1,706 research outputs found
Interplay between technologies and development of metropolitan areas and firms
No full textThis thesis aims to employ principles and methodologies from physics to survey, comprehend, and model the patent-related activities of companies and cities to uncover and quantify their economic role and impact.
Technological innovation and patenting play pivotal roles in enhancing the economic prosperity of nations, regions, cities and firms. Extensive research has consistently demonstrated a positive correlation between technological innovation and economic growth. Simultaneously, increased patenting activity drives competitiveness in product exports and fosters scientific progress. Thus, technological advancement and patenting are powerful catalysts in pursuing global progress and economic growth. The focus of my research is on cities due to their significant role in various contexts, including production and dissemination, scientific knowledge, and cultural exchange.
Moreover, firms are the main drivers of innovation. Just think of the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI), for which in recent years there has been a dramatic increase in corporate spending on related research projects, or the role of companies during the COVID-19 pandemic in developing vaccines at a rate unsustainable for academic actors. Given companies’ prominent role in scientific and technological progress, understanding the predictability of corporate patent output is critical for several actors. Indeed, it can help managers identify effective innovation strategies and high-potential investment opportunities, and policymakers design effective policies that promote entrepreneurship and accelerate human progress.
This PhD thesis contributes to developing the field of Economic Complexity (EC), i.e. the study of economics through the means used by the physics of Complex Systems, by introducing new methods of analysis and models that can shed light on issues arising from the economic and development impact of companies and cities from their patent activity.
This thesis is structured as follows. First, I present a general discussion on EC to set the framework for this thesis and present general considerations on both macro and micro aspects of EC. The first consists of presenting and discussing the Economic Fitness and Complexity (EFC) algorithm, a tool that quantifies how competitive, for example, a country is in exporting a product or, in the case of this thesis, how competitive a city or company is in technological development. The second concerns Similarity and Relatedness calculations, since they are fundamental tools in my research. These measures quantify respectively the similarity between different technology activities, and the relationship between a city or firm and a specific technology activity. After this general introduction, in chapter 2, I present the database and data preparation, a process essential to the results obtained. Finally, to discuss the contribution of my research, I present the results, which can be found also in the following publications:
[1] Matteo Straccamore, Luciano Pietronero, and Andrea Zaccaria. Which will be your firm’s next technology? Comparison between machine learning and network-based algorithms. Journal of Physics: Complexity, 3(3):035002, 2022;
[2] Lorenzo Arsini, Matteo Straccamore, and Andrea Zaccaria. Prediction and visualization of mergers and acquisitions using economic complexity. Plos one, 18(4):e0283217, 2023;
[3] Matteo Straccamore, Matteo Bruno, Bernardo Monechi, and Vittorio Loreto. Urban economic fitness and complexity from patent data. Scientific Reports, 13(1):3655, 2023;
[4] Matteo Straccamore, Vittorio Loreto, and Pietro Gravino. The geography of technological innovation dynamics. Scientific Reports, 13(1):21043, 2023.
In the last two chapters, I present the main results of this work. Chapter 3 presents the findings related to firms, as published in [1] and [2]. In [1], we show how Relatedness and Similarity measures can predict the future technological output of companies by offering the superiority of Machine Learning (ML). Moreover, we introduce the Continuos Technology Space, a tool able to solve the interpretability problems of the ML by projecting the forecast results on a 2D plane. In [2], we exploit firms’ technology activity to find how Similarity and Relatedness measures can be used to forecast Mergers & Acquisitions between companies. All this is done by only using information about the patent activity of firms. Chapter 4 is devoted to cities. In [3], we highlight the importance of patent activity in determining economic welfare in cities. Also, we show how it is more important for cities to know the degree of coherence of their technology production (i.e., how close and similar the technologies produced by a city) than how many technologies are made. A city with a more coherent technology basket will have a better chance of economic growth.
Finally, in [4], we study state institutions’ importance in inter-city technology diffusion. To do this, we define a new measure of Relatedness that considers the belonging of two cities to the same country. In addition to giving better prediction results, the new measure is fully interpretable. Our evidence suggests that political geography has been highly important for the diffusion of innovation till around two decades ago, slowly declining afterwards in favour of a more global innovation ecosystem.
In conclusion, this thesis presents different findings in the field of technological development and innovation diffusion:
1. Technological Output Prediction in Companies: Demonstrated that Machine Learning, enhanced by the Continuous Technology Space for interpretability, can effectively predict companies' future technological output using Relatedness and Similarity measures.
2. Forecasting Mergers & Acquisitions: Showed that firms' patent activities can predict Mergers \& Acquisitions, emphasizing the importance of technological Similarity and Relatedness in corporate consolidations.
3. Economic Welfare in Cities: Highlighted the crucial role of patent activity and the coherence of technology production in driving a city's economic growth, rather than the quantity of technologies developed.
4. Inter-City Technology Diffusion: Introduced a new Relatedness measure considering cities' political geography, revealing a shift from a politically influenced innovation diffusion to a more globalized approach in recent decades.
These findings collectively enhance our understanding of how technological innovation and strategic alignment influence economic and corporate dynamics
Prediction and visualization of mergers and acquisitions using economic complexity
No full textMergers and Acquisitions represent important forms of business deals, both because of the volumes involved in the transactions and because of the role of the innovation activity of companies. Nevertheless, Economic Complexity methods have not been applied to the study of this field. By considering the patent activity of about one thousand companies, we develop a method to predict future acquisitions by assuming that companies deal more frequently with technologically related ones. We address both the problem of predicting a pair of companies for a future deal and that of finding a target company given an acquirer. We compare different forecasting methodologies, including machine learning and network-based algorithms, showing that a simple angular distance with the addition of the industry sector information outperforms the other approaches. Finally, we present the Continuous Company Space, a two-dimensional representation of firms to visualize their technological proximity and possible deals. Companies and policymakers can use this approach to identify companies most likely to pursue deals or explore possible innovation strategies
Urban economic fitness and complexity from patent data
No full textOver the years, the growing availability of extensive datasets about registered patents allowed researchers to better understand technological innovation drivers. In this work, we investigate how the technological contents of patents characterise the development of metropolitan areas and how innovation is related to GDP per capita. Exploiting worldwide data from 1980 to 2014, and through network-based techniques that only use information about patents, we identify coherent distinguished groups of metropolitan areas, either clustered in the same geographical area or similar from an economic point of view. We also extend the concept of coherent diversification to patent production by showing how it represents a decisive factor in the economic growth of metropolitan areas. These results confirm a picture in which technological innovation can lead and steer the economic development of cities, opening, in this way, the possibility of adopting the tools introduced here to investigate the interplay between urban development and technological innovation
Which will be your firm’s next technology? Comparison between machine learning and network-based algorithms
No full textWe reconstruct the innovation dynamics of about two hundred thousand companies by following their patenting activity for about ten years. We define the technological portfo- lios of these companies as the set of the technological sectors present in the patents they submit. By assuming that companies move more frequently towards related sectors, we leverage on their past activity to build network-based and machine learning algorithms to forecast the future submissions of patents in new sectors. We compare different prediction methodologies using suitable evaluation metrics, showing that tree-based machine learning algorithms outperform the standard methods based on networks of co-occurrences. This methodology can be applied by firms and policymakers to disentangle, given the present innovation activity, the feasible technological sectors from those that are out of reach
The geography of technological innovation dynamics
No full textCities and metropolitan areas are major drivers of creativity and innovation in all possible sectors: scientific, technological, social, artistic, etc. The critical concentration and proximity of diverse mindsets and opportunities, supported by efficient infrastructures, enable new technologies and ideas to emerge, thrive, and trigger further innovation. Though this pattern seems well established, geography’s role in the emergence and diffusion of new technologies still needs to be clarified. An additional important question concerns the identification of the technological innovation pathways of metropolitan areas. Here, we explore the factors that influence the spread of technology among metropolitan areas worldwide and how geography and political borders impact this process.
Our evidence suggests that political geography has been highly important for the diffusion of technological innovation till around two decades ago, slowly declining afterwards in favour of a more global patenting ecosystem. Further, the visualisation of the evolution of countries and metropolitan areas in a 2d space of competitiveness and diversification reveals the existence of two main technological innovation pathways, discriminating between different strategies towards progress. Our work provides insights for policymakers seeking to promote economic growth and technological advancement through tailored investments in prioritarian technological innovation areas
TUTELA DEL LAVORO E LIBERTA' D'IMPRESA NEI PROCESSI DI ESTERNALIZZAZIONE
No full textL’elaborato analizza le conseguenze lavoristiche della successione fra imprenditori, muovendo da una ricognizione delle varie tipologie di esternalizzazione con le relative esigenze e principali criticità.
L’indagine si concentra in primo luogo sul trasferimento d’azienda, esaminando la normativa e la giurisprudenza europee per passare poi alla disciplina di diritto interno, alle procedure sindacali e a uno specifico focus sul trasferimento delle aziende in crisi.
Successivamente l’autore si sofferma sull’appalto, prendendone in particolare considerazione gli indici di genuinità, i criteri di distinzione dalla somministrazione illecita di manodopera e la tutela delle maestranze in caso di avvicendamento fra imprese.
Da ultimo, la ricerca approfondisce le c.d. “clausole sociali”, sia di prima che di seconda generazione, valutandone la compatibilità con il diritto eurounitario e con la costituzione nonché riflettendo sui possibili rimedi in caso di loro violazione.The author analyzes the labour consequences of the succession between entrepreneurs, starting from a recognition of the various types of outsourcing with the related needs and main critical issues.
The survey focuses primarily on the transfer of businesses, examining European legislation and case-law and then moving on to internal legislation, trade union procedures and a specific focus on the transfer of companies in crisis.
The author then dwells on the contract, taking into account in particular the indications of authenticity, the criteria of distinction from the illicit administration of labour and the protection of workers in the event of turnover between companies.
Finally, the research deepens the "social clauses", both first and second generation, assessing their compatibility with European law and with the constitution and reflecting on possible remedies in case of their violation
Spaces of innovation and venture formation: the case of biotech in the United Kingdom
No full textPatents serve as valuable indicators of innovation and provide insights into
the spaces of innovation and venture formation within geographic regions. In
this study, we utilise patent data to examine the dynamics of innovation and
venture formation in the biotech sector across the United Kingdom (UK). By
analysing patents, we identify key regions that drive biotech innovation in the
UK. Our findings highlight the crucial role of biotech incubators in
facilitating knowledge exchange between scientific research and industry.
However, we observe that the incubators themselves do not significantly
contribute to the diversity of innovations which might be due to the underlying
effect of geographic proximity on the influences and impact of the patents.
These insights contribute to our understanding of the historical development
and future prospects of the biotech sector in the UK, emphasising the
importance of promoting innovation diversity and fostering inclusive enterprise
for achieving equitable economic growth
Ultra Low Carbon Vehicles: New Parameters for Automotive Design
No full textAs the influence of vehicle emissions on our environment has become better understood, the UK government has recently placed urgent emphasis on the implementation of low carbon
technologies in the automotive industry through: the UK Low Carbon Industrial Strategy. The overall objective is to offer big incentives to consumers and support for the development of infrastructure and engineering solutions. This scheme however does not consider how the development of functional and experiential user value might drive consumer demand, contributing to the adoption of low carbon vehicles (LCVs) in the mass market.
With the emergence of the North East of England as the UK’s first specialised region for the development of ultra-low carbon vehicles (ULCVs), ONE North East, as a development agency for the region's economic and business development, and Northumbria University Ideas-lab have supported a project to facilitate innovation through the collaboration of technology, research and development (R&D) and business. The High Value Low Carbon (HVLC) project aims to envisage
new user value made possible by the integration of low carbon vehicle platforms with new process and network technologies. The HVLC consortium represents vehicle manufacturers and their suppliers as well as technology based companies and through an ongoing process of design concept generation the project offers a hub for innovation led enterprise.
Whilst new technological developments in areas such as power generation, nano materials, hydrogen fuel cells, printed electronics and networked communications will all impact on future automotive design, the mass adoption of low carbon technologies represents a paradigm shift for the motorist. This paper aims to describe how the mapping of new parameters will lead to new transport scenarios that will create the space for new collaborative research on user experiences supported by innovative technologies and related services
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Matteo Maria Boiardo (1441-1494)
No full textMatteo Maria Boiardo – contemporary of Sir Thomas Malory and forerunner of Shakespeare, Spenser, Milton, Cervantes, Tolkien, and C.S. Lewis – is best known as the author of the Orlando Innamorato [Orlando in Love], a poem in ottava rima organically merging Carolingian epic and Arthurian romance. He was also a lyric and pastoral poet, playwright, and translator of classical texts into the Italian vernacular. Matteo was active in Italy during the years of 1463 throughout 1494, the year of his death
Uno sguardo all'Est. Lavoro e diritti fondamentali in Russia e negli altri Paesi della Comunità di Stati indipendenti
No full textNel contributo l'autore, dopo aver esaminato i diritti fondamentali del lavoro presenti nelle Costituzioni dei Paesi della Comunità di Stati indipendenti, si sofferma sul diritto del lavoro russo. La trattazione, a carattere diacronico, abbraccia i rami principali del diritto del lavoro: il rapporto individuale, le relazioni collettive, il mercato del lavoro. L'autore rileva una sorprendente continuità nelle linee essenziali del diritto del lavoro russo, pur nel susseguirsi di sistemi socioeconomici completamente diversi. Egli conclude che il diritto del lavoro russo appartiene saldamente alla matrice europea della materia.The contribution of the author starts by examining fundamental labour rights recognised by the Constitutions of the Countries of the Community of Independent States. Then the author focuses upon Russian Labour Law, going through the history of the main branches of the discipline: the individual relationship, industrial relations, the labour market. The article finds a surprising continuity in the essential lines of Russian Labour Law, in spite of the completely different socio-economic systems that were experimented in Russia during the twentieth century. The author concludes that Russian Labour Law clearly belongs to the European matrix of the discipline
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