Business information provider Thomson Reuters, US, has recognised Australia’s continuing influence on international scientific research and innovation. Thomson Reuters announced a total of 19 Australian-affiliated recipients including 12 of the most influential researchers and seven most innovative organisations during the 2012 Thomson Reuters Australia Citation & Innovation Awards event held at the National Press Club. The recipients were selected based on citation impact and patent analysis completed by Thomson Reuters.
This event is part of a series of Asia Pacific Research Days hosted by Thomson Reuters to recognise research excellence in the region demonstrating how various communities are leading the world through innovation in their respective fields. Similar events have taken place previously in China, India, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.
In selecting the Citation Awardees, a shortlist of candidates for each field was established using the h-index indicator which measures both the volume and impact of a researcher’s contribution to his or her field. The 12 Citation Awardees were then selected from the candidates using a quantitative process which identifies the average number of citations per paper their published research has over a period of time as indexed in the Thomson Reuters Web of Science multidisciplinary citation database. This covers a 10-year period from January 2002 to October 2011 for published research with at least one author affiliated to an Australian organisation. The average number of citations per paper reflects the scientific influence of the published research in the given field.
The fields from which the Citation Awardees were drawn represent national strengths – either because of the size of Australia’s contribution to the global body of knowledge or because of its impact. The wide range of subject areas covered - astronomy & astrophysics, ecology, environmental studies, economics, neurosciences and psychology - illustrates the strength and diversity of academic research within Australia and the innovation inherent among its scientists.
Apart from the 12 Australian Citation Awardees, seven institutional recipients of the 2012 Thomson Reuters Innovation Awards in seven categories were also recognised during the award ceremony.
All academic institutions and enterprises headquartered in Australia were included for consideration for the 2012 Thomson Reuters Innovation Award. The award recipients were selected based on analysis using Thomson Reuters Derwent World Patents Index data, Thomson Innovation, the premier IP intelligence and collaboration platform, and Thomson Data Analyzer.
Criteria used to assess the level of innovation of candidate institutions and companies include the size of patent portfolio, success rate, extent of globalisation and influence of the innovation. The most patent prolific collaborations between the top 10 ranked universities and companies were analysed using the methodology outlined above to determine the Best Collaboration Award recipient.
