The model deals with technological learning in energy conversion technologies and its spillover effect.
Technological learning has improved the technology and its economic performance already, and could result in significant further improvements.
The environmental experience curve and the corresponding EPR encompass both pure size scaling effects as well as learning effects due to, for instance, learning-by-doing and technological learning.
As technology development engine in late industrialized countries is technological learning rather than innovation, we observe that the considerations and requirements of technology development in developing countries have been neglected in current published literature on technology roadmaps.
The dilemma faced by governments in developing countries is what they can do to facilitate technological learning in such a dynamically changing global technology environment.
The military aircraft development programs involving international technology transfer agreements have been documented to investigate the technological learning patterns.
Also, export promotion proved to be an effective public policy instrument for generating competitive stimulus among firms to accelerate technological learning, while rapid increase in education at the mature technology stage allowed firms to obtain adequate existing knowledge bases for technological learning.
Finally, the effect of technological learning and experience on the economical performance of FBC technology is analysed using the experience curve method and theory on economies of scale.
A study examining national R&D projects for technological learning in Korea showed that R&D plays an important role in indigenous technology capabilities (TCs) building in not only searching for appropriate technology but also absorbing, adapting, and "innovating" the technology (Lee 2004).
Furthermore, three elements proved complementary in building a high tacit-knowledge base which is a key prerequisite to effective technological learning, namely, (1) the recruitment of high-caliber human resources, (2) foreign technology transfer, and (3) learning by research through in-house R&D.
"As an engine of growth, the potential of technological learning is huge — and largely untapped," Mr. Canuto and Mr. Giugale write.
