. "2 Why Are Science and Technology Critical to America's Prosperity in the 21st Century?." Rising Above the Gathering Storm: Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2007.
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Rising Above the Gathering Storm: Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future
TABLE 2-3 Sales and Employment in the Information Technology (IT) Industry, 2000
NAICS Code
Sales Revenues ($ billions)
Number of Jobs (1,000)
IT Manufacturing
Computer and peripheral equipment
3341
110.0
190
Communications equipment
3342
119.3
291
Software
5112
88.6
331
Semiconductors and other electronic components
3344
168.5
621
IT Services
Data processing services
5142
42.9
296
Telecommunications services
5133
354.2
1,165
SOURCE: National Research Council. Impact of Basic Research on Industrial Performance. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2003.
described as “fuel for industry.”19 The economic contribution of science and technology can be understood by examining revenue and employment figures from technology- and service-based industries, but the largest economic influence is in the productivity gains that follow the adoption of new products and technologies.20
CREATING NEW INDUSTRIES
The power of research is demonstrated not only by single innovations but by the ability to create entire new industries—some of them the nation’s most powerful economic drivers.
Basic research on the molecular mechanisms of DNA has produced a new field, molecular biology, and recombinant-DNA technology, or gene splicing, which in turn has led to new health therapies and the enormous growth of the biotechnology industry. The potential of those developments for health and healthcare is only beginning to be realized.
Studies of the interaction of light with atoms led to the prediction of stimulated emission of coherent radiation. That, together with the quest for a device to produce high-frequency microwaves, led to the development of
19
Council of Economic Advisers. Economic Report of the President. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office, 1995.
20
D. J. Wilson. “Is Embodied Technological Change the Result of Upstream R&D? Industry-Level Evidence.” Review of Economic Dynamics 5(2)(2002):342-362.
