Public Venture
Long considered to be one of the most successful government funding programs for science and technology, the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program was reauthorized by Congress in 2000, essentially protecting it against economic and political uncertainties for almost a decade. Yet as other tech funding resources and budgets continue to face extinction amidst industry downturn, the SBIR program may be confronted with considerable pressure of its own in its goal of keeping alive and vibrant the development of the country's early technologies.
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Consolidation in the Hard Disk Drive Industry Leaves Future Uncertain
The hard disk drive (HDD) industry has witnessed dramatic structural change in the last few years, with increased levels of consolidation and restructuring activity taking place in the industry.
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~Opinion

Accounting for Stock Options: A Different View
by Dana Warren, Principal, Riordan & McKinzie
Reforming the accounting treatment of stock options has become a hot button for investors angry at having been misled by executives using arcane accounting techniques to hide their misdeeds. But commentators and legislators, wanting to strike back at those who have abused options, have jumped on a "solution" that, instead of clarifying a company's true financial status, will only serve to obscure it further.
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(The views of the articles in this section do not necessarily reflect the views of Larta or its employees, but represent the views of the author, who is responsible for any facts, statements or opinions.)

~Larta Announcements

Business and Entrepreneurship:

Collateral damage (Red Herring)
Washington's corporate responsibility crusade spells trouble for small business.
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Life after dotcom death (The Economist)
Most of the hundreds of B2B marketplaces that sprang up in the late 1990s failed to raise enough capital for a makeover and so simply closed. But contrary to conventional wisdom, not all of these exchanges are doomed.
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Nanotech and Bioscience:

Stumping for Stem Cell Research (Wired)
The state senator who successfully defied President Bush's limit on embryonic stem cell research by penning a law that makes it legal in California continued her efforts on Thursday to push for further research in this area.
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Despite Fraud at Bell Labs, Chip Research Barrels Ahead (New York Times)
After nearly a year of topsy-turvy excitement and puzzlement over the now discredited findings of Dr. J. Hendrik Schön at Bell Labs, the field of molecular electronics is still very much alive. Researchers are making steady progress at work whose practical prospects are promising, if uncertain.
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Security:

Military, Private Sector Rush to Adopt High-Tech Security Technology (Washington Post)
After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, security technologies that focus on physical characteristics are cropping up more and more in civilian life -- at office complexes, grocery stores, schools and fitness centers across the country. The science underpinning such devices is "biometrics," a field long mired in controversy, but one that has enjoyed a makeover during the past year.
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Digital Media:

Video-game industry sees possible slowing (Mercury News)
The video-game industry has defied economic gravity as industry sales have held up during the high-tech downturn. But as game makers head into the crucial fourth-quarter selling season, some observers say the industry will have a hard time hitting its goal of 25 percent sales growth.
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Hollywood fighting copyright change (Hollywood Reporter)
The motion picture industry fought back Wednesday against legislation it said would essentially undo copyright provisions written into the controversial Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
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Labels, Webcasters Reportedly Reach Deal (Los Angeles Times)
Record labels and small Internet radio stations reached a long-awaited agreement Sunday that calls for significantly lower royalty payments for online music broadcasts, sources close to the negotiations said.
full article >

*********** Events Calendar ***********

This events calendar is provided as a service by Larta about events vetted and endorsed by Larta.

October 8: The Association for Strategic Planning: 2nd Annual Conference on Strategic Planning: Exploiting Strategic Alternatives
The Association for Strategic Planning (ASP) invites senior managers and strategic consultants to participate in a one-day conference at which the central forces of our time - digital and biological futures, basic economic drivers, socio-political pressures, global risk and security, and the evolution of new business models - will be discussed. Highly interactive panel discussions, hosted by renowned speakers such as Peter Schwartz and Dr. Richard Kolsky, will provide high-level executives with the information they need to guide their organizations to future success.
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October 8 : UCLA NanoSystems Seminar Series, Inorganic Nanorods: Synthesis, Properties, Applications
Featuring Paul Alivisatos, UC Berkeley, this talk will also describe advances in the application of semiconductor nanorods as active components in plastic solar cells and liquid crystals.
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October 9: UCI presents, Microelectromechanical Systems: Markets, Applications, and Principles
Microelectromechanical Systems, or MEMS, is an emerging technology that will have a major impact on high technology products including biomedical, telecommunications, remote sensing, aerospace and pharmaceutical applications.
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October 10: Ryze Los Angeles Business Networking Mixer
Ryze is one of the fastest growing business networking communities in the world. Drawing individuals from the business, technology, and creative worlds, Ryze is a unique blend of online and offline networking.
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October 10: SDRTA presents, Presentation AdvantEdge
This interactive, hands-on workshop offered by the RTA in partnership with 2Connect provides a unique opportunity to sharpen your story and ensure that you and your company stand out. Each participant will deliver presentations and receive one-on-one coaching and feedback from a 2Connect coach.
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Oct. 14-17: Nanotechnology Business Roadmap for Industry presents, Planning for the Future of Nanomaterials Today
This event is designed to help companies gain a competitive advantage by planning for the future of nanomaterials today. It will help you layout a nanotechnology roadmap for your company. You will learn about the commercial possibilities for a variety of nanomaterials technology platforms and their corresponding applications, find out how these technology platforms are expected to alter current industry paradigms and competitive boundaries, get today's most advanced thinking on strategic decision making and technology management for the introduction of new nanomaterials related products, and hear the real-world experiences of companies from a broad selection of industries.
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October 15: Caltech/MIT Enterprise Forum, Venturing in Web Services: Opportunities for Partnering and Startups
Web services is an all-hands-on-deck industry effort to make the Internet a practical, universal business platform. As a new vehicle for developing and deploying business applications, web services promise new ways to capitalize on the wealth of potential that the Internet holds. The Enterprise Forum has brought together several players developing that standard - Microsoft, IBM and Oracle - to discuss how alliances and partnering are accelerating new ventures in web services.
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October 16: Pasadena Entretec Networking Breakfast
The focus of this event will be: How to make Perfection out of Imperfection: The Case of Imaging with Defocused Cameras. The program will be held at The Athenaeum, Caltech.
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Larta's full event calendar >