Boulder Innovation Center Hires New Executive Director
The Boulder Innovation Center (BIC) Board announced August 22 that it has hired Tim Bour as the new Executive Director of the BIC. As Executive Director Mr. Bour will be responsible for defining and executing a new three year operating plan, which includes securing new sources of funding to expand the scope and reach of the BIC.
TTO Head David Allen on CU’s Biomedical Commercialization
A podcast is now available of CU Associate Vice President for Technology Transfer David Allen’s talk at the Holland & Hart Bioentrepreneur Club September 5, discussing the bioscience pipeline and commercialization efforts of the TTO.
ITP Announces Search for New Faculty Director and Senior Instructor
The University of Colorado’s Interdisciplinary Telecommunications Program (ITP) is looking for a Faculty Director and a Senior Instructor. ITP is the nation’s first program of its kind, has a 30-year track record of success, and possesses an active research faculty with a dynamic and international student body.
CU-Boulder Names Argrow, Bowman Associate Deans Of Engineering
University of Colorado at Boulder Professors Brian Argrow and Christopher Bowman have been appointed associate deans in the College of Engineering and Applied Science. Argrow will serve as associate dean for education, and Bowman as associate dean for research. The appointments, announced by engineering Dean Robert Davis, were effective Aug. 1.
CU-Boulder Professor Receives Heinz Award For Environment
Dr. Bernard Amadei, a UCB professor of civil engineering who has helped bring the basic necessities of water, electricity and sanitation to remote, poverty-stricken areas of the world has been selected as a co-recipient of the 13th annual Heinz Award for the Environment, among the largest individual achievement prizes in the world.
Two CU-Boulder Professors Named Jefferson Science Fellows
University of Colorado at Boulder professors Ross Corotis and Jerry Peterson have been named Jefferson Science Fellows and will spend the 2007-08 calendar year working full time at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. They are the first CU-Boulder faculty members to participate in the program, which was established in 2003 to engage the academic science, technology and engineering community in the shaping of U.S. foreign policy.
Do you know of a recent award, new position or transition of interest to the CU tech community? Please send information to TTOnews@cu.edu.
TTO's Learning Laboratory: The Student Connection
TTO MBA Intern Will Schrode
Will Schrode earned an undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering before attending the CU Leeds School of Business. At the TTO, Will has done technical and market research for potential commercial opportunities related to CU’s Natural Language Processing (NLP) technology (PDF), developed at the Center for Spoken Language Research in Boulder. Focusing on the healthcare industry, Will has found an opportunity to apply NLP technology to the abstraction of data elements for quality measurements. While evaluating this new application for NLP technology, Will has worked with TTO staff and the Boulder Innovation Center to establish relationships with healthcare professionals; he is also working with CU faculty on a strategy to develop the NLP technology, and continues to move forward with his market research. Will is entering his second year at Leeds School of Business and plans to develop a business plan based on this feasibility study, which he’ll present at the upcoming ESPRIT/CU Innovation Alliance Breakfast on October 16.
Spotlight On:
CU-Boulder Technology of the Month:
CU1660B – Immunologically-Active Adjuvant-Bound Dried Vaccine Preparation
UCDHSC Technology of the Month:
CU1862H – Self-assembling RNA Nanotubes
CU Company of the Month:
CDM Optics, Inc., located in Boulder, Colorado, in April, 2007 marked its second anniversary as a subsidiary of OmniVision Technologies, Inc., a world-leading supplier of complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensors. In February 2007, at the 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, OmniVision introduced its first cell-phone camera incorporating CDM’s patented WaveFront Coding™ technology. This camera is now being sampled to major cell-phone companies. CDM has completed its facility expansion and now occupies approximately 35,000 square feet of offices and laboratories in Boulder, and it now employs over 50 people.
Upcoming Events
Rocky Mountain Nanotechnology Showcase & Conference
September 17-18, Driscoll Event Denver, University of Denver
The 1st Annual Rocky Mountain Nanotechnology Showcase brings together nanotech experts who are developing cutting edge, next-generation products and industry solutions, and will feature national speakers interested in tapping into the commercial pipeline and integration of nanotechnology companies/industries, universities and federal research labs. Sponsored by the Colorado Nanotechnology Alliance (CNA).
Bio SoCo: Technology Transfer, Biotechnology and the UCCS Campus
September 25, University Center, Colorado Springs
David Allen, CU assistant vice president for technology transfer, and Dr. Terrance Boult, UCCS El Pomar Endowed Chair of Innovation and Security, discuss their experiences with the CU TTO and with the SBIR and STTR grant programs. Hosted by the Colorado BioScience Association (CBSA); free for members and CU faculty. Register online.
CTEK Angels LIVE
September 25, Davis Auditorium, University of Denver
This event allows the general public to obtain an insider's perspective into what angel investors look for in a deal, what gets them excited about an opportunity, what they shoot down quickly, and how the angel process is organized.
Boulder/Denver New Technology Meetup Group
October 2, Wolf Law Building, Boulder
This ongoing event is designed to provide a time and place for technologists and entrepreneurs to showcase the new (especially web-based) technology developing in Boulder/Denver tech community. Five companies each have five minutes to demonstrate their new technology, followed by five minutes for Q&A from the audience.
From Lab to Startup: First Steps in Launching a New Business
October 11, ATLAS Building, Boulder
How do you take a brilliant idea you have and turn it into a profitable enterprise? In this TIGER information session, experienced entrepreneur Ted Weverka of the CU Technology Transfer Office will introduce the opportunities that exist for entrepreneurs, and the steps involved in taking an idea from the lab to the market.
CSIA DEMOgala 2007
October 11, Grand Hyatt Hotel, Denver
This industry show highlights the best innovation Colorado has to offer. From robotics and nanotechnology to software and gaming, CSIA finds the companies making a difference with their innovation and showcases their efforts at this premier advanced technology event.
CU Innovation Alliance Breakfast
October 16, Millennium Harvest House, Boulder
As part of the Boulder Chamber of Commerce ESPRIT week, the TTO will host this event showcasing CU innovations at all stages of development, from lab to startup to successful company. Following these short presentations, there will be an opportunity to mingle with the researchers and entrepreneurs, as well as with TTO staff and other members of the CU innovation community. Details, agenda and registration online.
CTEK Entrepreneur's Ball
October 20, Grand Hyatt, Denver
This black-tie fundraiser allows supporters of Colorado entrepreneurship to kick-up their heels with 450 of Colorado's most prominent CEO's, investors, entrepreneurs, geek gliterati, and those that understand how critical entrepreneurial success is to Colorado's economic vitality. For corporate tables or sponsorship opportunities, please contact Katie Kochenberger at katie.k@ctek.biz.
2007 Coleman Institute Conference on Cognitive Disability and Technology
October 24-26, Westin Hotel, Westminster
The Coleman Institute for Cognitive Disabilities conference will feature presentations by outstanding scientists and engineers, disability leaders, government officials, and business executives, an overview of cognitive technologies research at CU and other major universities, and a CU system-wide faculty research poster session.
TiE-Rockies MentorFest 2007
October 25, PPA Center, Denver
TiE-Rockies announces MentorFest 2007, the continuation of a TiE tradition. This will be a chance for anyone who is working on a business concept to get their plan in front of a highly experienced group of serial entrepreneurs for review and assistance with, planning, funding, starting, operating, developing, and selling their business.
Colorado's New Energy Economy: The Path Forward
October 30, Marriott City Center, Denver
The Colorado Public Utilities Commission, the Governor's Energy Office and the Office of Consumer Counsel are partnering with Energy Outreach Colorado to sponsor a conference examining current and future energy issues as Colorado moves toward more renewable and alternative energy technologies.
New Faculty Breakfast: Resources Available Through the CU Technology Transfer Office
November 2, ATLAS Building, Boulder
This free breakfast seminar for newly-hired (past 3 years) faculty will give an overview of the resources available to faculty through the TTO -- more information coming soon!
Angel Capital Summit
November 13, Marriott City Center, Denver
Colorado's leading entrepreneurial and investor organizations invite you to attend the Angel Capital Summit, a unique collaboration bringing entrepreneurs and investors together in the Mile High City. Presented by Ehrhardt Keefe Steiner & Hottman PC (EKS&H) and hosted by the Rockies Venture Club. (Entrepreneurs: view the call for presenters.)
Colorado Inventor Bootcamp & Showcase
November 15, Cable Center, Denver
This DaVinci Institute event will start with an Inventor Boot Camp covering the basics of commercializing inventions. Later, the Showcase will feature great inventions from both independent inventors and businesses. Details and registration online.
Butcher Symposium on Genetics and Biotechnology
November 16, Westin Hotel and Resort, Westminster
This Symposium brings together CU faculty in the many areas of research related to genomics and biotechnology to improve awareness of the relevant resources at CU, to spark new collaborations, and to identify means and opportunities for strategic advancement. The Symposium will also lay the groundwork for distribution of the third round of Butcher seed grants (grant info is available here).
Public Safety, New Technologies, and the Future of Emergency Response
November 28, UCDHSC School of Public Affairs, Denver
Co-Sponsored by the Silicon Flatirons Telecommunications Program and the CU Denver School of Public Affairs, this conference will take a look forward at the future of emergency response, evaluating how new technologies can be adopted to enable first responders to operate more effectively.
To have your event featured here, please send an email to
TTOnews@cu.edu.
CU Resources
MINDstudios at the University of Colorado
MINDstudios is a full-service product design and research studio housed within the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. MINDstudios houses full-scale design and prototyping capabilities with experienced engineers and designers on staff who have worked on projects covering a wide scope, from high powered laser research, to athletic shoe design and toys. The group is headed by Director Michael Larson, El Pomar Endowed Chair of Engineering and Innovation and Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at UCCS. For more information about creating prototypes, contact Professor Larson at larson@eas.uccs.edu or go to http://www.mind-studios.com.
'Flagship 2030' Planning Underway
On August 16, University of Colorado at Boulder Chancellor G.P. "Bud" Peterson presented the initial draft of CU-Boulder's Flagship 2030 Strategic Plan to the CU Board of Regents. The draft is the result of two significant phases of public input: from external stakeholders who made up half of the nearly 60-person Flagship 2030 Steering Committee, and from "thought leaders" in 16 Colorado communities who met with CU-Boulder faculty interviewers to discuss how CU could serve their communities and Colorado as the state's flagship public university in the year 2030. Peterson expects to submit the final Flagship 2030 Strategic Plan to CU President Hank Brown and to the Board of Regents for approval in November. Further resources for Flagship 2030:
- Chancellor Peterson’s August 16 presentation to the Board of Regents (PDF)
- Flagship 2030: Transforming CU-Boulder, Transforming Colorado Draft (PDF)
CU-Boulder’s Ralphie Named Top Mascot
Ralphie IV, the beloved 1,300-pound rumbling mass of hoof, horn and fur, has been named college football's number 1 mascot by
CollegeFootballNews.com. Ralphie knocked off Georgia's bulldog named UGA and Texas' longhorn steer Bevo, who finished second and third.
Innovation in the News
House Passes Broad Patent-Reform Bill With Most Provisions Sought by Colleges
The U.S. House of Representatives approved a major bill September 7 to alter patent law after agreeing to several amendments, including a few that were high on the agenda for colleges. Still, passage of the bill, HR 1908, the Patent Reform Act of 2007, will not end the lobbying. Rather, it will now shift to the Senate, where companion legislation, S 1145, with some different provisions, has been passed by the Judiciary Committee but has yet to reach the Senate floor.
New Patent Rules May Hurt Biotech
The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on August 21 issued new rules intended to streamline the patenting process. But the change will also make it more costly and time consuming for universities and biotech companies to secure rights to their life sciences discoveries, patent experts say.
TechStars' Work Pays in Boulder
Ten startup companies came to Boulder in May for a summer of intense work on their products and business plans. On August 16, they made presentations to more than 60 local and national investors.
State is Fertile Ground to Burgeoning Bioscience Field
The Fitzsimons BioBusiness Partners (FBBp) is a sterling example of a public-private partnership that can spark real growth in bioscience. It is the only venture development organization in Colorado specifically designed for the bioscience industry.
Colorado Bioscience Sector Eyes New Funding
Colorado's higher-education institutions can no longer solely rely on the state for funding if they want to continue to churn out graduates and researchers qualified to grow Colorado's bioscience sector.
Colorado Springs Taking Aim at Homeland Defense
The Colorado Homeland Defense Alliance (CHDA) hopes to create businesses that focus on homeland security and defense technology. “Just as the Denver area is becoming a niche market for bioscience, we want Colorado Springs to become a niche market for defense technology.”
Colorado Project Assembles Suite of Space-Tech Business Services
Colorado has entered the arena with the launch of the Eighth Continent Project, hosted at the Colorado School of Mines Center for Space Resources. The project has assembled an array of services, including a trade association, a planned incubator and venture fund, and a collaborative research program for private space enterprises.
UCCS Wins Grant to Develop Research Park
In August, the Economic Development Administration awarded a $100,000 grant to the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs to fund the Research Park business plan. The grant will supply a portion of the funds needed to create a research park targeting and promoting new industries to meet the need for new jobs.
Roundup: University, Community, State, National and International Initiatives
The National Science Foundation announced in August that the Arkansas Science & Technology Authority would receive $9M through the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research to enhance the state's research capabilities.
External Resources
