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The number of biotechnology patent applications nationally increased 15 percent last year to more than 20,000, according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. But it’s unclear how some of the patents will stand up legally over time: some companies hope that by patenting a piece of a gene they will gain the rights to the entire gene. The issue troubles Aubrey Milunsky, director of BU School of Medicine’s Human Genetics Center. In a story in the August 30 Boston Globe, he points out that some companies want to patent thousands of genes without knowing much about them. "By doing so, they would ultimately exclude someone else from working on that gene," he says. A patent gives the owner exclusive commercial rights to the discovery for 20 years.

Jacques Nasser, president of the Ford Motor Company, explains in television ads that Ford is doing its best to replace the recalled Firestone tires on certain Ford vehicles. Faulty Firestone tires have been blamed for 88 roadway deaths in the U.S. Media analysts say that such appearances are part of a growing trend. Indeed, putting a leader’s face on a crisis is almost a necessity today, says Susan Parenio, a College of Communication associate professor of advertising, in a September 3 New York Times story. "When you call up and raise Cain about a product or experience you had, the customer service reps say, ‘Yeah, yeah,’ and it’s not cutting it," says Parenio. "Consumers have a lot more choices. If one company disappoints them, they are going to go somewhere else. They might live with you through a crisis, but only if they get to hear it from a top guy."

College of Engineering Dean David Campbell says that the labor shortage faced by Boston-area technology companies is daunting, and that the predicament could grow worse before it gets better. He says in an article in the September 4 Mass High Tech journal that the root of the problem is inadequate scientific training of today’s children. "We are in an age where it is a great time to be a nerd," he says. "Technology is driving the economy. But it all needs to start in the elementary schools, junior high schools, and high schools, and right now that is a leaky pipe in that we are losing a lot of potential scientists and engineers because schools aren’t doing enough to promote the sciences."

The New York—based Posse Foundation, which aims to broaden the recruitment strategies of colleges and universities to include students from culturally and socially diverse backgrounds – and form support networks to increase the students’ retention and graduation rates – is not the first group to focus on scholarships and support for urban youths. But it can fill a special need at "small, liberal arts colleges, which can have a very homogenous population," says Reginald Pryor, director of BU’s Office of Multicultural Affairs, in an August 29 story in the Christian Science Monitor. "It’s a good idea if there is not a significant number of minority students . . . and that institution is having a hard time recruiting." The foundation is funded by grants from private sources and the U.S. Department of Education.

"In the News" is compiled by the Office of Public Relations.

23 February 2001
Boston University
Office of University Relations