заранее премного благадарна

Technology parks have been in existence in the United States since at least the early 1950's and have since spread around the world, with new technology parks continually arising. Originally, the term "technology park" had a very limited definition, focusing on the real estate aspect of the park concept, in which universities typically leased real estate, office space or research facilities to businesses. Sometimes these arrangements are referred to as "industrial estates"1 or "firm hotels."2 The term, however, has evolved to include a much broader range of functions, including economic development and technology transfer.

While definitions on the subject vary widely, the definition we have focused on in our research describes a "technology park" as one that:

is linked with educational or research institutions
provides infrastructure and support services for businesses, particularly real estate and office space
performs a technology transfer function
performs an economic development function
Note, however, that not all technology parks will meet all of these characteristics and some may contain additional functions. As the British Council explains in their definition, "[T]he term 'Science Park' can encompass a range of initiatives which can vary greatly, even within any one country. There is thus no question of a rigid definition or of a single transferable model being appropriate throughout the world."

For example, in 1993 in the United States, the average technology park has 200 acres, over 200,000 square feet of buildings, 12 tenant companies, 300 employees and a $250,000 operating budget.3 Parks outside the United States often are smaller in size and can be found in a variety of settings, from sprawling green spaces in rural areas to "vertical parks" in high rise buildings in larger cities. To date, there are 212 technology parks that are members of the International Association of Science Parks4 and 295 members of the Association of University Research Parks.5

Formal definitions of "science park" and "technology park" can be found at the following links:

International Association of Science Parks
Association of University Research Parks
Financial Times Industry Report on UK Science Parks
UK Science Park Association
A rose by any other name . . .

As much as there is no consistent definition for "technology park," there is also no consistent term for the functions that a technology park provides. While in the United States, "technology park," "research park" or "research and technology park" are frequently used, "science park" is popular in Britain and Europe and "technopole" is widely used in France. The following is a list of terms that are often used interchangeably with "technology park":

business park
cyber park
hi-tech park
industrial park
innovation center
R&D park
research park
research and technology park
science and technology park
science city
science park
technology incubator
technology park
technopark
technopole
technopolis
For an article that distinguishes between science parks, incubators and technopoles, see the following link:

The British Council, "Briefing Sheet on Science Parks," http://www.britishcouncil.org/science/science/pubs/briefsht/science_parks/parks. htm, visited December 11, 2001.