Ninth Level Ireland

“Ireland wants to be known as the ‘innovation island’. It has done an excellent job convincing technology-based multinationals to locate subsidiaries there and presents an advanced educational system as a key competitive advantage. Unfortunately there is a growing gap between rhetoric and reality …” (more)

[HT: Brian Lucey]
[Thomas Begley, Financial Times, 7 November]

“With the opening of UCD’s brand new science centre next month, it’s fair to say that real progress has been made in the decade long pursuit of a ‘knowledge economy’ in Ireland …” (more)

[John Holden, Politico, 26 August]

“We all know the kinds of disruption we don’t want: riots, looting, corruption – negative energy that causes damage to society. There is no condoning such ideas and actions. But in the right context, disruptive ideas can have a positive side – innovation that challenges the status quo and creates new ways of doing things, often leading to new intellectual property and, ultimately, to new jobs …” (more)

[Patrick Prendergast, Irish Times, 26 August]

“Welcome to Research Europe’s Framework and the Innovation Union live blog from the International Auditorium in Brussels. Our first session today is Policy Context – The Innovation Union …” (more)

[Elizabeth Gibney, Research Blogs, 1 June]

“I’ve just finished reading Reinventing Higher Education: The Promise of Innovation, a new study of the state of the university sector in the United States. With some distinguished exceptions, it suggests, that ‘state’ is a stasis brought about by the endemic resistance to change in universities …” (more)

[Steven Schwartz, Vice-Chancellor's Blog, 31 May]

“Here’s an interesting initiative: Paypal co-founder Peter Thiel is offering $100,000 each to 20 students willing to leave university for two years to start their own companies. And why do this, rather than offer the incentive to graduates? Because Mr Thiel believes that ‘ideas can develop in a start-up environment much faster than at a university’. Indeed he is report to want to ‘question the idea of higher education’ …” (more)

[Ferdinand von Prondzynski, University Blog, 28 May]

“Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton TD today announced five major initiatives aimed at commercialising Irish R&D; supporting innovation and high growth businesses. Announcements included a first centre in cloud computing to make Ireland a world leader in this high growth sector. The announcement appears like more funds for the failed ‘smart economy’ project before there is a serious assessment of the €2.5bn annual science budget …” (more)

[Michael Hennigan, Finfacts, 12 May]

“Some of the world’s most prominent thought leaders are coming together to take part in a discussion series called ‘Open Minds’, with the aim of supporting the development of Ireland as a global centre for science, technology and innovation. A joint initiative from law firm McCann FitzGerald and Science Gallery, Trinity College Dublin, it will tackle issues facing Irish businesses in the science, technology and innovation sectors …” (more)

[Sorcha Corcoran, Silicon Republic, 11 May]

“In March 2010 the Irish Government published the Report of the Innovation Task Force. It listed around a hundred recommendations that would serve, ‘to place innovation at the heart of the enterprise policy’. Subsequent to the publication an implementation group was formed that met every eight weeks or so through the summer and fall of 2010 and right up until December. The members of the group were able to hear from the various ministers at the time as to where they were and how they were progressing on each of the recommendations. However, since the general election was called in January this year the group has not met since …” (more)

[Tom Murphy, New Tech Post, 10 May]

“Clusters of innovative firms are an old phenomenon. In the UK during the first Industrial Revolution, for example, the cotton industry was heavily concentrated in Lancashire within the Oldham-Bolton-Manchester triangle. In more recent times, clusters of high-tech firms, prime among which is Silicon Valley in California, have gained fame and are routinely referred to as role models …” (more)

[Christian Helmers, University World News, 8 May]

“The use of narrow economic measures to evaluate all research spending makes no sense. While views differ differ on what exactly the Government should or should not do in the current economic crisis, all agree that growth is essential to returning Ireland to prosperity. But the Government faces a real challenge in determining how best to promote growth in the face of major fiscal constraints …” (more)

[Frances Ruane, Irish Times, 6 May]

“The creativity and innovation skills needed to foster economic growth feature less than the EU average in Irish schools programmes, an international study has found …” (more)

[Niall Murray, Irish Examiner, 20 April]

“‘The “clustering” model of scientific research, comprising an unprecedented degree of co-operation and collaboration between commercial and academic personnel, has been a winning formula here’, Minister for Research and Innovation, Seán Sherlock TD said today (Wednesday) April 6th, 2011. Minister Sherlock was addressing the Digital Enterprise Research Institute (DERI) Open Day at NUI Galway this morning …” (more)

[SFI, 6 April]

“Scientific endeavour should be intrinsic in innovation policy rather than ‘a staging post to higher GDP’. Innovation policy has been central to the avowed economic strategies of successive Irish governments, before and during the current crisis, and as a purported way out of it …” (more)

[Aidan Kane, Eolas magazine, 31 March]

“The major section dealing with science and innovation policy reads as follows (pp 9-10): ‘Innovation and Commercialisation: We will implement innovation and commercialisation policies as outlined below subject to cost benefit analysis …’” (more)

[Shane O'Mara, Irishscience, 7 March]

“Creative problem solving is one of those things that you can learn – but the ability to be practical is critical to any such exercise. If Ireland is to foster innovation and to help the economy, it needs to teach the skills of creative problem solving using design and also to encourage learning by doing …” (more)

[Damini Kumar, Irish Times, 25 February]

“What the inven­tion of com­plic­ated foods tells us about dis­cov­ery, innov­a­tion, and uni­ver­sity research funding …” (more)

[SimonDobson.org, 17 February]

“A group of innovation leaders called the outcome of a European Council discussion yesterday on innovation policy a good start – but urged continued pressure for reform …” (more)

[AlphaGalileo, 6 February]

“It’s sad. There is little or no debate about quality in third-level education. It’s all about access and free fees. For example, how many patents do we file? How many world-class scholars do we produce? Any Nobel laureates? (And no, neither Seamus Heaney nor Brian Friel are products of the Irish education system.) …” (more)

[Adrian Weckler, YourTech, 23 January]

“Ireland must continue to support research and innovation as key priorities for maintaining employment and growth. More co-operation between industry and the country’s universities is also needed, according to an end-of-year statement from the Advisory Council for Science, Technology and Innovation …” (more)

[Dick Ahlstrom, Irish Times, 18 January]