10.5061/DRYAD.R21QP
Napolitano, Lorenzo
University of Bath
Evangelou, Evangelos
University of Bath
Pugliese, Emanuele
University of Bath
Zeppini, Paolo
University of Bath
Room, Graham
University of Bath
Data from: Technology networks: the autocatalytic origins of innovation
Dryad
dataset
2018
Technology
Autocatalytic set
Dynamical systems
2018-06-07T17:13:53Z
2018-06-07T17:13:53Z
en
https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.172445
https://github.com/eev2/technology-networks
110612042 bytes
1
CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
We analyse the autocatalytic structure of technological networks and
evaluate its significance for the dynamics of innovation patenting. To
this aim, we define a directed network of technological fields based on
the International Patents Classification, in which a source node is
connected to a receiver node via a link if patenting activity in the
source field anticipates patents in the receiver field in the same region
more frequently than we would expect at random. We show that the evolution
of the technology network is compatible with the presence of a growing
autocatalytic structure, i.e. a portion of the network in which
technological fields mutually benefit from being connected to one another.
We further show that technological fields in the core of the autocatalytic
set display greater fitness, i.e. they tend to appear in a greater number
of patents, thus suggesting the presence of positive spillovers as well as
positive reinforcement. Finally, we observe that core shifts take place
whereby different groups of technology fields alternate within the
autocatalytic structure; this points to the importance of recombinant
innovation taking place between close as well as distant fields of the
hierarchical classification of technological fields.
code_rsos_gitCodesThe archive contains the data needed to reproduce the
results presented in the paper. This archive does not contain codes,
which, however, can be downloaded from github (see
'code/download_istructions.txt' inside the archive for
details).CodesThe files contain all the necessary code to reproduce the
results in the paper. We suggest placing them in the "code"
folder contained in the data archive before running them.