Template-type: ReDif-Paper 1.0 
Author-Name: Nomaler, Onder
Author-Email: O.Nomaler@tue.nl
Author-workplace-name: UNU-MERIT, and Eindhoven University of Technology
Author-Name: Verspagen, Bart
Author-Email: verspagen@merit.unu.edu
Author-workplace-name: UNU-MERIT, and Maastricht University, SBE
Title: River deep, mountain high: Of long-run knowledge trajectories within and between 
	 innovation clusters  
Abstract: We bring together the topics of geographical clusters and technological 
	 trajectories, and shift the focus of the analysis of regional innovation 
	 to main technological trends rather than firms. We define a number of 
	 inventive clusters in the US space and show that long chains of 
	 citations mostly take place between these clusters. This is reminiscent 
	 of the idea of global pipelines of knowledge transfer that is found in 
	 the geographical literature. The deep citations are used to identify 
	 technological trajectories, which are the main directions along which 
	 incremental technological progress accumulates into larger changes. 
	 While the origin and destination of these trajectories are concentrated 
	 in space, the intermediate nodes travel long distances and cover many 
	 locations across the globe. We conclude by calling for more theoretical 
	 and empirical attention to the "deep rivers" that connect the "high 
	 mountains" of local knowledge production.
Keywords: patent citations, regional concentration of inventive activities,
	 technological trajectories, regional clusters, technological trends
Classification-JEL: O33, O31, R11
Series: UNU-MERIT Working Papers
Creation-Date: 20160914
Number: 2016-048
File-URL: https://unu-merit.nl/publications/wppdf/2016/wp2016-048.pdf
File-Format: application/pdf
File-Size: 275 kb
Handle: RePEc:unm:unumer:2016048