[BinasiDombrs]

US 'no longer technology king'

The US has lost its position as the world's primary engine of technology innovation, according to a report by the World Economic Forum.

The US is now ranked seventh in the body's league table measuring the impact of technology on the development of nations.

A deterioration of the political and regulatory environment in the US prompted the fall, the report said.

The top spot went for the first time to Denmark, followed by Sweden.

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[RotsLoado]

I think specifically that those who weild the dollar that pays for research are only interested in technology that will result in a fast dollar & those technologies that may take a longer time to develop are getting pushed to the side.

[GrileVege]

US 'no longer technology king'

The US has lost its position as the world's primary engine of technology innovation, according to a report by the World Economic Forum.

The US is now ranked seventh in the body's league table measuring the impact of technology on the development of nations.

A deterioration of the political and regulatory environment in the US prompted the fall, the report said.

The top spot went for the first time to Denmark, followed by Sweden.

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and where does the US of A stand in auto design and manufacturering?

speaking of manufacturing .... where does the US of A stand in any type of manufacturing?

how about education .....

when was the last time you saw a US of A born, educated and trained physician or surgeon?

[NanoKakadze]

At the risk of being accused of needless cheerleading, this article is something less than clear regarding exactly what the criteria were for this assessment. The World Economic Forum has in recent years served primarily as a platform for celebrities, like U2's Bono, to mouth off, so I'm not familiar with the philosophies behind actual "World Economic Forum" economics. But world economic bodies in general tend to measure success based on the level of government involvement in business, so I'm not quite convinced that this report's definition of "innovation" is really anything the US should be modeling. At any rate, considering that the combined economies of the other nine countries in the top ten on this list are hugely dwarfed by ours, and that the economy of the state of California would probably also dwarf all of them combined if you excluded the UK, I'm not at all sure the significance of the US being number 7 on this list.

According to Wikipedia, the "Networked Readiness Index" "focuses on the propensity of countries to exploit the opportunities offered by information and communications technology." A little nebulous to start worrying about the fall of America.

[JAMES PIETERSE]

Innovation is the use by people of an invention invented by somebody. Question is: Can you have innovation without inventions?

[fedelwfget]

I'm going to side with MV on this one.

The headline is a slam on the USA, but the article has nothing to do with technology and innovation, it has to do with the implementation and use of technological innovations throughout the country in question.

The quote in the article explaining why Denmark is number 1 says it is because of liberalization of the telecommunications and e-government initiatives

So you take a relatively small and flat country, dot the countryside with cell towers and run fiber optics in an area roughly the size and character of the Seattle-Tacoma area, give Internet and cell access to all citizens, and get all those government workers hopped up on providing Internet e-government services and you shoot to the top of some technology innovation list? Which in turn allows some BBC reporter to make some snide comment about the USA not being the "technology king"?

Truly this list is bunk. Most of the countries on the top of the list can mandate the implementation of technology in government and for it's citizens by fiat and pay for it with high taxes. The adoption of innovative technologies in the USA is more organic and that makes it even more innovative and imaginative than the countries on this list.

These countries have fixed themselves at a point on the leading edge of today's technology, when the technology is invented that lays waste to the current comes along, who will have an easier time implementing it?

[michael247]

How can a country of pro-status- quo-anti-invention people expect to be #1 in science and technology. Now they know. They are no longer # 1 Ha Ha Ha!!!

[JeremyIV]

I'm going to side with MV on this one.

Which is, of course, the natural default position of all decent and reasonable people.

[boanuatiguali]

Forum geniuses MentalVengeance and ospurt are once again, as always, right on target. This is apples and oranges. When you see something like this, realize that what is happening is a concerted effort to have you part with a little more of your money so that some group of government employees can play with your money and secure their jobs.

[dupratac]

%%% EXPERIMENTAL %%%
Bob

INVENTION PHASE:
Eurasian experimental came out with an invention while he was talking to you, Bob, publicly here. Eurasian proposed that sidewalks be paved not with concrete but with asphalt. The edges or some of the edges of the asphalt sidewalk can be concrete or some other material or just asphalt.

INNOVATION PHASE:
Now Bob, if Americans or America is really #1 in innovation, HOW MANY MONTHS, YEARS, DECADES, SCORES, CENTURIES WILL IT TAKE FOR AMERICANS AND AMERICAN CITY COUNCILMEN TO FINALLY INNOVATE AND PUT THIS EURASIAN EXPERIMENTAL INVENTION INTO THEIR SIDEWALKS?

[PefeFoesk]

%%% EXPERIMENTAL %%%
Bob

INVENTION PHASE:
Eurasian experimental came out with an invention while he was talking to you, Bob, publicly here. Eurasian proposed that sidewalks be paved not with concrete but with asphalt. The edges or some of the edges of the asphalt sidewalk can be concrete or some other material or just asphalt.

INNOVATION PHASE:
Now Bob, if Americans or America is really #1 in innovation, HOW MANY MONTHS, YEARS, DECADES, SCORES, CENTURIES WILL IT TAKE FOR AMERICANS AND AMERICAN CITY COUNCILMEN TO FINALLY INNOVATE AND PUT THIS EURASIAN EXPERIMENTAL INVENTION INTO THEIR SIDEWALKS?

Some of the sidewalks at Windlands park are paved with asphalt, and some of these have concrete curbs, and these were paved in the eighties.

[twinaircant]

%@$*%% PROPOSAL %#$!&%%

To Eurasian, Congressman Mike Conaway, Mayor McCheese, bob:

MentalVengeance PROPOSAL would pave all sidewalks not with concrete or asphalt but with STRYOFORM PACKING PEANUTS. First MentalVengeance PROPOSAL would be very inexpensive to achieve because a law would pass requiring all citizens to donate all little PACKING PEANUTS received in boxes from the MAIL and bought at STORES to be used to pave sidewalks. So building materials for these pavings would COST VERY LITTLE!!! MentalVengeance PROPOSAL second would lead to great safety as FOME PACKING PEANUTS are much, much softer than concrete or asphalt A FACT KNOWN TO SCIENTISTS. Walkers who trip and fall would be saved from hurt by MentalVengeance PROPOSAL STYOFORM PACKING PEANUTS used to pave sidewalks instead of concrete and asphalt!!!! Also, mothers with babies would not have to worry any more over losing babies to death becuse dropped on sidewalks! Little babies would be cuddled if dropped by safe, soft MentalVengeance PROPOSAL STYRFOOM PACKING PEANUTS and not be hurt and they also might BOUNCE RIGHT BACK UP INTO MOTHER'S ARMS!!!

bob, MIKE CONAWAY, why do you continue to let the little babies die on hard concrete or asphalt when MentalVengeance PROPOSAL STROFORM PACKING PEANUTS paving sidewalks would save little baby lives?????

[glazgoR@]

%@$*%% PROPOSAL %#$!&%%

To Eurasian, Congressman Mike Conaway, Mayor McCheese, bob:

MentalVengeance PROPOSAL would pave all sidewalks not with concrete or asphalt but with STRYOFORM PACKING PEANUTS. First MentalVengeance PROPOSAL would be very inexpensive to achieve because a law would pass requiring all citizens to donate all little PACKING PEANUTS received in boxes from the MAIL and bought at STORES to be used to pave sidewalks. So building materials for these pavings would COST VERY LITTLE!!! MentalVengeance PROPOSAL second would lead to great safety as FOME PACKING PEANUTS are much, much softer than concrete or asphalt A FACT KNOWN TO SCIENTISTS. Walkers who trip and fall would be saved from hurt by MentalVengeance PROPOSAL STYOFORM PACKING PEANUTS used to pave sidewalks instead of concrete and asphalt!!!! Also, mothers with babies would not have to worry any more over losing babies to death becuse dropped on sidewalks! Little babies would be cuddled if dropped by safe, soft MentalVengeance PROPOSAL STYRFOOM PACKING PEANUTS and not be hurt and they also might BOUNCE RIGHT BACK UP INTO MOTHER'S ARMS!!!

bob, MIKE CONAWAY, why do you continue to let the little babies die on hard concrete or asphalt when MentalVengeance PROPOSAL STROFORM PACKING PEANUTS paving sidewalks would save little baby lives?????

But how would your %@$*%% PROPOSAL %#$!&%% prevent said packing peanuts from blowing out in our West Texas winds?

[Quick$bux]

But how would your %@$*%% PROPOSAL %#$!&%% prevent said packing peanuts from blowing out in our West Texas winds?

%%% EXPERIMENTAL %%%
Ponderous

Same way as your hard earned money paid to patent lawyers at 300 dollars an hour and to US patent Office fees, thanks to Congressman Conaway and his colleages in Congress -- can end up blowing in the wind just like Mental Vengeance's packing peanuts.

That's why, to counter these negatives such as these possible negatives being pointed by Bob, IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT WHEN A PERSON CLEARLY INVENTS SOMETHING NEW, USEFUL, NON-OBVIOUS, AND THE GOVERNMENT USES IT, GOVERNMENT SHOULD JUSTLY COMPENSATE BECAUSE NOT EVERYTHING THAT A PERSON WILL INVENT IN HIS LIFE IS GOING TO BE NEW. SO IN THOSE INVENTIONS THAT HAPPEN TO BE NEW AND GOVERNMENT USES, --IF GOVERNMENT COMPENSATES, THAT WILL HELP PAY THE LOSSES THAT AN INVENTOR LOST IN OTHER INVENTIONS WHERE HE WAS NOT LUCKY --- LOSSES SUCH US THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS PAID TO $300 DOLLAR AN HOUR PATENT ATTORNEYS, LOSSES ON FEES PAID TO THE US PATENT OFFICE, LITIGATIONS, MATERIALS, LABOR, LOST OF TIME DOING THE INVENTIONS INSTEAD OF SOMETHING ELSE, ETCETERA!!! THAT'S WHY IT WILL BE VERY HELPFUL, IF CONGRESS AND THE US PATENT OFFICE STOP ACTING LIKE SHARKS/LEECHES/ OR CROCODILES AND SIMPLY ALLOW INVENTORS TO SUBMIT INVENTIONS AND RECEIVE PATENTS FREE FROM THE US PATENT OFFICE BECAUSE STATISTICALLY, IN TRUTH, INVENTORS DO NOT GET RICH. THEY JUST BECOME YOUR SLAVES. HOW CAN YOU EXPECT YOUR COUNTRY AND PEOPLE TO INNOVATE OR USE NEW INVENTIONS OF MACHINES, METHODS, PROCESSES IF YOU ARE KILLING AND DISCOURAGING AND MAKING VERY EXPENSIVE AND HARD TO PATENT NEW INVENTIONS THAT YOU NEED TO COPY, DUPLICATE, USE IN YOUR INNOVATIONS OF THE COUNTRY??????

[SmuffNuSMaxqh]

But how would your %@$*%% PROPOSAL %#$!&%% prevent said packing peanuts from blowing out in our West Texas winds?

%@$*%% PROPOSAL %#$!&%%

To Ponderous:

Ponderous thinks he/she has found a flaw that destroys MentalVengeance PROPPOSAL but the answer to that problem is really very simple: "ELMER'S GLUE" will stop it!!!!

[kaiayout]

&&&&&proposal&&&&&
Wm suggests that the packing peanuts be secured by the asphalt which is no longer being used to build sidewalks. Wm now expects to be compensated for his idea, but is willing to share said compensation with MV and with Eurasian. Fair is fair.