For an advanced economy such as the United States, innovation is a wellspring of economic growth and a powerful tool for addressing our most pressing challenges as a nation – such as enabling more Americans to lead longer, healthier lives, and accelerating the transition to a low-carbon economy. In fact, from 1948-2012 over half of the total increase in U.S. productivity growth, a key driver of economic growth, came from innovation and technological change.
Aiming to reduce educational barriers, Google partnered with Gallup to research interest in and exposure to computer science in U.S. schools. Their report, Searching for Computer Science: Access and Barriers in U.S. K-12 Education, explores computer science courses in U.S. schools. This information enables policymakers, employers, and educators to adequately instruct students in computer science.
NASA aims to extend human presence deeper into the solar system and to the surface of Mars. In doing so, our human and robotic explorers will expand knowledge and discover the potential for life beyond Earth. Our goal is not bound by a single destination. We seek the capacity for people to work, learn, operate, and sustainably live safely beyond Earth for extended periods of time. We will achieve this goal with a growing number of international and commercial partners, realizing economic benefits and strengthening America’s leadership on Earth and in space.
The Global Innovation Index (GII) 2015 covers 141 economies around the world and uses 79 indicators across a range of themes. Thus GII 2015 presents us with a rich dataset to identify and analyse global innovation trends. The theme for this year’s GII is ‘Effective Innovation Policies for Development’. Taking advantage of the wealth of information produced by the GII analysis in its past editions, the outcome of various innovation policies can be reviewed to support their claims to effectiveness and to determine the impact that an economy’s degree of development has on their efficacy.
Afterschool programs have emerged as a dynamic and vibrant setting for innovative STEM education and there has been rapid growth in this field over the past few years. Although many of the statewide afterschool networks are collecting data from afterschool providers in their states on afterschool STEM programming, this report offers the first national look at availability and access to afterschool STEM programs and parental attitudes and expectations for such programs.
The report is based on a March 2015 workshop supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and sponsored by the Semiconductor Industry Association and Semiconductor Research Corporation: Rebooting the IT Revolution. The report details research needed to spur major advances in the science and technology of information infrastructure and to unleash broad opportunities for innovation.
Reflecting the Nation’s determination to end the scourge of Alzheimer’s, NIH for the first time has prepared this professional judgment budget proposal for FY 2017. This budget proposal estimates the additional funding needed to reach the ultimate research goal of the National Plan—to effectively treat and prevent Alzheimer’s and related dementias by 2025—and will be updated annually. It focuses on funding for investigator-initiated research grants and NIH initiatives that would spur research beyond NIH’s base budget allocated in the previous year.
In 2009 the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) and the Breakthrough Institute collaborated to complete the report, Rising Tigers, Sleeping Giant, which benchmarked the clean energy competitiveness of China, Japan, South Korea, and the United States in order to emphasize the importance of innovation as a driver of economic competitiveness.
This report presents findings from the fourth annual survey of online college students, conducted jointly by The Learning House, Inc. and Aslanian Market Research. Every year, these organizations conduct a survey of students who are considering a fully online program, those who are currently enrolled in a fully online college program, and those who have graduated within the past year. It is our goal to profile who is studying online, and why, as well as provide institutions with key takeaways to help them better serve this unique population.
"Some 250 miles overhead, astronauts are conducting critical research not possible on Earth, which makes tremendous advances in our lives while helping to expand human presence beyond low Earth orbit," said William Gerstenmaier, NASA associate administrator for Human Exploration and Operations.
