the innovators of the past and those of today is that the latter have much better access to a larger body of knowledge. This, in itself, is an indication of the innovative processes that have hastened the arrival of the communications age and high tech revolution. Trial and error is still an integral part of scientific research, but newer approaches have often reduced the discovery time span. Chester Carlson, inventor of the xerography process, is the only one of our innovators who fits the classic mold of the solitary genius who struggles alone. It is no accident that his travail began in the earliest time period of our investigations and he was forced to turn to others before his dream began to be fulfilled in 1950. Yet the key to making xerography a commercial success was an organization that allowed extensive innovation in development, manufacturing, and marketing of his invention. Another of our innovators, Fred Smith of Federal Express, was an entrepreneur rather than an inventor. He also displayed enormous individual zeal in launching the innovation that was the product of his own mind, though he is the first to insist that he didn’t do it alone. Far more common in recent years are brilliant individuals such as Brattain, Bardeen, Shockley, Maiman, Alberts, Borel, Maurer, and Ginsburg, whose achievements resulted from work performed in commercial laboratories and research centers. Significantly, few if any of these industrial innovators had personal financial gain as the primary motivation for their efforts. The quest for knowledge, the desire to improve the lot for humanity, and the prestige of historic accomplishment were of primary importance to most of them. Of course, it must be stressed that few had much choice in the matter. Although permitting the name of the individual scientist to be given on the patent, virtually all major research organizations require employees to sign advance agreements that automatically conf...
