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Questions answered in this forum: What exactly can scientists patent? Should we limit people's right to patent discoveries? How do you balance the need for long-term research versus the need for profits? Do politics affect scientific activities? What are the underlying economic and institutional issues? Viewer Comments. NewsHour Coverage February 24, 1997 Scientists clone an adult mammal for the first time. January 1, 1997 Paul Solman reviews a banner year for gene research. Browse the NewsHour's coverage of the Science. OUTSIDE LINKS Biotechnology Industry Organization Science Online

Cluttered with scientific disputes and competing theories, the road to scientific discovery has never been smooth. But, increasingly, another factor has entered laboratory debate: money. The revolution in biotechnology has turned universities and non-profit research institutes into potential gold mines for scientists exploring areas such as human genetics. Now, it's not uncommon for scientists to patent potentially lucrative findings before publishing their research. Considering the money and potential profits involved, it's understandable why scientists are quick to patent their work. According to Biotechnology Industry Organizations, the U.S. biotechnology industry was worth $83 billion in 1996, up 60 percent from 1995. And the biotech industry spent $7.9 billion on research and development in 1996, often in critical areas such as genetics, birth defects and neurology. But does the rush to patent ground-breaking techniques inhibit the free flow of ideas and the rigorous debate that is critical to science? The National Institutes of Health, the federal government's key player in biological and medical research, has heard so many complaints on license restrictions that it's director, Dr. Harold Varmus, has created a panel to set basic policies for the field. What do you think? Does the draw of big dollars disrupt the openness critical to scientific research? Can compromises be found that allow research to proceed while protecting intellectual property rights? Dr. Floyd Bloom a neurologist who is editor-in-chief of Science, a journal published by the American Academy for the Advancement of Science, and Prof. Rebecca Eisenberg, a University of Michigan law professor who specializes in biotechnology patents, answer your questions. Dr. George Milne, senior vice president of Pfizer Inc and president of Pfizer Central Research, was scheduled to participate in this forum, but could not. Questions answered in this forum: What exactly can scientists patent? Should we limit people's right to patent discoveries? How do you balance the need for long-term research versus the need for profits? Do politics affect scientific activities? What are the underlying economic and institutional issues? Viewer Comments.

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