IPTS thinks about EMU and science
In its latest report, the Institute for Prospective Technological Studies tackles the issues raised by the advent of European Monetary Union (EMU) in terms of the implications for science. Speculating on how science and technology will be effected by EMU, the report suggests that there will be fewer obstacles to trans-border collaboration, which will benefit small companies. Greater harmonisation resulting from EMU is also likely to create more pressure for the standardisation of educational qualifications, the report also suggests. This might promote the mobility of researchers. It also points out how the globalisation of science and the importance of both the US and EU Member States in science implies that cooperation is inevitable and that competition will continue at a significant level. Also included in this IPTS report are informative items on: - The impact of wind energy policy on innovation; - The Consumer Product Safety Database: products, risk and expertise; - Patent protection for biotechnological inventions: incentive for European biotech innovators; - Transatlantic investments and human capital formation: the case of biotech firms.