Will getting into bed with business mean universities lose their paramount virtues of independence and integrity? A worldwide reassessment of these uneasy relationships is currently sweeping across Australian campuses

Just over a year ago, Professor Peter Gage was a salaried scientist working inside one of the country's most prestigious research institutions - the Australian National University in Canberra. But as the summer rolled on, a transformation was underway - the academic researcher was morphing into the multi-millionaire entrepreneur.