Blueprint for an Innovation Economy in Florida Research as Economic Foundation | Page 9

Romer’s insight suggests a method of measuring
the relative state of knowledge in different
regions. Simply put, count the creation and
adoption of “better recipes.”
Equally important here is the concept of the
“better recipe” as the defining element necessary
for moving beyond the constraints of an finite
supply of natural resources. 14
OUTPUTS AND RESULTS
The recipes created by science are well
documented. As shown in the case of research
into nerve regeneration, the ideas developed
through experimentation are catalogued in
relevant journals as scientific papers.
Highly abbreviated and simplified, the process
identified in the formation of AxoGen and
“Shirley’s miracle”, can be characterized in four
steps (see Figure 5). Through research, a scientist
creates and records a recipe in a scientific paper
with the paper serving as one output of the
scientific process. These works typically build
the body of knowledge in the field by the citation
(formally attributing a concept) of other scientists.
Depending on the quality of the recipe, those
who follow will use and “cite” it. If the recipe is
good, a lot of scientists will use and improve on it.
If it is not so good, fewer will use it. 15
As shown with nerve regeneration, the number of
scientific papers published can be counted. This
is a useful indicator of scientific output. However,
by virtue of a peer’s ability to discern quality, the
use of recipes (captured by citations) is the better
metric. Simply put, citations show the use and
improvement of the recipe.
This process provides us with a way to compare
the relative strength of knowledge infrastructures
in competing geographies. Citations are tracked
by a number of different services with data
available through both paid and unpaid sources. In
this report, citation data is sourced from Leiden
University. 16
To effectively assess the value of “citations”
as an output, one should consider their impact
on desirable outcomes. According to a recent
Brookings report,“ More STEM-oriented
metropolitan economies perform strongly
on a wide variety of economic indicators,
from innovation to employment. Job growth,
employment rates, patenting, wages and exports
are all higher in more STEM-based economies”. 17
The defining characteristic of STEM-based
economies, the proportion of science, technology,
engineering and math (STEM) jobs 18 is one such
desirable outcome. Societal benefits spring
from productive enterprises. Those in turn spring
from not just jobs, but overwhelmingly from a
particular kind of job; the STEM job.
FIGURE 5: SCIENTIFIC INNOVATION IS A PROCESS
From Recipe to Societal Benefit
SCIENTISTS CREATE
& RECORD RECIPES
RECIPES SHARED,
VALIDATED &
IMPROVED
COMPANIES &
JOBS CREATED
SOCIETY
BENEFITS
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