The article explores the history of the formation of innovation zones – c enters of scientific and innovative development, their sources and activators, starting with the creation of Silicon Valley in California (USA) in the 1950s, the name of which has become a generic term for a large innovation center and is used in different countries. The aim of the study is a comparative analysis of the conditions and nature of the development of Silicon Valleys and innovation zones in different countries and in Russia. The methodology consists of empirical crosscountry analysis and comparison methods, allowing to identify innovation zones by the degree of influence (scale) on the economy and modern scientific and technological development. As a result of the comparative cross-country analysis, it is concluded that Russia has favorable conditions for creating an extensive “Silicon Valley”, especially in its regions that have large scientific and technical reserves and conditions for such development. However, such conditions and organizational measures are currently absent in Russia, which makes the comparative analysis of the impact of Silicon Valleys and innovation zones on the economic development of advanced countries in the world in terms of science and technology relevant. The article also provides an author’s assessment of the capitalization of unicorn firms created by Russians abroad, not in Russia, which confirms the need for work to create territorial associations of high-tech firms and projects.

The article examines the problem of activating the scientific and technological development of the Russian Federation based on the implementation of its own scientific priorities. This problem has two aspects: formation of such priorities and ensuring their most productive and effective implementation, including by identifying potentially most effective actors of scientific and technological activity. The aim of the work is to form, based on the existing experience and verbal analysis, an approach to creating a list of scientific priorities in the Russian Federation and ensuring their most productive and effective implementation, including by identifying subjects of scientific and technological activity that have the greatest potential in a particular field.

To determine the scientific and technical potential of potential participants in scientific and technological projects, it is proposed to consider three elements: continuity of research and development, available material and technical base, and the qualification level of personnel. An expert assessment is proposed to be carried out for each of these three directions. These assessments can be supplemented by the results of monitoring the effectiveness of scientific and technological activities.

The purpose of the article is to identify key trends in the development of scientific and innovative activities in the Russian Federation. The methodology consists of comparative and structural analyses, analysis and synthesis, and the method of logical generalization. The study established the main trends in the process of development, implementation, and diffusion of innovations in scientific and industrial activities in the Russian Federation. In recent years, the innovation ranking of the countries of the world has not highly assessed the state of the innovation system of the Russian Federation. The country occupies a stable 45–47th place among 130 surveyed countries of the world with weaknesses including institutions, infrastructure, energy efficiency, and environmental friendliness of businesses, as well as the amount of investment, including foreign ones. Strong but improperly implemented aspects include the high quality of human potential, the results of creative details, and the scale of the market. The factors hindering the implementation of the innovation process have been analyzed, and despite decreasing over the past twenty years, the lack of own funds, high innovation costs, and lack of state financial support are still significant obstacles to enterprises. The process of implementing innovative activities by enterprises and their sustainable development directly depend on the state of science in the country. The analysis has shown that decisions made in the process of implementing state policy do not have a significant positive impact on its development; moreover, a number of indicators such as the number of personnel involved in research and development generally decrease annually. Thus, there is clearly a need to revise the quality, quantity, and essence of public administration measures so that the innovative and scientific potential of the Russian Federation is realized, ensuring the country’s economy to switch to an innovative development path.

The purpose of this article is to highlight the Soviet experience of the author as head of a creative team involved in transforming research results into formalized inventions. As a result of cooperation between the industrial research institute and the military enterprise, these inventions were introduced into prototypes of new equipment. The research methodology used in this article includes analysis of patent activity, questionnaire surveys, the nonparametric sociometry method, and a methodology for assessing the satisfaction of inventive activity.

The article discusses the challenge of increasing the patent activity of domestic inventors of new technology and how this can be achieved using economic and psychological factors of creative participation such as sociometric coherence, emotional-volitional unity, and intellectual and creative potential. It is important to note that the effectiveness of research in scientific and inventive activities can be assessed using financial, personnel, innovation, and scientometric indicators. Additionally, promising directions of inventive activity in the ergonomic support of the creation of new systems of products and technologies are outlined.

The article relates to the formation of a methodology of nonlinearity for nonlinear cognition of the spatial expansion of higher education in the innovation sphere, which manifests itself as the implementation of its innovative activities and the spread of innovations not only inside, but also outside its own national states. This trend of embedding higher education in the global innovation process has a stable and long-lasting character, due to its all-round innovatization and globalization.

The article offers a rationale of the relevance and presentation of the methodology of nonlinearity as the most effective tool for understanding the expansion of the innovation space of higher education and its integration into the worldwide innovation process. The proposed methodology of nonlinear research is opposed to the so-called linear logic, a linear method often used in economics that considers objects and phenomena with predictable behavior and is not able to give a complete picture of the development of open nonequilibrium systems. The methodology of nonlinearity includes the principles of the theory of systems self-organization and the theory of evolutionary economics. It allows combining both stationary and dynamic components of the nonlinear process under study in one model, revealing the nature of changes in both spatial and temporal properties accompanying the modification of higher education integrated into the global innovation space.

The study’s results are presented as the parameters of the nonlinearity of the university innovation space expansion. Theirs disclosed using a nonlinear methodology. There are: the openness of higher education to the import-export of information, energy and material flows; the state of instability, disequilibrium under the influence of external and internal factors; updating the structure through self-organization, leading to the replacement of obsolete parts of the system with new ones; the ability to make qualitative leaps, once at the bifurcation points.

The article offers a rationale of the relevance and presentation of the methodology of nonlinearity as the most effective tool for understanding the expansion of the innovation space of higher education and its integration into the worldwide innovation process. The proposed methodology of nonlinear research is opposed to the so-called linear logic, a linear method often used in economics that considers objects and phenomena with predictable behavior and is not able to give a complete picture of the development of open nonequilibrium systems.

The methodology of nonlinearity includes the principles of the theory of systems self-organization and the theory of evolutionary economics. It allows combining both stationary and dynamic components of the nonlinear process under study in one model, revealing the nature of changes in both spatial and temporal properties accompanying the modification of higher education integrated into the global innovation space.

The study’s results are presented as the parameters of the nonlinearity of the university innovation space expansion. Theirs disclosed using a nonlinear methodology. There are: the openness of higher education to the import-export of information, energy and material flows; the state of instability, disequilibrium under the influence of external and internal factors; updating the structure through self-organization, leading to the replacement of obsolete parts of the system with new ones; the ability to make qualitative leaps, once at the bifurcation points.