Wendy Faulkner

Women and microelectronics: The case of word processors

Synopsis The use of microelectronics in production has serious implications for working people, but these implications differ between women and men. We look first at long-wave (Kondratiev) and classical (Marxist) economic theory relate the effects of microelectronics to the economic system. But this tells us nothing about whether the impact of microelectronics differs between the sexes, because the relevant economic categories are sex-blind. The impact on women can only be analysed by introducing the idea of patriarchy. Thus, the interests of capitalists as an oppressor-class and men as an oppressor-sex can be seen as interwoven but not necessarily always coincident. Socialism and feminism oppose different oppressive dynamics, yet a victory for one without a victory for the other would be incomplete. Word processing is an area where socialist and feminist struggles can be joined in a practice which is truly progressive.

Origins of Public-Private Knowledge Flows and Current State-of-the-Art

This paper will present the results of a British study which investigated how, to what extent and why companies in three emerging technologies use knowledge from public sector research during their innovation activities. The study will be set in the context of the historical background to public-private knowledge flows in industry and details of current British policy to harness public sector research to wealth creation. The methodology for the study will be fully described before presenting some of the main results. A review of the history of publicly-funded agricultural research in Britain will then provide an opportunity to consider how far lessons about university/industry interactions can be extrapolated to agricultural research. This material will provide a framework for discussing the opportunities and barriers to public/private knowledge flows in agriculture in the 21st century.