Patent activity at colleges has jumped in both quantity and quality over the last five years. Data provided exclusively to Technology Review by CHI Research in Haddon Heights, NJ, which ranks universities by technological strength (a measure combining both the number of patents issued and their relevance) reveal how great the upsurge is. In fact, in 2002, 13 of the top 25 universities saw a 50 percent or greater increase over the number of patents issued in 1997, six of which have seen increases of 100 percent or more (download Excel spreadsheet).

At some institutions, a mere handful of discoveries helped bump up rankings. John Ritter, director of Princeton University's Office of Technology Licensing and Intellectual Property says its jump from 43rd in 1997 to sixth in 2002 may be due to heavily cited patents, such as one for a three-color organic light-emitting device that could yield more-efficient flat-panel displays.