Abstract

Ken Birman: Real World Impact: Opening Pandora's Box

Most of us work hard on our research and want to see the best ideas live on beyond the penultimate journal paper.  But changing the world can be quite a challenge, and taking a proven idea down the path to a successful product isn't always pleasant.  This talk will look at the differences between academic research and commercial "research and development" with a focus on what it takes to move some of our best successes into the hands of real users.  The good news is that real users have checkbooks.  The bad news is that "research" really means very different things in academic and commercial contexts, and the gap can be much harder to bridge than many researchers are prepared to accept.