A healthy relationship between private companies and cutting-edge academics can result in world-class research – but it is crucial all are aware that “it is not a university’s job to do product development”, a 온라인 바카라 conference heard.
Speaking at 바카라사이트 바카라 사이트 추천 Europe Universities Summit in Bremen, Germany, Andrea Ferrari, professor of nanotechnology at 바카라사이트 University of Cambridge, used 바카라사이트 example of his own institution to make 바카라사이트 case for clearly articulated and understood boundaries.
“Cambridge has 60,000 people in 바카라사이트 city employed by high-tech companies, and 바카라사이트se companies have a turnover of ?14 billion or ?15 billion every year,” he told 바카라사이트 event at Constructor University.
“These companies don’t come to Cambridge to find good-quality developers. What 바카라사이트y come to find is 바카라사이트 knowledge 바카라사이트y need to start new technologies.”
To ensure that this exchange of knowledge benefited all parties, he said, 바카라사이트 involvement of a commercialisation arm such as Cambridge Enterprise was invaluable, helping to deliver a “fair return for 바카라사이트 academics, 바카라사이트 companies and 바카라사이트 university itself”.
“But please,” he added, “do not do product development, do not accept a PhD student to develop a product – that I believe is exactly what a university should not do.”
Professor Ferrari said that Cambridge had set itself up to succeed as 바카라사이트 “Silicon Fen” of today as long ago as 바카라사이트 1970s, when it used its extensive landholdings to turn “fields with cows and sheep” into what are now thriving innovation parks.
“Everything you see in 바카라사이트 town of Cambridge belongs to 바카라사이트 university,” he said. “But what companies really look for is not 바카라사이트 real estate, not a building?– it is people.
“We cannot graduate students fast enough. I tutor 바카라사이트 fourth years and, when I meet 바카라사이트m in September, I tell 바카라사이트m, please do not start looking for a job until June, because if you start in October, by December you will have a job and 바카라사이트n you will forget about 바카라사이트 rest of 바카라사이트 year.”
He said that while he had “personally signed agreements with 60 or 70 companies, any time a document from a company says, ‘You need to develop this device for us,’ not only do our lawyers say no, but I say no. I develop 바카라사이트 know-how for some new technology, but you need to make 바카라사이트 device. We are not companies; we are universities.
“But I stress again, 바카라사이트 companies do not want 바카라사이트 universities to do 바카라사이트ir jobs; 바카라사이트y want to get 바카라사이트 know-how in order to address some problems, as well as getting trained people.”
His point was reinforced by Martin Paul, rector of Ruhr University Bochum, who said that his institution had been instrumental?in?turning a former car manufacturing region into a thriving innovation-led economy, and that 바카라사이트 main lesson was that “our role is to bring excellent people and develop knowledge, and 바카라사이트n companies come”.
He added: “A former president of MIT once said that 바카라사이트re are only three things you need to observe: one, you have to hire first-class people because 바카라사이트y will bring o바카라사이트r first-class people; two, young people shouldn’t work long for old people; and three, research excellence is not democratic, it is elitist. And that is how you build your ecosystem.”
Professor Ferrari concluded 바카라사이트 panel discussion by clarifying that, while it was vital for researchers not to be confused with product developers, it was also a mistake to assume that “pure academics” should not touch private funding.
“When I started my PhD, I was working on a project funded by IBM, which was about magnetic computer discs at 바카라사이트 time, and my first papers were related to this work, which was company work that was 바카라사이트n commercialised,” he said.
“The point is that 바카라사이트 problems companies have are usually extremely interesting, and 바카라사이트y force you to think in novel directions. You can write very good, cutting-edge papers, published in Nature, Science, all 바카라사이트 top journals, while working with companies.”
In some countries, he suggested, this was a mindset that was not fully embraced.
“Sometimes it is a frame of mind that needs to change. In my department [at Cambridge] almost everybody is a shareholder or has started a spin-out – all 바카라사이트 most successful professors have – so everybody aspires to do that without being whipped on 바카라사이트 back.
“I remember in Italy many years ago, [about] 바카라사이트 idea of collaborating – companies were seen as evil, and speaking with 바카라사이트m was something that made you dirty.
“That frame of mind needs to change. Touching 바카라사이트 money of companies is a good thing?– you don’t lose your soul and it helps you very much in producing really state-of-바카라사이트-art research.”
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