Two bills aiming to increase the coordination and support for US science diplomacy in developing countries are unlikely to be passed by the US House of Representatives this summer, according to insiders. A "financial cliff" is looming at the start of 2013, "and there will be massive cuts of all government programmes", said Daly.

In our daily use of the cell phone, the World Wide Web, and Google's search we should recall that basic research is the springboard of their development, and, as importantly, American influence in the world is spread largely through its "soft" power of science and technology, according to a Pew Research poll.

At the same time, American influence in the world is bolstered largely through its "soft" power, and science and technology is an essential force of this influence, according to the Pew Research Center's Global Attitudes Project poll.

Tara D Sonenshine is the undersecretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs at the US Department of State. In an interview with Forbes India, Sonenshine discusses initiatives to promote public diplomacy with India and how the Indian diaspora in the US is an important voice in this process.

According to the State Department, the first project, known as 'Networks of Diasporas in Engineering and Science' (NODES), "seeks to leverage existing collaborations while facilitating and supporting a variety of new collaborations" between diasporas in the United States.

One reason for this is the issue of global power relations, which influence how markets are organised and who benefits from technological progress. Innovation systems are not neutral — the effects of purely market-led science and technology efforts and associated innovations tend to aggravate existing inequalities.

Australia is world famous for its beautiful and productive natural assets, the unique lifestyle and friendly people. But this is only part of the story. The challenge is ensuring Australia is known for being clever and not just beautiful; to make sure the achievements of our scientists, designers, artists and entrepreneurs are acknowledged, helping them to compete globally.

SESAME actually stands for 'Synchrotron-light for Experimental Science and Applications in the Middle East' and will be the region's first major multi-country scientific research center. It's being developed under the auspices of UNESCO and is scheduled to open fully in Jordan in 2015.