What: The Department of Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate wants help bringing the technology it sponsors to market.

Why: S&T underwrites the development of technology to help emergency first responders, protect computer networks, support disaster resilience and more. Now it's looking for help to commercialize its success stories.

Very few words are worth being engraved in gold and this is one of them: “It is impossible to be an entrepreneur if you don’t start.”

Inaction is probably the deadliest disease aspiring entrepreneurs face. You may have an incredible idea, a beautifully laid out plan and a dream to match but those are not enough to make you worthy of the title “entrepreneur”. That’s why Select Blinds’ CEO, Rick Steele’s words will ring true for a lifetime.

Research Triangle Park’s efforts to bolster its agtech cluster – even amid BigAg consolidation– was the focus of this week’s Triangle Business Journal cover story.

It involved exploring tempered glass greenhouses, insectories and getting to know the people pushing for more plant science in the park, like John Dombrosky, CEO of the new AgTech Accelerator.

You have a killer startup idea. You want a team to help make it a reality. But, you don’t have the money to hire anybody -- yet. If only you could find co-founders who were willing to work for equity!

But, the right cofounders can be exotic animals -- you don’t see them walk by your front door every day. So, how do you find them? Here are some suggestions.

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Cuyahoga County's partnership with JumpStart, in which the venture development organization invests county money in startups and early stage businesses, has paid off.

A company JumpStart invested in, CoverMyMeds, recently sold to McKesson for over $1 billion. As a result, the county will receive back its entire $4.5 million investment, while remaining a part of two investment funds. That way the county will receive more returns as more companies succeed, the county said in a statement.

Image: Sam Rajan, a pharmacist, cofounded CoverMyMeds software company, which was acquired by McKesson Corp, for $1.1 billion. In this 2014 file photo, he's talking with a Walgreens pharmacy manager. (Lynn Ischay, The Plain Dealer) 

Four out of five Australian executives agree that technology development is no longer a linear process, but is happening exponentially. In the Accenture Technology Vision 2017, the overriding message is that as technology becomes more sophisticated, it’s not the technology itself that’s driving change – it’s us. 

The Technology Vision 2017 contains five key trends, which underpin the overarching theme of a "people first" approach to business and technology. 

Image: http://mashable.com 

With an acceptance rate of just 8.8% and typical SAT scores between 1500 and 1600, the California Institute of Technology is America's hardest college to get into, according to a list from academic review site Niche.com.

The rankings are based on acceptance rates and SAT and ACT scores reported to the US Department of Education. College acceptance rates received a weighted average of 60% in the ranking computation, and SAT/ACT scores received a weighted average of 40%. 

Being attacked by a shark? Don't panic. As the weather warms in the U.S. and more swimmers head into the water, there is a rising likelihood of shark attacks. While the chances of being bitten are still very small, experts say it’s important to be prepared and not just thrash around in terror if the worst happens. "We need to remember that sharks rarely ever bite people," said Chris Lowe, a marine biologist and director of Shark Lab at California State University, Long Beach. "But (swimmers) do need to be aware that sharks may be present."

WELLESLEY, Mass., April 11, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Babson College F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business has launched a Business and Social Innovation Intensity Track for MBA students, focused on developing the mindset, skills, and competencies needed to create economic and social value simultaneously.

„The Business and Social Innovation Intensity Track is reinforcing Babson’s commitment to improving our society through business education,” says Graduate School Dean William Lamb. „We believe our students graduating through this intensity track will be well equipped to created economic and social value in their careers.”

At some point in nearly every startup founder's journey, he or she will wonder whether to apply to join an accelerator. It's an idea worth pondering. The funding, mentorship, and networking opportunities some accelerators can provide have proven key to the success of countless startups in Silicon Valley and beyond. Moreover, for first-time entrepreneurs especially, gaining acceptance into an accelerator provides validation that all the time you've poured into building an idea from scratch might actually pay off.

In coming years, the millennial generation will be poised to take over the C-suite from baby boomers. But what kind of leaders will they turn out to be? A new report sheds light on the leadership styles of millennials, and debunks some stereotypes. It turns out they are more like the older generation than originally thought, and the current differences are mainly due to the life stage that they are in, according to “Divergent Views/Common Ground: The Leadership Perspectives of C-Suite Executives and Millennial Leaders,” a report by The Conference Board, RW2 Enterprises and Development Dimensions International.

Sleep is critical for high performance. Deep down, everybody knows this. But, it tends to be the first thing neglected during busy, high-stress periods. People require quality sleep—especially entrepreneurs, who need that one-percent edge to beat the competition.

As an entrepreneur, it’s vital that you learn how to perform at your peak efficiency. This means that you need to set the stage for a successful business day — every day. This means it’s all about developing habits that allow you to settle into a routine and accomplish more. It doesn’t mean working more. It’s about using your time to build meaning in your life while setting the stage to be successful in business as well.

Mechanical engineers at UC Berkeley conducted a study to observe why shoelaces always come untied. They hope the study leads to understanding why other knots, like DNA and microstructures, also unravel under dynamic forces. 

It started as a whisper. Back in 2008, Goldman Sachs, which originally coined the term returnships, began a high-level, paid internship program for professionals returning to the workforce after an extended absence, with the opportunity for a permanent role. The participants were mostly women who had dropped out to raise children and now wanted to restart their careers.

Image: Lisa Unwin is cofounder of U.K.-based She’s Back, which helps women build careers with a focus on work–family balance and advises companies on how to attract and retain more women.  - https://www.strategy-business.com

TORONTO , April 12, 2017 /CNW/ - The Calgary startup community received a funding boost from investors today. GE Canada (GE), GE Ventures, BDC Capital and Ryerson Futures Inc. announced the ZSC Seed Accelerator Fund during BDC's Canadian Corporate Innovation Summit. The fund will help companies in Zone Startups Calgary (ZSC), an accelerator that drives growth of startups in the industrial internet of things, cybersecurity and energy sectors, on their paths to commercialization.

On this episode, Entrepreneur Network partner Natalie MacNeil explains why it's impossible to be an entrepreneur without being creative -- if you can't come up with an interesting solution to an old problem, you'll never make it in the business world. However, too many people get caught up in the daily grind to make time for creativity. So, with that in mind, MacNeil gives her five best tips for staying organized and making sure you don't ignore one of the most important parts of entrepreneurship.

Image: https://www.entrepreneur.com - from video

“There’s something in the water.” I often heard that expression when someone referenced a widespread occurrence, the cause of which was puzzling or unexplainable. But if it’s Memphis water, I know what is in it: the soul of an entrepreneur.

In Memphis, for whatever reason, entrepreneurship grows in abundance. Memphis is a land of opportunity for anyone with a good idea and the work ethic to back it up. And now, there is even documentation to prove and celebrate it.

The armed conflict in eastern Ukraine has not only disrupted everyday life in the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk but also led to staggering unemployment. Out of 23 major enterprises in Luhansk region, 19 are currently not operating, while half of the enterprises in the Donetsk region have lost about 950,000 jobs.

Supporting employment is challenging in the best of circumstances and far more so in conflict situations.

Image: 71 year-old Pavlo, blacksmith from Lugansk, opened his workshop in the Kharkiv region. Photo: UNDP Ukraine - http://www.undp.org