An introduction to the Criteria for Selecting Leading knowledge

Human societies have experienced three basic revolutions namely the agricultural, industrial and knowledge-based economic revolutions in modern socio-economic era. During those revolutions not only economic structure but also social and cultural structures have evolved. During the last two decades, the third revolution or knowledge-based economy has started. An era in which application of knowledge is the most important factor of production and it is a driving force behind industrial and economic progress more than any other factors .Given the present conditions and their profound changes, governments have prompted special measures in order to fulfill the prediction of their development. The process of development in this era depends on the right choice of leading knowledge and precise and systematic planning for pioneering it. In order to advance these measures, in addition to knowing the leading knowledge, selection criteria should also be analyzed.  This paper utilized the descriptive-analytical approach to explain the subject, only from the economic point of view, and data collection was conducted using the existing documents and evidence, such as articles, books, credible websites, etc. The findings of this research indicated that the four basic criteria for an accurate and systematic selection include the capacity to create added value, the capacity to cluster, the possibility of infrastructure, and the capacity to create sustainable employment opportunities which are all discussed in details in this paper.