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Innovation and Crowdsourcing: A Great Double Act

Jan-14-14 By IdeaConnection
The world loves a great double act. Think Laurel and Hardy, coffee and chocolate, Bogart and Bacall and gin and tonic. In the business environment, innovation and crowdsourcing are ideal bedfellows that go together well.

In an insightful interview, Mindjet’s Vice President and US Innovation Services Leader, Michele McConomy discusses her thoughts on crowdsourcing, the role it plays in innovation and how companies are making it work for them.

Awesome Innovations to Improve Health Outcomes

Jan-10-14 By IdeaConnection
A smart watch for patients prone to convulsions, seizures and tremors, and a smart monitoring shirt able to check people's heart rate, temperature and activity were among the big winners of the inaugural Everyday Health Awards for Innovation.

The new annual prize not only honors outstanding technological innovations that aim to improve health outcomes, but also acts as a catalyst to help innovators achieve great things in the medical field.

US Army Crowdsources Innovation with its Soldiers

Jan-08-14 By IdeaConnection
The US Army is taking a new approach to crowdsourcing by asking a new crowd for thoughts, ideas and concepts – its soldiers.

By seeking early input from end users the military outfit hopes to get smarter and faster innovations.

Which is Your Favorite Development Innovation?

Jan-06-14 By IdeaConnection
The Guardian newspaper in the UK has compiled a list of development innovations from the past 12 months and is asking members of the public to vote for their favorite one. Whether you take part or not, the list is a testament to the creative outpouring of inventive minds.

Among the innovations for the common good are an app that helps reunite families after a natural disaster and the WaterWheel that makes life easier for women in India.

Star Trek Innovations the World is Waiting For (probably)

Jan-03-14 By IdeaConnection
In exploring strange, new worlds and seeking out new life and new civilizations the crew of the USS Enterprise invented a slew of futuristic gadgets, some of which we now use in our everyday lives. The same is true of Jean-Luc Picard’s band of men and women and the crew of Deep Space Nine.

A current article in What Culture is highlighting five technological advances that come to us courtesy of Star Trek and five that we’re still waiting for.

Scientists Tap the Crowd for New Antibiotics

Dec-31-13 By IdeaConnection
The evolutionary arms race between humans and bacteria has given rise to MRSA, the hospital superbug that is resistant to many types of antibiotics.

As bacteria evolve, their immune systems become impervious to the therapeutics that we throw at them. So scientists develop more powerful drugs, and for a while they work, until the bugs become resistant to these as well.

The ILIAD Project is a citizen science, crowdsourcing initiative that aims to find new antibiotics by asking people to perform their own trials at home using pre-packed kits.

Failed Innovation Predictions

Dec-29-13 By IdeaConnection
At this time of year more than at any other, the soothsayers come out of the woodwork to predict what’s going to happen in the near future with innovations that could revolutionize our lives.

Sticking your neck out like this is a bit of a gamble and the province of the brave, foolish or supremely confident. History is littered with dozens of examples of people who’ve had to eat their words.

Of course hindsight is a wonderful thing, but even so, for a bit of fun we thought we’d publish some memorable quotes from those who got it oh so wrong.

“Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible.” (1895) - Lord Kelvin, mathematician and physicist, president of the British Royal Society.

IBM’s Predictions of the Top 5 Innovations Coming to You Soon

Dec-29-13 By IdeaConnection
For years, man has been making predictions about the next big thing around the corner, the science and technology revolutions that are going to enhance our lives, principally by making them easier, more fun and less stressful. It’s a risky business as unfortunately for the speakers, many future predictions crash and burn. Remember Betamax anyone?

Still, that doesn' stop people from staring into the future to envisage what’s coming next. IBM has revealed its predictions for the five biggest innovations that are going to change our lives within the next five years. They are:

Crowdfunded Lego Car Powered By Air

Dec-22-13 By IdeaConnection
What’s made of plastic breaks, was funded by the crowd and can reach a top speed of around 20km/h fueled by nothing but air? The answer is an air-powered car built of Lego by Australian entrepreneur, Steve Sammartino and a Romanian technologist, Raul Oaida. The innovative pair met on the internet.

The machine used more than 500,000 pieces of Lego and has four air-powered engines and 256 pistons, also constructed out of Lego.

Open Innovation Contest Offers $100,000 in Prize Money

Dec-21-13 By IdeaConnection
The 2014 Shale Gas Innovation Competition organized by the Ben Franklin Shale Gas Innovation and Commercialization Center (SGICC) is offering awards totaling $100,000 to the four best shale gas-oriented innovations, new product ideas, or service concepts.

The contest is for researchers, innovators and entrepreneurs in Pennsylvania or West Virginia or those willing to locate to either state. Any idea related to shale energy will be welcomed, even if it has already been commercially developed.