Slashdot Mirror
Siberia - The Next Silicon Valley?
eldavojohn writes "CNN Money is running a story about Siberia's rising tech industry.The movement towards tech is centered in Akademgorodok (Academy Town), with a 15 percent annual increase in the number of firms. Even though the area industry's worth is still fledgling compared to other areas, the growth cannot be ignored. 'President Vladimir Putin has also taken note, backing the construction of a $650 million technology business district with $100 million in state funding for infrastructure. "We simply mustn't waste this chance," Putin declared in Akademgorodok following a 2005 trip to tech-savvy India, "especially as other countries have achieved success without such a strong starting position." High tech is the sort of thing that the Kremlin, realizing that Russia's natural resources can't last forever, would like to develop.'"
Because, you know, Siberia has that *awesome* weather, system of law, and quality of life that attracts highly skilled and talented people... It would more like be a digital gulag for arrested Russian hackers :P
Given the excellent track record Moscow has exhibited in the past when it comes to use centralized planning to revamp the economy, feed their hungry, expand their ideology and beat America in the cold war, it is a cinch. Definitely the new venture will succeed. All Putin has to do is to order, "Innovate" and the Russians are going to innovate like gangbusters. Well, that is all the feedback Putin is getting for his bold new initiative. How can it ever go wrong?
sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
igny wrote:
Yes, and George Bush has learned a lot from the KGB's example.
Seriously, what kind of innovation are you talking about? Sputnik seemed like a big deal at the time, but in retrospect it looks like a very tiny stunt compared to the panic it induced.