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neering schools, in particular MIT, and the new high technology industries,the Americans were far faster than the Europeans in developingtwo new disciplines directly connected to the technologies of theseindustries: chemical engineering and electrical engineering. These fieldsinvolved both research and training.Partly as a result of American strength in Chemical engineering, theAmerican organic chemical products industry moved much more quicklythan did the European to shift its base from coal to petroleum, a shiftthat enabled the significant economies of continuous processing. Andthe American electrical systems companies developed an advantage inelectrical systems engineering.IV. R and D Systems, and the Roles of GovernmentThe discussion above leads naturally into reflection on what illuminationone can draw from the studies of national and sectoral innovationsystems regarding the roles Government plays in effective R and Dsystems. First of all, the focus on institutions in these studies leads oneto see Government programs and policies in terms of how they moldand affect the operation of a complex of institutions, rather than analyzingthem as forces and factors in their own right. Thus the institutionalsystems view of things leads analysis of a Government programof support of university research in biotechnology to consider thebroader menu of research at those universities, university-industry interactionsin the field of biotechnology, how new biotechnology firmsget formed, and related issues.Second, the central role of firms in the process of technological innovationcomes through loud and clear in both the national systems andthe sectoral systems studies. Without strong firms, or firms with thecapability to become strong, national policies to spur technological innovationare «pushing on a string», to use a term that used to be employedto denote conditions under which loosening credit conditions wouldhave no impact on real investment. In most (not all — for examplefarming is an exception, and there are others) Government R and DDebates2 7 6Sociedade, Tecnologia e Inovação Empresarial