New Milken Institute Science and Tech Index Report

Massachusetts, California and Colorado are in the best position to take advantage of the knowledge-based economy, according to the 2004 State Technology & Science Index. It finds that regional economic prosperity is based upon how successful places are in attracting and expanding science and technology assets and leveraging them for economic development.

The 2004 State Technology and Science Index encapsulates each state’s comprehensive inventory of technology and science assets that can be leveraged to promote economic development. The Index provides states with a benchmark, monitors their technology progress and can be leveraged to promote economic growth. It provides a valuable framework of measures to guide state policy makers and the public on the realities of their performance in the knowledge-based economy of today.

The index uses 75 indicators in five categories to measure how well a state will perform in today’s knowledge-based economy. The five composite categories are:

-Research and development inputs;
-Risk capital and entrepreneurial infrastructure;
-Human capital investment;
-Technology and science workforce; and
-Technology concentration and dynamism.
-Individual indicators include a wide range of measurements such as the percentage of a state’s population with Ph.D.s, research and development expenditures per capita, and venture capital investment.

Here to download the report.