Obama: Economic power requires innovation

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PHILADELPHIA, June 12 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama said in Philadelphia Tuesday America's position of leadership in the world depends on scientific innovation.

In a commencement address at The Franklin Institute, the president told graduating students of the Science Leadership Academy "the nation that excels in science and math and technology, that's going to be the nation that rises to the top in the 21st century."

"Almost everything we do is based on our capacity to innovate," he said. "And America became an economic superpower because we were constantly able to tap into the incredible talents and ingenuity of young people like you who decided -- why can't we fly? Why can't we cure diseases? Why can't we make sure that the energy that we use is able to make life a little bit better and a little bit easier for people?"

Obama noted the graduating class was made up of "women as well as men; folks from every ethnic group, every background -- that's also this incredible strength for the United States, because innovation, brainpower does not discriminate by gender or race or faith or background."

"This is a great postcard for what America is all about," the president said.

He said "somebody in this auditorium is going to figure out new sources of energy that help not only make us more energy independent, but also deals with problems like climate change."

"There is somebody in this room who's going to help make sure that we are defeating diseases like Alzheimer's or cancer," Obama said. "There is somebody in this room who is going to help revolutionize our agricultural sector, or our transportation sectors, or will invent some entire new industry that we don't even know about yet."

The president also asked the graduates to "give back," noting that "for a lot of you in your neighborhoods there may not be as many kids who are interested in math and science. And you need to make sure that wherever you have the opportunity, you're mentoring and serving as a good role model to the next generation coming up behind you."