Page 40: of Marine Technology Magazine (March 2013)

URI Scientist Seek SolutionsDiscovering Rhode Island Education URI Scientist Seek SolutionsThere is so much research going on in the state of Rhode Island that its Science & Technology Advisory Coun- cil (STAC) gives out annual research grants to research teams already working on projects to facilitate even more col- laborative research. The goal is to give a boost to those proj- ects that have the best shot at attracting signiÞ cant follow-on funding from government agencies or commercial interest. STACÕs program is indicative of the depth and breadth of research underway across the state in its universities, busi- nesses, defense and government laboratories, and of the po- tential lurking just beneath the surface for entrepreneurs and established companies to proÞ t from technological advances. The scientiÞ c community here is constantly percolating with projects looking into all aspects of the marine sciences, pro-ducing reams of data that can answer questions, solve prob- lems or inform business decisions involving virtually every aspect of ocean-going enterprise and equipment.But to solve problems, you need to be in the know. The best way to do that is to tap into the people who do know, or who at least can Þ gure out what it is you need to know, and who can then help you exploit all that knowledge. And the best way to do that in in the subsea world is to team up with the experts at either the Naval Underwater Warfare Center (NUWC) or any one of the appropriate URI nationally recognized marine sciences departments or innovative Òcen- ters of excellence.Ó ÒThere is a huge heritage of technology around Narragan-sett Bay, walking around in the heads of these brainy engineers who have worked on these projects over the years. When you have people like that, you get a lot of start-up companies,Ó said Credit: University of Rhode Island URI students, technicians and scientists launch the remotely operated vehicle ?Hercules? into the Black Sea to study the geology of the sea oor. By Patricia KeefeMarch 2013 40 MTRMTR #2 (34-49).indd 40MTR #2 (34-49).indd 403/6/2013 1:13:41 PM3/6/2013 1:13:41 PM