At stake: billions of dollars in potential economic development

08:00 AM PST on Tuesday, March 22, 2005

By Terry Corbell

States such as North Carolina and Maryland apparently have more nanotechnology promise than Washington, Oregon, or Idaho, according to a recent report in a respected trade publication.

Despite major ongoing progress in the Northwest, the surprising nanotechnology rankings for Northwest states are: Washington, No. 20; Oregon, No. 28; and Idaho, No. 41.

The top 10 states ranked by Small Times magazine: 1. California. 2. Massachusetts. 3. New Mexico. 4. New York. 5. Michigan and Texas (tie). 7. Illinois. 8. Maryland. 9. North Carolina. 10. Ohio.

Small Times also lists Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, Florida and Wisconsin as “states to watch,” which makes the rankings of Idaho, Oregon and Washington even more disconcerting. Two years ago, Washington was named a state to watch.

The report also acknowledged such bragging rights probably give an economic edge to highly ranked states because it’s presumed that emerging nanotechnology firms will serve as catalysts for growth in such touted regions. A top ranking is a possible indicator of future creation of jobs, salaries, and tax revenue, which means potential multi-billion dollar economies are at stake.

Not only is extraordinary research being conducted in Idaho and Oregon, at first glance the report is astonishing because the University of Washington is the nation’s only institution of higher learning with a nanotechnology doctorate program. Actually, the UW program is one of only two in the whole world, the other being at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, according to Dr. François Baneyx, co-director of the Center for Nanotechnology (CNT) at the University of Washington.

At the UW, “center faculty now number 75 from 16 departments and four schools and colleges; 16 students have graduated with dual Ph.D.s in nanotech and 35 students are currently enrolled in the program,” Baneyx said, adding that the university offers 45 nanotechnology-related courses.

Nanotechnology isn’t well-defined but it involves the study of atoms and molecules at an extremely small, billionth meter scale and as I wrote in a column about two years ago, “It’s anticipated it will be decisive in ways we can’t even imagine.” It requires teamwork in multiple disciplines in science and technology and is the new economic and scientific frontier. Research will ultimately affect us in countless ways we can’t even imagine, from clothing to computers.

So, how did the Small Times arrive at its conclusions? Editor-in-chief Candace Stuart indicated the state-by-state rankings were the result of computing measurements of six specific factors: research, industry, venture capital, innovation, workforce and costs. “States get a score in each category,” she wrote. “The categories are then weighted and added for a final score.”

Fortunately, the jury is still out – the report offers good news for the Northwest – Washington and Oregon aren’t far behind the leaders. “Please keep in mind that the states are very competitive from about No. 10 down to Oregon's No. 28,” wrote Stuart in a gracious response to my follow-up questions. “Oregon scored only about 9 points below Ohio, which ranked 10.”

What are the Northwest’s strengths and weaknesses? “Washington and Oregon both show strength in the industry category, with Washington ranking 12 and Oregon 19, but they fall about in the middle of the pack for research,” she said. “I look at the research category as the source for the ideas that lead to innovation and companies.”

She offers more encouraging news: “I think the region already is working to beef up its research capabilities through ONAMI (Oregon Nanoscience and Microtechnologies Institute), and that could nudge them up in future rankings.”

But what does the UW view as its research challenge in order to move up in the rankings? “Getting additional center grants,” offered Dr. Baneyx. He indicates two UW proposals worth a total of $31.5 million are under consideration by the National Science Foundation.

Just like the Huskies’ success in reaching the Sweet 16 in the March Madness competition, it’s obvious that the UW nanotech leadership is focused and is taking decisive action. Dr. David Castner, the UW’s CNT director was not available and respectfully declined an interview request this week: “I am facing multiple grant proposal deadlines in the next few days.”

“UW faculty is also submitting a proposal for a Nanomedicine Center to NIH (National Institutes of Health) this month,” said Dr. Baneyx. “Getting even a single of these centers would impact ranking.”

He adds: “Getting commercial nano spin-offs and more involvement from established NW companies would also help.”

What does Dr. Baneyx suggest are other possible applications for business? “Currently new materials, photonics, nanomedicine and environmental remediation lead the pack.”

Here are more insights from writer Stuart’s analysis: “I rank by state because that's how a lot of the data is presented, but in truth commerce doesn't stick within state boundaries. The collaborations between Oregon's universities and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory could and should benefit both regions. But this is a dynamic system: it's not just what your state accomplishes that affects its placement; it's also what all the other states do in a given year.”

The rankings for Washington and Oregon do not mean Idaho is lacking vision and a competitive spirit. “We are developing nanomechanisms and materials – perfecting wires, rods and springs of nanoscale proportions and are developing processes to fabricate electronic, optical, biological and magnetic nanomaterials,” said University of Idaho spokesperson Nancy Hilliard. She provided many other examples; unfortunately, they are too numerous for this column.

"The University of Idaho has developed a focal research group to address nanotechnology and its capabilities for faster, cheaper, more efficient and environmentally friendly engineered products," said Charles Hatch, UI vice president for research. "UI researchers now can fabricate tiny tubes that self-assemble and can be coated in metal to form highly conductive wires and springs smaller than 100 nanometers."

In researching nanotechnology, all Northwest researchers have enthusiastically talked about their work. This is a fascinating topic and I could write about it infinitely and still not do justice to their efforts. As a starting point for more reading, try these resource links:

Washington Nanotechnology Initiative, www.watechcenter.org/downloads/nanotech_reportfnl_011005.pdf

Oregon Nanoscience and Microtechnologies Institute, www.onami.us

Idaho Research Foundation, www.irf.uro.uidaho.edu

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, www.pnl.gov

National Science Foundation, www.nsf.gov