Advancing the Science of Science Funding Conference at the NBER Summer Institute

Advancing the Science of Science Funding Conference at the NBER Summer Institute
Supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation

Supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation

Cambridge, MA July 18-19, 2019
Royal Sonesta Hotel
Skyline Rooms A and B
Program

Day 1: Thursday July 18th

8:00 am Coffee and Pastries

8:45-9:00: INTRODUCTION AND WELCOME: Reinhilde and Paula
9:00-12:00 SESSION I: ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF SCIENCE FUNDING
Chair: Adam Jaffe (TBC)

Relationship of funding to Patents:

Lee Fleming* (Stanford University)

U.S. innovation relies increasingly upon
Federal research

Discussant: Neil Thompson

Relationship of funding to Publishing:

Bruce Weinberg*

The Marginal Scientific Product of Investments in Science

Pierre Azoulay

10:45-11:00: COFFEE BREAK

Impact on Policy Making
Danil Mikhailov & Chonnettia Jones*, (Wellcome Trust, Data science methods to assess the influence of scientific research on policy

J. Hjort* (Columbia University), D; Moreira, G.Rao, J.F. Santini, How Research Affects Policy: Experimental Evidence from 2,150 Brazilian Municipalities

Discussants: Kei Koizuma (AAAS) and Daniel Goroff (Alfred P. Sloan Foundation)

General discussion

12:15 TO 1:00: LUNCH

1:00- 2:30: SESSION II: RISK TAKING IN SCIENCE FUNDING

Chair: Chiara Franzoni

Introduction by the Chair: Chiara Franzoni—insights from literature and from small scale survey

Examples of Funders approaches for increasing risk taking:

Assessing risk in selection bias and treatment effect

Do funding agencies select and enable risky research: Evidence from ERC using novelty as a proxy of risk taking

Karim Lakhani (Harvard)

Open discussion

2:30-2:45: COFFEE BREAK

2:45-4:15 : SESSION III LINKING SCIENCE/PUBLICATIONS TO TECHNOLOGY/PATENTS

Chair: Ben Jones

Data-methodology session: what is currently the state of the art on how to link science and technology? Best practices? Pitfalls? How to move forward?

Poege, F, Dietmar Harhoff* (LMU), F. Gaessler & S. Baruffaldi : Science Quality and the Value of Inventions

Watzinger, M. & M. Schnitzer* (LMU): Standing on the shoulders of science

Discussants: Bhaven Sampat (Columbia); Andy Toole (USPTO Chief Economist)

4:15-5:15 SESSION IV: SSF FUNDED SMALL PROJECTS PRESENTATIONS

Chair: Kaye Husband-Feeling

De Ratenfosse G. (EPFL)* & E. Raiteri, The prevalence of NIH-funded research in commercial products

Discussants: Anna Calcagno (NIGMS, NIH) and Danielle Li (MIT)

A short presentation of all other proposals selected :

(Adam Jaffe (MIT and Brandeis); Bev Holmes, the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research

Charles Ayoubi, Fabiana Visentin and Michelle Pezzoni; Sandra Barbosu, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation;

Chiara Franzonie (Politechnico de Milano) and Henry Sauermann; Experiment.com;

Valentina Tartari (Copenhagen Business School); Henrik Fosse and Rikke Christensen (TBC) Novo Nordisk Foundation;

5:15: ADJOURN

Dinner: 7:00 Bambara Restaurant
Across the street from the Royal Sonesta Hotel

Day Two: Friday July 19th

8:30 am Coffee and Pastries

9:00- 10:30 SESSION V: ORGANIZING SCIENCE FUNDING
Chair: Megan MacGarvie

Wilhelm, M. (LMU) Truly Legendary Freedom: Funding, Incentives and the Productivity of Scientists;

Ottaviani, M. (Bocconi), Proportional Budget Allocation across Fields, Paylines, and Benchmarking: When Relative Demand Creates Its Own Supply

Discussant: Tim Simcoe (BU), R. Veugelers (Former ERC Scientific Council); ERC: TBC

10:30-10:45 COFFEE BREAK

10:45-12:00 SESSION VI: SPECIAL TOPIC: GENDER BIASES IN SCIENCE FUNDING EVALUATION

Chair: Henry Sauermann

Julian Kolev, Yuly Fuentes-Medel, and Fiona Murray (MIT), How Gendered Outcomes Arise Even Under Anonymous Evaluation: Is Blinded Review Enough?

Discussant: Donna Ginther (University of Kansas); Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (Zach Charat, Gates Foundation, TBC)

12:00-12:30 SESSION VII: MOVING THE SSF AGENDA FORWARD

Chair: Reinhilde/Paula

Views from funders; views from academics

12:30: ADJOURN