| Funding & Research Announcements |
DEPSCoR Announces Two Awards to Maine Researchers
The Department of Defense announced plans to award a total of $15.7 million in EPSCoR awards for FY2008. Included in this total are two awards to Maine researchers.
The project proposed by Dr. Roberto Lopez-Anido, University of Maine, Orono, "Fatigue Life Prediction of Sandwich Composite Joints for Navy Seaframes," was selected for award. This project, projected to total nearly $600,000 including match, uses a fracture-based failure criterion to analyze composite joints for Navy seaframes. In this project, this approach will be applied to a more complex type of joint than has been previously evaluated.
The second project, "Genotoxicity and Carcinogenicity of Particulate Depleted Uranium," proposed by Dr. John Pierce Wise, Sr., University of Southern Maine, Portland, seeks to understand the mechanisms of repair of depleted uranium-induced DNA strand breaks and how these mechanisms protect against carcinogenesis in human bronchial cells. This project, including match, will be in excess of $885,000.
SBIR Reauthorization
The House Small Business Committee has released a draft SBIR bill which contains a two-year reauthorization, bigger award sizes , clarification of issues about venture capital eligibility and the potential $10 million grant program for state/local outreach assistance. If reauthorization legislation is not passed by Sept 30, 2008, the SBIR program is sunset. The draft legislation doubles the award sizes for both Phase I and II, but doesn't change the 2.5 percent set aside requirement for SBIR, so this will translate into fewer, larger awards. The language also addresses the issues of whether venture backed small firms should be eligible for SBIR awards. The current interpretation being used by SBA is alleged to be negatively affecting companies in the biotech and medical device communities. For more information, see www.ssti.org/Digest/2008/031908.htm#SBIR. | |
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Policy, Research & Resources
Check for information on federal resources and research that will impact Maine and could impact your work in science and technology.
Cluster Report Released
Maine's Technology Sectors and Clusters: Status and Strategy will be released in mid-April. This long awaited update to the 2002 Assessing Maine's Technology Clusters was prepared for the Office of Innovation and the Maine Technology Institute by the Maine Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Southern Maine with Battelle Institute, Planning Decisions, and PolicyOne Research.
This new study allows us to build upon our intellectual assets as well as our more traditional place-based assets. The researchers ask us to think more about our assets as defined by clusters of knowledge and skills, not necessarily specific products or processes or industries. This approach also allows us to support the sixteen identified sustainable, emerging or potential clusters through investment in entrepreneurship, networks and people, the glue which keeps innovation connected to our regional economy.
Look for this report on our website, www.maineinnovation.com or MTI's, www.mainetetchnology.org, shortly.
Vision for University of Southern Maine
The University of Southern Maine Board of Visitors just released a report on the future of USM called A Southern Maine Imperative II. Its message is clear: USM must become one of the top-ranked public, regional comprehensive universities in the US in the quality, breadth and accessibility of its academic programs. The report says:
§ USM is vital to the southern Maine community
§ Four major changes in the regional context are challenging the university
§ Community leaders was USM to be the "fuel in the engine of economic and societal growth"
To read the complete report, see http://www.usm.maine.edu/bov/smi.html.
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Company and Institutional News
The Maine Institute for Human Genetics and Health announced that Colonel Craig David Shriver, MD, FACS, has joined the institute's Scientific Advisory Board. Dr. Shriver is chief of General Surgery at the Breast Center at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, DC. |
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| Maine Office of Innovation Newsletter |
Welcome to the April issue of Mainely Innovations. This is a monthly e-newsletter to capture information important to Maine's innovation community. We encourage you to contribute your news and highlights. Submit your info to catherine.s.renault@maine.gov.
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Notes from the
Director of Office of Innovation
This summer, we have a unique opportunity to present the Governor with input for the next biennial budget regarding the future of innovation-led economic development in Maine. Data from the Evaluation, Progress Report and forthcoming target cluster study all provide us with analysis to inform our recommendations. The Maine Innovation Economy Advisory Board (MIEAB) is required by statute to assist policy makers in developing strategies for advancing research and development, and to provide input to the Maine Economic Growth Council to develop specific annual budgetary recommendations to support the Science and Technology Action Plan vision and goals.
To this end, and to prepare for the next MIEAB meeting on May 1, 2008, you are invited to attend one of two stakeholders meetings to brainstorm ideas for policy initiatives and funding. Staff will collate the input from these two meetings, along with any written input that is received, and will present the ideas to the full MIEAB meeting in May. At the May meeting, MIEAB members will be asked to narrow down the policy recommendations, and staff will create full policy proposals for further consideration by MIEAB and the Economic Growth Council.
Stakeholder's Meetings to discuss future investments in R&D. Open to all. Please RSVP to claudette.coyne@maine.gov.
Thursday, April 10, 2008. 11am to 1 pm; Gulf of Maine Research Institute, 350 Commercial Street, Portland, ME 04101
Friday, April 18, 2008, 11 am to 1 pm; Affiliated Health Services, 931 Union Street, Bangor, ME 04402
Other Events of Note:
Maine Biological and Medical Sciences Symposium, April 25-26, 2008. www.mdibl.org.courses/mbmss08.shtml
Maine Marine Research Coalition April meeting, April 8, 2008, 1:00 pm, Cross Office Building, 3rd floor, West Conference Room. The guest speaker is George Hart, Chief Technical Officer of the Ocean Energy Institute in Rockland. For more information, contact Pete Jumars (jumars@maine.edu).
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Legislative Update
Supplemental Budget
The R&D community fared relatively well in the Supplemental Budget which was passed at the end of March. The Maine Technology Institute did receive modest cuts to the funds set aside for administration of the R&D Bond (Technology Asset Fund), and to the new Cluster Enhancement Fund for FY09. On the positive side, funds were set aside to pay for approximately 1/3 of the state's EPSCoR/IDeA Coalition dues.
Carried Forward from Last Session
■LD 833 An Act To Support the Maine Patent Program
Passed (again) by full legislature in Jan 2008. Placed on Appropriations Table.
■LD 1215 An Act To Attract New Capital for Innovative Businesses through Equity
Investment in Maine
LD 1215 was voted Ought Not To Pass and replaced by a new committee bill which was unanimously passed by BRED. This bill is in the revisors office, so new LD number is not known.
New
■LD 2078 Resolve, To Determine Methods
of Securing a Trained Laboratory Workforce for Maine
Letter sent to Vince Conti, John Fitzsimmons and Richard Pattenaude for non-legislative actions and solutions.
■LD 2159 (LR 3320) An Act to Advance the Maine Economy
Substantially amended in BRED.
For the text of any of these LDs, go to http://janus.state.me.us/legis/ | |
Each newsletter will present information relevant to Company News, Funding & Research Announcements, Policy, Research & Resources along with Legislative Updates. Please feel free to contribute news and information relevant to your work. Forward your information to catherine.s.renault@maine.gov.
Maine Office of Innovation |
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