R&D generally has been a bipartisan thing, because in the IT space, in the medical space, the U.S., the benefits to ourselves and the world and our economy have been very, very clear. I'm hopeful we can make a very strong case there. Energy is actually harder; it takes more time to get a product, but if you do it's a very, very big market and the constraints of doing that in a clean way are more obvious all the time.

You can always think of something like the Xbox 360 as a super set-top box that can do everything the set-top box does, but then have the graphics to do the games as well.

It's the poorer people in tropical zones who will get really hit by climate change - as well as some ecosystems, which nobody wants to see disappear.

I believe that every life is valuable. That we can make things better. That innovation is the key to a bright future. That we're just getting started.

It's easier for our software to compete with Linux when there's piracy than when there's not.

The need to communicate effectively with your customers will come up again and again.

In almost every area of human endeavor, the practice improves over time. That hasn't been the case for teaching.