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Superfast Hyperloop within 10 Years?

Dec-22-14 By IdeaConnection
In 2013, a preliminary design for the futuristic Hyperloop high speed train concept was made public.  If it gets off the ground, it will shave hours off journey times, ease congestion and cut pollution levels.  Now, a group of engineers from Boeing, NASA and SpaceX want to make it a reality and they say they can do it within 10 years.  They were brought together by crowd collaboration platform JumpStartFund.

The Hyperloop transport system was envisioned by entrepreneur and business magnate Elon Musk and features a network of above-ground tubes that can send passengers from LA to San Francisco in 30 minutes at a speed of 800 miles per hour.  This is approximately twice the cruising speed of some passenger planes. 

Toymaker’s Open Innovation Success Story

Nov-02-14 By IdeaConnection
Toymaker Fisher Price has revealed how its crowdsourcing strategy is paying dividends with the creation of new products at lower cost and in truncated timeframes.

At a recent iMedia Summit in Atlanta, Georgia, Olga Patel, Senior Manager of Open Innovation at Mattel (owners of Fisher Price), told the assembled throng about the open innovation success story of its Little People line of toys.

UAE aims to be a Global Innovation Powerhouse

Oct-20-14 By IdeaConnection
The UAE (United Arab Emirates) has set its sights on being one of the most innovative nations in the world within the next seven years.  Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE has launched an ambitious innovation strategy that focuses on seven sectors - education, health, renewable energy, space, technology, transport and water. He also wants to create a national culture that encourages innovation and entrepreneurship.

And who would bet against him achieving these ambitions?  After all, it was Sheikh Mohammed’s drive and vision that turned a tiny patch of desert into the global city of Dubai.

Crowdsource Map for Ebola Response Help

Sep-29-14 By IdeaConnection
The current Ebola outbreak is the deadliest to date, having so far claimed more than 3,000 lives according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).  The hemorrhagic fever has  spread to multiple countries in West Africa including Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.  To help tackle the problem and provide help to those suffering, online volunteers from more than 80 countries are involved in a crowdsource mapping initiative.

Crowdsourcing News Stories with the BBC

Sep-14-14 By IdeaConnection
A team of journalists from the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) is currently travelling across the United States, crowdsourcing news stories from members of the public.  The aim is to broadcast local stories to a global audience, the kind of news that really matters to people, but is not usually covered by major networks.

Typically, news organisations set the daily news agenda with editors and reporters deciding how to fill their programs and bulletins. The BBC’s crowdsourcing project democratises the news by allowing the public to have a say in what is covered.

3 Articles to Boost Your Innovation Endeavors

Sep-08-14 By IdeaConnection
Is there an innovation drought in your company?  Are you desperately in search of the next big thing, but don’t know where to turn?   Are your innovation endeavors too conservative?  Do they lack the risks inherent in trying to do something new and break new ground?

Three articles caught our attention this week that convey powerful messages to those who seek to innovate.  The boldest among them being a warning to innovate or die.

Crowdsourcing Our Way to Better Health

Aug-25-14 By IdeaConnection
Frankly, there are far too many complex problems going around that can't be tackled by institutions and organizations on their own.  When it comes to improving our health, fighting diseases and prolonging lifespans, those challenges take on an extra measure of urgency as most of us want to stick around on the planet for as long as possible.

There are hundreds of situations where drug companies, hospitals and healthcare institutes have reached out to expert crowds to help them in their quests.  Here is a small collection of some of the open innovation health-related projects that have been featured on IdeaConenction’s website.

Crowdsourcing Night Sky Images

Aug-18-14 By IdeaConnection
The space agency NASA needs your help to search through more than 1.8 million photos of the Earth taken during dozens of missions, from the Mercury missions of the 1960s to images captured by the International Space Station.

According to NASA, the pictures “could help save energy, contribute to better human health and safety and improve our understanding of atmospheric chemistry.”

Crowdsourcing the Fight Against Crime

Aug-11-14 By IdeaConnection
Sherlock Holmes had his phenomenal powers of deduction.  Lieutenant Columbo had a fine nose for the guilty party and the kids from Scooby Doo had intuition and each other.  In addition to their brain power, today’s detectives and policeman and women can call on the crowd to help them fight crime.  Here’s how:

$1 Million Open Innovation Challenge for Shrinking a Box

Aug-04-14 By IdeaConnection
Do you have what it takes to change the future of energy and electricity? If so, The Little Box Challenge maybe just up your street.

A cool $1 million is up for grabs, courtesy of Google for the team that can create a smaller and cheaper power inverter.  An inverter is an electronic device that takes direct current from items such as solar panels and batteries and converts it into alternating current for use in cars, homes and offices for example.

According to Google, shrinking inverters will change the future of energy, enabling “more solar-powered homes, more efficient distributed electrical grids, and could help bring electricity to the most remote parts of the planet.“