Common bases in Russian and US history have triggered new thinking in Russia about how to use privately owned patent rights and cooperative government-university-industry technology transfer arrangements to secure successful market commercialization and peaceful adaptation of publicly-owned bio-warfare technologies. The American experience in innovation and intellectual property (patents and trade secrets) may thus be advantageous to use in Russia.

'Researchers in western companies want to know what their competitors are doing but it can be a challenge when many of those competitors are in countries like China or Korea. Siân Harris finds out how patent information providers are tackling the language barrier.'