ons, too numerous for confinement that will also brighten the future. Some might be considered frivolous but innovation that can be translated into successful product demonstrably affects the economies of the world. That, in itself, is an awesomely important consideration for the future everywhere, particularly in the United States. In the past fifty years or so American innovators have consistently demonstrated a remarkable talent for discovery - the ability to combine dedicated research and creative thinking and conceive completely new methods of doing things - in such areas as electronics, communications, materials, and biotechnology. There is strong evidence to support the thesis that other countries are rapidly closing America’s lead in productive manufacturing research. But the familiar plaint that America’s researchers have somehow lost the knack for innovative thinking is simply not substantiated by fact. It is perhaps more reasonable to look at related areas when pondering why so many of the things in the overflowing horn of plenty, one symbol of America’s wealth and well-being, now wear “Made Elsewhere” labels.Time and again American scientists have created remarkable innovations - that have led to revolutionary new technologies - that have produced successful products - that have ended up being exploited in a masterly way by industries - in countries other than the United States. Available evidence indicates that marketing may well be that part of the “Yankee ingenuity” equation the United States has lost. As America lookstoward the future, leaders in the private sector must encourage the development of vigorous new techniques that will allow their own firms and the U.S. economy to make better use of the innovators’ creations. Recent history is packed with examples of America’s inability or unwillingness to compete for huge markets it appeared capable of dominating, and th...
