The volume provides, in a widely accessible format, a non-conventional approach to the so-called “technology transfer”: an increasingly crucial issue at national and international level. The aim is to provide an overview of the phenomenon, by bringing together the most important contributions in various social sciences – economy, law, sociology, anthropology, politics – in order to reflect on the manifold aspects of technology transfer. And reaching the provocative conclusion that the expression “technology transfer” should perhaps be abolished and replaced with the more problematic and richer notion of “productive transformation of knowledge”.
The core of the volume is a dictionary of 58 entries, each written by some of the most important Italian social scientists, which consider four categories of relevant topics: concepts, institutions, politics, operational tools for productive transformation of knowledge. A series of brief chapters offers interpretations and reading paths, guiding the reader through the dictionary.
The volume results from a working group coordinated by Andrea Bonaccorsi and Massimiano Bucchi: Piero Bassetti, Mario Calderini, Aldo Geuna, Michela Nacci, Paolo Perulli, Sergio Ristuccia, Maurizio Sobrero.
