It has come out the Greenfield report on woman in science, engineering and technology. There is a general concern with the under-representation of women in theses areas.

The BA’s advice to OST on Science in Society is published.
The Office of Science and Technology has comissioned a study on a process to assess whether the wide range of science communication activities across the UK is meeting the interests and needs of the public, and to support collaborations and networking among the organisations involved in these activities.
See more on the background of this initiative in the BA website or the OST press release.

There is a new special issue of RTD Info dedicated to the priorities of the 6th Framework Programme.

By the way, the Portuguese S&T budgtet (preliminary version) is already available.

The OCT has published the preliminary results (in pt) for Portugal's R&D survey 2001.

The Portuguese Observatory for Science and Technology (OCT) is about to make available (next January) a S&T Image Database. Read the project presentation (in pt).

In Portugal, the science week starts today. Check the agenda for activities.

Today, in Pavilhão do Conhecimento, Lisbon, is presented the Benchmarking report on the promotion of RTD culture and public understanding of science. This study took place between Sep 2001 and July 2002 as part of a benchmarking exercise on R&D policies in the EU member States. The session should be broadcast live on the Internet.

A bit of background:
In January 2000, the Commission adopted a Communication proposing the creation of a European Research Area. The Commission established five expert groups to conduct the benchmarking analysis of the 5 following themes:
1. Human resources in RTD, including attractiveness of science and technology professions,
2. Public and private investment in RTD,
3. Scientific and technological productivity,
4. Impact of RTD on economic competitiveness and employment,
5. promotion of RTD culture and public understanding of science
The lessons drawn from this first benchmarking cycle will serve as a basis for designing the second one to be developed under FP 6.

The new web site of the Portuguese Ministry for Science and Higher Education already states something: "brevemente...(soon)". Not bad.

There is a new (31 October 2002) Statement on Copus.
The Office of Science and Technology has commissioned the BA (British Association for the Advancement of Science) to conduct a study looking at how Government should receive advice on science communication policy and activities from other organisations.

Last week I attended a workshop of the TEARI project, a collaboration that aims to produce a comprehensive overview and synthesis of the role played by research and innovation in modern societies.
Bengt-Ake Lundvall gave a conference in ISEG, Lisbon, dedicated to Innovation Policy in the Globalizing Learning Economy.

Sorry, I felt somehow behind these last days, but I'll try to catch up....

Researchers from ISCTE (Lisbon), Luísa Oliveira and Helena Carvalho, published their characterisation of innovation in Portugal.

The "Research 2002” conference opened in Brussels and lasts for 11-12-13 November 2002. It is claimed to be the biggest conference on EU research ever to be organised in Europe.
It will mark the launch of the new EU Research Framework Programme (FP6 2003-2006, a budget of EUR 17.5 billion), preceding the first calls for proposals to be published in the next few weeks.

"The Effectiveness of AlphaGalileo", research undertaken by MORI Social Research Institute was published yesterday.
It shows that AlphaGalileo`s UK contributors are satisfied with both the service they receive and with the effectiveness of the service in achieving its purpose.
The research was commissioned by AlphaGalileo, the Internet press centre for European research in science and the arts.

Tomorrow and Saturday Fundação Gulbenkian holds the symposium Nothing...Nada in Lisbon (Sala Polivalente do Centro de Arte Moderna) dedicated to Science and Art. Check here the participants and program.
Also the exhibition Signatures of the Invisible, featuring the work of 12 of Europe’s leading visual artists opens at Gulbenkian Foundation on 7 November and runs until 19 January 2003.

It is already available the new OECD Education at a Glance 2002. This includes a comparative picture of student performance in reading, mathematical and scientific literacy.
In 2000, the OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) collected data on students' performances in reading, mathematical and scientific literacy, as well as contextual information.

In Portugal, the Semana da Ciência e Tecnologia is scheduled for 23 - 30 November and is organized by Ciência Viva. The 24th November is the National day for Scientific Culture.

It starts today the European Science and Technology Week. From 4 to 10 November, the emphasis is on showing, rather than telling, Europeans how science and technology affects them.

The European Commission has just released a special edition: A Directory of European Innovation. This directory is intended as a resource for innovation actors for the lifetime of FP6.

Issue 8 of The Pantaneto Forum is already published. The essay Two Cultures or None?, by Jean-Marc Lévy-Leblond, is quite interesting.

At least the popular science magazine New Scientist had a good excuse for being offline for a couple of days last week: someone broke into their London offices and stole the server.

The Portuguese Ministry for Science and Higher Education is still unwired. The Internet site of the previous government was removed, but we are still waiting for the new URL to be available.

The National Science Board (USA) has also published the Science & Engineering Indicators for 2002.
Particularly interesting is Chapter 7: Science and Technology, Public Attitudes and Public Understanding.

The new OECD Science, Technology and Industry Outlook 2002 is already available. In addition to reviewing recent trends, the report identifies significant changes in science, technology and industry policies in the OECD countries