Microgeography and the Direction of Inventive Activity

I provide novel empirical evidence grounded in an original theoretical framework to explain why co-location matters for the rate, quality and direction of scientific collaboration. To address endogeneity concerns due to selection into co-location and matching, I exploit the constraints imposed on the spatial allocation of labs on the Jussieu campus of Paris by the removal of asbestos from its buildings. Whereas co-location increases the...