Category Archives: Research Examples

Tracking the emergence of synthetic biology (full-text)

Synthetic biology is an emerging domain that combines biological and engineering concepts and which has seen rapid growth in research, innovation, and policy interest in recent years. This paper contributes to efforts to delineate this emerging domain by presenting a newly constructed bibliometric definition of synthetic biology. Our approach is dimensioned from a core set of papers in synthetic biology, using procedures to obtain benchmark synthetic biology publication records, extract keywords from these benchmark records, and refine the keywords, supplemented with articles published in dedicated synthetic biology journals. We compare our search strategy with other recent bibliometric approaches to define synthetic biology, using a common source of publication data for the period from 2000 to 2015. The paper details the rapid growth and international spread of research in synthetic biology in recent years, demonstrates that diverse research disciplines are contributing to the multidisciplinary development of synthetic biology research, and visualizes this by profiling synthetic biology research on the map of science. We further show the roles of a relatively concentrated set of research sponsors in funding the growth and trajectories of synthetic biology. In addition to discussing these analyses, the paper notes limitations and suggests lines for further work.

Full-text available at https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11192-017-2452-5

Author(s): Philip Shapira, Seokbeom Kwon, Jan Youtie
Organization(s): University of Manchester, Georgia Institute of Technology
Source: Scientometrics
Year: 2017

An indicator of technical emergence

Developing useful intelligence on scientific and technological emergence challenges those who would manage R&D portfolios, assess research programs, or manage innovation. Recently, the U.S. Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity Foresight and Understanding from Scientific Exposition Program has explored means to detect emergence via text analyses. We have been involved in positing conceptual bases for emergence, framing candidate indicators, and devising implementations. We now present a software script to generate a family of Emergence Indicators for a topic of interest. This paper offers some background, then discusses the development of this script through iterative rounds of testing, and then offers example findings. Results point to promising and actionable intelligence for R&D decision-makers.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11192-018-2654-5?wt_mc=Internal.Event.1.SEM.ArticleAuthorOnlineFirst

Author(s): Stephen F. Carley, Nils C. Newman, Alan L. Porter, Jon G. Garner
Organizations(s): Search Technology
Source:
Scientometrics
Year: 2018

The role of future-oriented technology analysis in e-Government: a systematic review

During the last three decades, many governments have incorporated Information and Communication Technologies in their internal and external processes, a phenomenon widely known as electronic government (e-Government). Rationales for e-Government include increasing public services’ efficiency, speed, transparency, accountability, etc., and enhancing relations between government and stakeholders (citizens, businesses, third sector organisations). e-Government programmes are large-scale innovation projects; and Future-oriented Technology Analysis, FTA, is often used in the design of public policies in science, technology and innovation. FTA tools allow for systematic appraisal of potential challenges, opportunities, and threats, and thus informing the design of long-term strategies. The aim of this paper is to examine what a systematic literature review tells us about the application of FTA to support e-Government planning, implementation or evaluation. The review confirms that FTA played a role in supporting some e-Government initiatives, especially in their planning stages. However, few relevant exercises of this sort are reported in the English language, though the e-Government literature itself in that language- is voluminous. Previous researchers often attribute weaknesses in e-Government efforts to deficiencies in vision and strategic planning. Hopefully, this review can encourage both FTA and e-Government practitioners to apply FTA to e-Government development. This suggests that there is both opportunity and need to take greater advantage of FTA in this field.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40309-017-0131-7

Author(s): J. M. Sánchez-Torres
Organization(s): Universidad Nacional de Colombia
Source: European Journal of Futures Research
Year: 2017

Knowledge Management Trends in Biotechnology in Brazil

This chapter presents a study on knowledge management and innovation in biotechnology area through analysis of scientific and technological advances of biotechnology trends in Brazil, providing an overview of the science profile as well as regional development and its relation to issues on topics based on the analysis of scientific publications for the last 20 years. Given these promising prospects, the monitoring and searching of scientific advances and trends in this area of knowledge have become essential for searching opportunities in research and development and also for potential innovations and business opportunities, both in the developed countries as well as in countries of emerging economies such as Brazil. The research was realized using database Web of Science with 60 terms selected in Biotechnology area and 73,125 documents have been organized. Scientific indicators were produced using data/text mining tools. A greater number of scientific publications were found in areas such as biochemistry and molecular biology; genetics and heredity showing a greater frequency in these terms: vaccine, PCR, and genome. Results pointed out the US as the main foreign partner-country of scientific publications followed by the UK, France, and Germany. It was possible to verify cooperation network with others Latin American countries.

https://www.intechopen.com/books/knowledge-management-strategies-and-applications/knowledge-management-trends-in-biotechnology-in-brazil

Author(s): Maria de Fátima Ebole Santana
Organization; Federal University of Rio de Janeiro
Source:  Knowledge Management Strategies and Applications
Year: 2017

A technology delivery system for characterizing the supply side of technology emergence: Illustrated for Big Data & Analytics

While there is a general recognition that breakthrough innovation is non-linear and requires an alignment between producers (supply) and users (demand), there is still a need for strategic intelligence about the emerging supply chains of new technological innovations. This technology delivery system (TDS) is an updated form of the TDS model and provides a promising chain-link approach to the supply side of innovation. Building on early research into supply-side TDS studies, we present a systematic approach to building a TDS model that includes four phases: (1) identifying the macroeconomic and policy environment, including market competition, financial investment, and industrial policy; (2) specifying the key public and private institutions; (3) addressing the core technical complements and their owners, then tracing their interactions through information linkages and technology transfers; and (4) depicting the market prospects and evaluating the potential profound influences on technological change and social developments. Our TDS methodology is illustrated using the field of Big Data & Analytics (“BDA”).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2017.09.012


Author(s):
Ying Huang, Alan L.Porter, Scott W. Cunningham, Douglas K.R. Robinson, Jianhua Liu, Donghua Zhu
Organization(s): Beijing Institute of Technology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Delft University of Technology, Université de Paris-Est, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Source:  Technological Forecasting and Social Change
Year: 2018

Visualization of Disciplinary Profiles: Enhanced Science Overlay Maps

Purpose
The purpose of this study is to modernize previous work on science overlay maps by updating the underlying citation matrix, generating new clusters of scientific disciplines, enhancing visualizations, and providing more accessible means for analysts to generate their own maps.

Design/methodology/approach
We use the combined set of 2015 Journal Citation Reports for the Science Citation Index (n of journals = 8,778) and the Social Sciences Citation Index (n = 3,212) for a total of 11,365 journals. The set of Web of Science Categories in the Science Citation Index and the Social Sciences Citation Index increased from 224 in 2010 to 227 in 2015. Using dedicated software, a matrix of 227 × 227 cells is generated on the basis of whole-number citation counting. We normalize this matrix using the cosine function. We first develop the citing-side, cosine-normalized map using 2015 data and VOSviewer visualization with default parameter values. A routine for making overlays on the basis of the map (“wc15.exe”) is available at http://www.leydesdorff.net/wc15/index.htm.

Findings
Findings appear in the form of visuals throughout the manuscript. In Figures 1–9 we provide basemaps of science and science overlay maps for a number of companies, universities, and technologies.

Research limitations
As Web of Science Categories change and/or are updated so is the need to update the routine we provide. Also, to apply the routine we provide users need access to the Web of Science.

Practical implications
Visualization of science overlay maps is now more accurate and true to the 2015 Journal Citation Reports than was the case with the previous version of the routine advanced in our paper.

Originality/value
The routine we advance allows users to visualize science overlay maps in VOSviewer using data from more recent Journal Citation Reports.

https://www.degruyter.com/view/j/jdis.2017.2.issue-3/jdis-2017-0015/jdis-2017-0015.xml

Author(s): Stephen Carley, Alan L. Porter, Ismael Rafols, Loet Leydesdorff
Organization(s): Georgia Institute of Technology , Universitat Politècnica de València, University of Amsterdam
Source: Journal of Data and Information Science
Year: 2017

Exploring the Asian innovation networks (AINs) characteristics

In this study, we attempted to fill an important gap that literature has yet to investigate: the characteristics of the Asian Innovation Networks. This paper depicts the characteristics of the Asian Innovation Networks for four main emerging technologies: 3D printing technology, big data technology, integrated circuit technology and carbon nanotubes and graphene technology. The networks’ characteristics are presented by calculating the different network centrality indicators. In order to show these characteristics intuitively, the visualization method was also used. Both methods are based on an analysis of patents and patent data are collected from the European Patent Office (EPO) database. The results indicate that Japan ranks first in betweenness centrality, while China has the highest degree centrality among nearly all the emerging technologies. In the carbon nanotubes and graphene technology innovation network, India has tight interactions with South Korea, and Iran is closely related to Malaysia. Thailand plays an important role in the big data technology innovation network. The centrality trend for Asian countries in innovation networks has gradually decreased. This could be useful for developing Asian countries to make international scientific and technological collaboration strategies and policies in the future.

http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0266666917724583

Author(s): Xu Bai, Yun Liu
Organization(s): Beijing Institute of Technology
Source: Information Development
Year: 2017

A critical assessment of INPA’s scientific cooperation based on publications from 2004 to 2014

In the 1990s, scientific cooperation at the National Institute for Amazonian Research (Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia – INPA), one of the oldest research institutions in Amazonia with the highest regional international cooperation, was dominated by research conducted by INPA’s foreign partners. In this article, the evolution of this situation is evaluated, with the hypothesis that, as the internal and the external environments have changed over the past decade, this should be reflected in more symmetrical research cooperation. The analysis was based on a 2004 to 2014 Web of Science search of scientific production at INPA, from which 786 papers were recovered. The results indicated an increase in scientific production but without a corresponding increase in symmetrical cooperation. The level of symmetry varied according to the type of cooperation; it increased when Brazilian institutions were exclusively involved, although these papers tended to be published in journals with a low impact factor. However, the scientific relationships remained relatively asymmetrical when only foreign institutions were involved, although these papers were published in journals with high impact factors. Network analyses indicated that most international scientific cooperation was concentrated in just two INPA research departments: Biodiversity and Environmental Dynamics. In contrast, INPA’s other two research departments, Technology & Innovation and Society, Environment & Health were peripheral, fragmented and benefited little from international cooperation.

http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S0044-59672017000300247&script=sci_arttext

Author(s): Luiza Magalli Pinto HENRIQUES, Mark UNGAR, George Henrique REBELO
Organization: Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia
Source: Acta Amazonica
Year: 2017

Knowledge Intensive Business Services (KIBS): bibliometric analysis and their different behaviors in the scientific literature Topic 16 – Innovation and services

This study analyzes scientific articles present in the databases Web of Science, Scopus and SciELO. Two hundred and thirty-five studies were examined, by using variations in bibliometrics. The main objective of this article is to analyze the set of studies that address the different behaviors Knowledge Intensive Business Services in the scientific literature. The results show a concentration of publications in the years 2005, 2010, 2012 and 2013, including the theme’s interdisciplinary perspective. Most studies are quantitative and were published in the last five years. The first study was presented at an international conference in the year 2000. The most quoted authors were Hertog, Miles, and Muller. The set of publications examined presents two groups of behaviors: roles and attributes of Knowledge Intensive Business Services. This research aimed to analyze Knowledge Intensive Business Services over time and contribute to its expansion in Brazil.

https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/62d9/f0e781b2fe888f79b4fad33fbb9bddc11ef7.pdf

Author(s): Ronnie J-Figueiredo, Júlio Vieira Neto, Osvaldo Luiz Goncalves Quelhas, João José de Matos Ferreira
Organization: Universidade Federal Fluminense
Source: RAI Revista de Administração e Inovação
Year: 2017

Technological surveillance of aromatic species: from research to the consolidation of the productive chain in Colombia.

The sector of aromatic, medicinal and seasoning herbs brings together a wide variety of native and introduced species with agroindustrial potential. In order to contribute to the technological assessment of the sector in Colombia and provide elements of strategic planning towards higher levels of development and internationalization. We prioritized certain aromatic species in this article and a technological surveillance was made during 2004-2014. A searching scientific articles and patents was made in eight national, iberoamerican and worldwide databases according prioritized issues. Data processing was performed using Microsoft Excel, EndNote, Vantage Point (2014) Thomson Data Analyzer programs. At National level, the planting material and breeding has been the main researched topic; whereas in iberoamerica and the world was biocidal effect. The leading countries in research on the monitored aromatic plants were Brazil, Colombia and Cuba. Internationally, the scientific leaders according to PubMed and Scopus were India, USA, Brazil and Colombia. The global trend in the field of patents has increased, whose main focus is: “Current needs of life”. This technological surveillance gives an overview of developments and trends in research and technological development in different subject areas within the aromatic plants, besides identifying possible allied research and the scientific production trends over time.

DOI: 10.21930/rcta.vol18_num2_art:636

Author(s): Tofiño-Rivera, A. P.; Ortega-Cuadros, M.; Melo-Ríos, A.; Mier-Giraldo, H. J.
Organization: Universidad Nacional de Colombia
Source: Revista Corpoica – Ciencia y Tecnologia Agropecuarias
Year: 2017