Over three million children watched the show weekly. It was the top- ranked series among young people. It was such a success that it's now being picked up by commercial stations. Some of our institutional approaches have had a very measurable impact on people. From the very start they promoted a new culture of integrated research and education.
Students have industrial mentors, while industry representatives work within the centers.
The numbers of patents and inventions and spin-off firms are impressive. But we've also conducted a number of surveys of companies that partner with the centers. We've asked them about the benefits they receive. Forty percent of the firms said that one of the most significant benefits was hiring students who gained experience at the center. This finding speaks to a much larger result of basic research.