The Korean Ministry of Justice plans to introduce a bill this year in the National Assembly requiring the collection of DNA from convicted felons. The bill would also require that DNA samples from suspects accused of crimes in 11 categories, including murder and robbery, be collected. Source: The Korea Times

The European Investment Bank (EIB) has agreed to loans totaling €885 million ($1.2 billion) for Turkey. The Turkish government will receive €335 million for 2009–2010 to help finance R&D at the nation’s 15 leading public universities. The funding will also be used to purchase scientific instruments for the universities. Small- and medium-sized enterprises in the […]

Science and technology (S&T) funding in Japan’s fiscal 2009 economic stimulus package totaled ¥1,346.5 billion ($13.5 billion), approximately 10% of the stimulus package. The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) received 49% of the funding. Of this amount, ¥300 billion will be allocated to a special fund run by the Japan Society […]

An online survey of 800 chemical industry executives conducted by ICIS and Genomatica in May indicates that sustainable chemistry is gaining momentum. Fifty-seven percent of respondents stated that their companies are already conforming with green chemistry practices, and 47% of respondents said their companies are using renewable feedstocks in manufacturing. Green chemistry is a priority […]

The semiconductor equipment market should begin to improve later this year, having reached bottom in the second quarter. Capital spending by the semiconductor industry is estimated to decline 44.8% this year to $24.3 billion, before rebounding in 2010 to grow 20.9% to $29.4 billion. Capital equipment spending is expected to fall 45.8% this year to […]

San Diego, CA 6/22/09; Washington, DC 6/25/09—The US District Court for the Southern District of California has dismissed Beckman Coulter and Orchid Cellmark’s patent infringement suit against Sequenom (see IBO 6/15/08), following the parties’ stipulation for dismissal. Sequenom stated that the patent infringement action was dismissed with prejudice, meaning it cannot be brought again, and […]