in the various claims about theuniqueness of computer ethics, and to avoidmany of the confusions currently associatedwith the term ``unique', a precise definition ofthat term is proposed. We then differentiatetwo distinct and radically differentinterpretations of the CEIU thesis, based onarguments that can be found in the relevantcomputer ethics literature. The twointerpretations are critically analyzed andboth are shown to be inadequate in establishingthe CEIU thesis. We then examine and reject twoassumptions implicit in arguments advanced bothby CEIU advocates and their opponents. Inexposing and rejecting these assumptions, wesee why it is not necessary to accept theconclusions reached by either side in thisdebate. Finally, we defend the view thatcomputer ethics issues are both philosophicallyinteresting and deserving of our attention,regardless of whether those issues might alsohappen to be unique ethical issues.     

科学家的社会责任:不是什么与是什么?

科学家的社会责任问题是一个指导科学家实施其正当科研行为的问题,同时更是一个关乎人类未来生死存亡的不容回避的重要问题。科学家的社会责任,应该说既不是无关痛痒的“无病呻吟”、不是单纯的科技创新,同时也并非科学家个体或群体的单一责任。实际上,它是一种长效责任和全局责任、一种内在责任和显在责任,同时更是一种对于人类命运与发展前途的终极关怀。     

Correction to: Philosophy in the age of science

Metascience - In “Philosophy in the age of science,” a review of J. Beale’s and I. J. Kidd’s edited volume, Wittgenstein and scientism, by Mariam Thalos, Chon Tejedor was...     

The interaction of R&D intensity and firm age: Empirical evidence from technology-based growth companies in the German “Neuer Markt”

This study examines the technology strategies of 88 technology-based growth companies that went public on the German “Neuer Markt” between 1997 and 2002. The regression analyses show significant positive effects of R&D on growth but negative effects on profitability. The data suggests that firm age is a moderating factor influencing whether technology investments lead to higher growth or profitability in the life cycle of technology-based growth companies. In our sample, higher R&D intensity led to increased sales growth but lower return on sales, but the growth effect was negative and the impact on profitability positive. These results support the significance of company life cycle theories for formulating technology strategies, which suggests that different stages in the development of technology-based firms call for specific levels of R&D intensity to sustain growth and profitability.     

Measuring the performance of Oxford University, Oxford Brookes University and the government laboratories’ spin-off companies

The paper reports on a recent study, which uses various indicators to provide an insight on the performance of spin-off companies from the public sector research base in Oxfordshire (UK). The study builds upon the other studies and fills a gap in the field by gathering empirical information on the performance of technology-based spin-off companies. While the main geographical focus is the county of Oxfordshire, UK, the findings will also be of value for other researchers and institutions with an interest in assessing the performance of spin-off firms. The evidence shows that the number of spin-offs in Oxfordshire has increased rapidly over recent years, as the result of evolving national policy and the entrepreneurial culture of the universities and laboratories. However, the academics and scientists in Oxfordshire's institutions were already entrepreneurial in the 1950s, less so in the 1960s, but increasingly in the 1970s and 1980s, particularly in Oxford University, which is by far the largest generator of spin-offs in the region.     

重建的岁月——简述美国内战后南方为维持地方自治体制所进行的文化宣扬

提要美国内战之后,南方人通过修建的一系列的战后纪念雕塑工程来重新构建他们对战前的记忆,他们通过这种方式来维护他们之前所拥有的地方权力机构和体制。战后,南方人努力把奴隶制从他们的历史中删除,从而使他们的体制合法化,另一方面他们又向他们的接班人灌输只有相信并继续这样的文化渗透,他们原有的权利体制才不会遇到来自北方政府的质疑。     

If star scientists do not patent: The effect of productivity, basicness and impact on the decision to patent in the academic world

We run an Event History Analysis on a sample of Italian researchers in the field of Materials Science, aiming at understanding how the characteristics of the research trajectories followed by scientists in academia affect their opportunities to do development of industrial applications. Results of our estimates suggest that all measures of academic performances have a dual effect, although different in magnitude. Scientists that are moving along applied research trajectories find it easier to produce industrial applications than their colleagues engaged in the quest for very fundamental understanding. We interpret our results by suggesting that, for the former, more academic research results in more exploitable results, hence in more chances to patent; for the latter, more academic research makes it just more unlikely that they will find the time to produce industrial applications. Similar results apply for the low versus high research impact.