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April 26, 2002

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CONTENTS

1) Upcoming Releases (10th Anniversary, Medical Innovation, IPRs)

2) Future Work (IPRs)

3) Internship Opportunities

Click on links for more detailed information

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UPCOMING RELEASES

"STEP Board: The First 10 Years"

CD-Rom collection of ten years of reports from the Board on

Science, Technology and Economic Policy. The 23 reports in

the collection cover the STEP Board's work in the areas of

research, innovation, and industry performance,

government-industry partnerships for technology development ,

technology and trade, and human capital development

Expected release date: May 3, 2002

Contact cschultz@nas.edu with requests

"Medical Innovation in the Changing Healthcare Marketplace"

Although health care is a significant cost for consumers, employers

and the government, the benefits of medical innovation over the

past 50 years have also been significant. This report summarizes

a June 2001 conference that examined this issue as well as ways that

public policy can promote the development and distribution of highly

cost effective medical technology. The report also examines the impact

of new technology on the treatment of cardiovascular disease and

metastsic melanoma.

Expected release date: May 10, 2002

Contact cschultz@nas.edu for copies of this publication.

"Using Human Resources Data to Assess Innovation"

STEP conducted a workshop of economists, statisticians, industry

representatives, and policy analysts to consider how more systemtatic

exploitation of data on scientists, engineers and other professionals --

their training, mobility, and career paths, functions in corporations,

relationships across sectors, and productivity -- could improve

understanding of the innovation process. The report describes major

sources of HR data, examples of their use in research, and steps that

might be taken to improve the data and link the information in different

data sets. A background paper by Paula Stephan, Georgia State

University economist and expert on the science and engineering

workforce is included in the volume.

Expected release date: May 31, 2002

Contact cschultz@nas.edu for copies of this publication.

"Patents in the Knowledge-Based Economy" (tentative title)

A collection of commissioned original research on patent administration,

licensing, and litigation. Includes papers on business method patenting

trends, access to research tools in biotechnology, and patent suits in

the semiconductor industry. Originally presented at an October 2001

conference in Washington, the papers have been revised and expanded.

Current versions, along with other project work product can be found at

http://www7.nationalacademies.org/step/STEP_Projects_Intellectual_Property_Rights.html

Expected release date for the volume: October, 2002

Contact cschultz@nas.edu with requests for this publication.

Final committee report with recommendations of the STEP Committee

on Intellectual Property Rights in the Knowledge-Based Economy.

The committee's charge is at

http://www7.nationalacademies.org/step/STEP_Projects_IPR_Phase_II_Description.html

Expected release date for report: October, 2002

Contact cschultz@nas.edu for more information.

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FUTURE WORK (Intellectual Property Rights)

On May 10, the STEP Board is convening to discuss several follow-on

studies to its current study of the patent system. Possible topics include

but are not limited to:

1) Implementation of Bayh-Dole Act

How certain features of the Bayh-Dole Act -- retention of march-in and

government-use rights by the government, invention reporting requirements,

the unavailability of trade secret protection for inventions, and terms for the

acquisition of related technical data -- are affecting R&D contracting by DOD

and other agencies.

2) Agricultural Patents

The role of IP in the changing structure of the agricultural biotechnology

industry

and the conduct of public and private research.

3) IP-infringing products in domestic commerce and international trade

The extent of counterfeiting and piracy and effective countermeasures. The

subject of a congressional request to the Academy in the FY 2002 Commerce

Department appropriations bill.

Comments encouraged: cschultz@nas.edu

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INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

The Christine Mirzayan Internship Program of the National Academies--consisting

of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute

of

Medicine, and National Research Council--is designed to engage graduate and

postdoctoral students in science and technology policy and to familiarize them

with

the interactions among science, technology, and government. As a result,

students--in

the fields of science, engineering, medicine, veterinary medicine, business, and

law--develop essential skills different from those attained in academia, which

will

help them make the transition from being a graduate student to a professional.

The program is introducing a new fall 2002 session--expanding beyond its

current

summer and winter sessions. The fall 2002 program will take place from

September 9

until November 27, 2002.

To apply, candidates should submit an application and request their mentor fill

out

a reference form. Both are available on the Web at

http://national-academies.org/internship.

The deadline for receipt of materials is June 1. Additional details about the

program and

how to join their mailing list are also available on the Web site.

Questions should be directed to the internship mailbox at: internship@nas.edu.

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