by Barry Teater, NCBiotech writer — February 8, 2021 . RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK – Twenty-nine technology companies across North Carolina – about half of them working in the life sciences – have received grants totaling $1.5 million to foster job creation and promote research and technological development in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The grants were awarded by the One North Carolina Small Business Program with funds from the state’s share of the $2.2 trillion federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act of 2020. The program is administered by the Office of Science, Technology, & Innovation, a division of the N.C. Department of Commerce, on behalf of the Board of Science, Technology & Innovation, which encourages, promotes, and supports scientific, engineering, and industrial research applications in the state.