Closer links between the state's research universities and industry must be forged if California is to harness the extraordinary "intellectual firepower" available to help it overcome its strugglefor economic competitiveness, says UC Davis Chancellor Theodore L. Hullar. Chair of the California Council on Science and Technology and the National Research Council's board on agriculture, Hullar believes barriers to university-industry collaboration can be surmounted and basic research findings expeditiously developed into commercial products and valuable technologies. Such collaboration creates jobs for the state and generates income (from patents on research discoveries) for universities and government laboratories, which are often hard-pressed for dollars to maintain state-of-the-art scientific programs and teaching facilities. Elsewhere, such as in Japan and Germany, these strong, interactive relationships have long been established through special agencies and institutes, the chancellor notes.