Capellas: biotech needs computing collaboration

Biotechnology will reach its potential only if companies involved in related markets collaborate and focus on standards-based technologies rather than proprietary work, said Michael Capellas, chairman and chief executive officer of Compaq, on Thursday.

Capellas is largely hopeful about the future of biotech and the role that his company will play - whether or not Compaq is acquired by Hewlett-Packard - but he repeatedly noted that much work remains to be done.

In order to build the kinds of computers necessary to bring about true innovation and reach the "Holy Grail" of bio-research, it might be necessary for computer utility companies to sell time and processing power to subscribers in much the same way the electric utilities operate today, he said. Building the machines that can process the kinds of disparate data needed to create virtual human models, for instance, will require standardization, a dedicated collaboration among industry, government and educational institutions, and a rethinking of how intellectual property is handled and patented, he said.

Collaboration could well lead to cures for specific diseases, new research on aging and the creation of "virtual patients" built on medical histories, current health and genetics, which could help doctors figure out where a person is headed health-wise and how best to help them.

Computation itself is the cornerstone of biotechnology, making it crucial that IT vendors work together to develop faster processors, better I/O systems, more robust caching technologies and improved storage systems using standards-based software, he said.

In addition, it will require people who can work with computers and build the mathematical algorithms necessary for advanced modelling, as well as experts in a variety of fields who are comfortable and knowledgeable about technology. Capellas lamented the lack of computer science majors and mathematics majors graduating from colleges and universities today and said the industry will feel this in coming years.

"I am very concerned by the vanishing breed of computer scientists," he said. For the past seven years, he said, the number of computer science majors and mathematics majors has declined. He noted that one reason for the drop may be that so few women pursue computer science and mathematics as a career.