IdeaConnection Innovation
BLOG

How the Crowd is Charting the Changing Landscape

Sep-09-15 By IdeaConnection
Hampshire County Council in the UK is turning to members of the crowd to assist it in monitoring the ever changing landscape.

The information they provide could help prevent problems before they occur, such as flooding or changes that might threaten the natural habitats of local wildlife.

Crowdsourcing Hamburger Recipes

Sep-01-15 By IdeaConnection
You can bet your bottom dollar that by the time you’ve read this post thousands of people will have uploaded pictures of food to their social media profiles.

There is a huge appetite for this food photography trend and among the snaps of restaurant meals and chocolate covered desserts will be pictures of customised burgers.

Such fan photos have given Canada’s South Street Burger Company an idea, crowdsource burger recipes.

Crowdsourcing Contest to Repurpose Old Bridge

Aug-26-15 By IdeaConnection
So, what do you do when you have a defunct railway bridge that is reaching the end of its technical life?  Tear it down, leave it to rot or something else?

If you’re Linz AG, the owner of the old bridge in Linz, Austria you launch a crowdsourcing contest for ideas of what to do with the crossing.

The 393-meter-long steel bridge, which spans the Danube River is 120 years old and no longer in use.  But such is its beauty and history that there are calls to preserve some, if not all of its parts.  

Want to Solve a Problem? Involve some non-experts

Aug-06-15 By Paul Wagorn
Having years of experience can help people tackle problems on an intuitive level.  If you’ve worked in an area for 20 years, you automatically know what potential solutions have a good chance of working, and which ones have a poor chance of working.

Global Search for Messages to Send to Alien Life

Jul-21-15 By IdeaConnection
So, apart from saying "you look a lot different than in the movies", what would you say to an alien?
If you've got an idea of how you would introduce humanity to an alien civilization you could win yourself some big money prizes.

Crowdsourcing Antibiotic Resistance Drugs

Jul-07-15 By IdeaConnection
Antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest problems facing modern medicine today.  Some bacteria are naturally immune to the drugs that are thrown at them, while others lose sensitivity to their effects.

To help combat this problem, a crowdsourcing project is inviting chemists from all over the world to donate samples of compounds they have synthesized.

Unilever’s Crowdsourcing Campaign to Solve Sustainability Issues

Jun-30-15 By IdeaConnection
Unilever is on the hunt for new ways to tackle global sustainability problems.  The multinational company's innovation platform, Unilever Foundry wants closer collaboration between consumers and innovators to solve key issues.

The initiative was announced recently at Lions Innovation in Cannes by Unilever senior vice president of global media Luis di Comolast.

Data Mine for Gold and Pocket a Fortune

Jun-23-15 By IdeaConnection
Here's how you can strike it rich!  Up to one million Canadian dollars is up for grabs for anyone who can help the Integra Gold Corporation find gold.

The Integra Gold Rush Challenge is a crowdsourcing project that the company hopes will lead to the next big gold discovery at its Sigma-Lamaque gold property in Val-d'Or, Québec.

So how can you help?

How the Crowd Can Slay Cyber Trolls

Jun-16-15 By IdeaConnection
Internet trolls can make life a misery for people on social media.  The cyber bullies hide behind their computers screens smothered in clouds of negativity spewing forth inflammatory and abusive messages.

Some countries are cracking down on the online abuse by introducing new laws, and now Twitter is giving its users a new weapon against malicious folk.  And it comes courtesy of the crowd.

Crowdsourcing Saves a Boy’s Life

Jun-02-15 By IdeaConnection
When a Utah-based primary care physician couldn't uncover what was wrong with a young boy with a persistent cough, he turned to the crowd for a diagnosis - and it saved the boy's life.