A record 51 colleges and universities from all over the country attended the Shanghai International Industry Fair this year, displaying nearly 500 inventions and examples of new technologies.

Among the exhibits, more than 130 were brought in by 17 universities including Fudan University and Jiaotong University, the Shanghai Education Commission said.

A delegation of 17 companies started by student entrepreneurs also joined the fair for the first time this year, as part of the 2007 Shanghai Entrepreneurship Week activities.

At yesterday's fair, three student companies signed a contract with business investors to put their research achievements, such as environmentally-friendly plastic packaging, into production.

"The fair is not only a platform to showcase new technologies, it is also expected to be a match-making stage for technology transfer," said Lu Jianguo, director of the Shanghai Educational Technology Development Center.

(Shanghai Daily November 8, 2007)