I am delighted to be back on the campus where I spent so many invigorating and rewarding years. It's always a pleasure to see old friends, and it's a particular pleasure to feel once again the activity, energy, and vitality that have made UC San Diego such an exciting center of exploration and discovery.

I am enormously proud of the accomplishments of UCSD, and I'm particularly pleased to join you for today's historic groundbreaking.

California's economic rise is closely tied to the rise of its research universities. For decades, the research universities of California have led the nation in the creation of new knowledge and its application to pressing problems of the day. New industries have been invented, new products have been developed, and new medical techniques have been invented to both save lives and enhance their quality. We have continually expanded the frontiers of knowledge, and we have made an impact on the daily lives of all Californians.

In recent years, California also has led the way in establishing a new paradigm for how research gets done - a paradigm defined by partnerships among state government, private industry, the federal government, and the campuses of the University of California. The partnerships among these entities have demonstrated how greatly our society benefits when the resources of multiple institutions, and the talents of their people, are brought together to focus on a single problem.

We are applying this collaborative concept on a grander scale than ever before with the development of the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology and the three other California Institutes for Science and Innovation. The objective of these Institutes is nothing less than the invention of the future California economy. The tremendous talents of the people involved in developing these Institutes, coupled with the extraordinary commitment of the state's political and industrial leadership to this effort, give us a great chance of success in helping California meet its full, future economic potential.

I want to thank Governor Davis and the Legislature for their wisdom and leadership in establishing these Institutes. It takes leaders of uncommon vision and determination to undertake such a major initiative to bolster the long-term economic and educational growth of a state's people.

I also want to recognize the unprecedented level of support this initiative has received from industry in California. The participation of industry is crucial to the success of this entire effort, and the response has been truly amazing.

Cal-IT2 and the Computer Science and Engineering Building for which we are breaking ground today hold great promise for the San Diego region and for the state of California in its entirety. Many of our next generation of scientific leaders will be trained here, and many of the research breakthroughs that will form the foundation of California's future economy will be made here as well.

I can't think of a more exciting place to be. Thank you all for your contributions to these efforts, and for being here today.