Recently exposed corruption in Chinese science research funding has prompted the government to take action. The State Council has issued guidelines to increase transparency in the distribution of funds. In addition, the Central Commission for Discipline and Inspection will make more inspections, with attention specifically on the Ministry of Science. Funding for R&D is considerable, […]

The funding structure for science and research in Russia will change according to a plan proposed by the Presidential Council for Science and Education and accepted by President Vladimir Putin. The government will no longer fund fundamental research directly, and instead, researchers will compete for grants. Grant applications will be reviewed by the Council and […]

Chemical companies in the US and Europe plan to increase their research and capital spending in 2014, according to a survey conducted by Chemical and Engineering News (C&EN). This year will mark the fifth year of capital spending increases for 20 major chemical firms. Their total projected expenditures for facilities and equipment in 2014 is […]

A report submitted to the US Congress by the Office of Science and Technology Policy details spending on R&D infrastructure. In 2013, $1,710 million was spent on construction of nondefense facilities and capital equipment. A 37.4% increase is estimated for 2014 spending for a total of $2,350 million. However, infrastructure spending for the NIH is […]

Funding for R&D is undergoing a shift in the US, with an increasing trend toward private backing. While federal funds still provide most of the support for the sciences, budget cuts have placed financial strain on some research institutes and programs. According to one study of the 50 universities with the highest budgets for science […]

Bagneux, France 3/4/14; Paris, France 3/20/14—Genomic Vision, a developer of DNA molecular combing technology, has announced that it plans to list on the Euronext Paris stock exchange. The company’s technology provides a panoramic view of large regions of the genome, including detection of structural variations, and allows the direct visualization of genetic anomalies. The company […]

Paisley, UK 3/17/14—Thermo Fisher Scientific has acquired Prionics, an animal health diagnostics company, for an undisclosed amount. Headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, Prionics’ product line includes more than 50 diagnostics test kits, accessories and biochemicals. Prionics will be part of Thermo’s Life Technologies brand. “Prionics adds a unique blend of expertise and diagnostic solutions to new […]

Cambridge, UK 3/24/14 Cambridge, UK 3/27/14—Gene editing technology firm Horizon Discovery has raised £68.6 million ($113.1 million = £0.61 = $1) in its IPO, resulting in gross proceeds of £40 million ($66 million), prior to listing its shares on the UK’s AIM stock exchange on March 27 (see IBO 2/28/14). The firm started trading at […]

Atomic Spectrometry Bruker introduced its second generation S1 Titan handheld X-ray fluorescence (XRF) product line. In addition to a more ruggedized, weatherproof housing, the new versions include a detector shield as standard. Four models are available, with different sources and detectors. The high-end S1 Titan 800 has a variable voltage X-ray source and a silicon […]

India’s Department of Biotechnology (DBT) has published its National Biotechnology Strategy-2014 (Strategy-II), to follow that of 2007 (Strategy-I). Both strategies follow Vision 2020, the plan to make India a developed country by 2020. Strategy-II was conceived with the input of hundreds of stakeholders, after meeting many goals of Strategy-I. Fulfillment of this comprehensive and ambitious […]