Innovation is about finding a better way of doing something. Like many of the new development buzzwords (which many of them are over-used on many business documents), the concept of innovation originates from the world of business. It refers to the generation of new products through the process of creative entrepreneurship, putting it into production, and diffusing it more widely through increased sales. Innovation can be viewed as t he application of better solutions that meet new requirements, in-articulated needs, or existing market needs. This is accomplished through more effective products, processes, services, technologies, or ideas that are readily available to markets, governments and society. The term innovation can be defined as something original and, as a consequence, new, that “breaks into” the market or society.
Innoveracy: Misunderstanding Innovation article points out that there is a form of ignorance which seems to be universal: the inability to understand the concept and role of innovation. The way this is exhibited is in the misuse of the term and the inability to discern the difference between novelty, creation, invention and innovation. The result is a failure to understand the causes of success and failure in business and hence the conditions that lead to economic growth. The definition of innovation is easy to find but it seems to be hard to understand. Here is a simple taxonomy of related activities that put innovation in context:
- Novelty: Something new
- Creation: Something new and valuable
- Invention: Something new, having potential value through utility
- Innovation: Something new and uniquely useful
The taxonomy is illustrated with the following diagram.
The differences are also evident in the mechanisms that exist to protect the works: Novelties are usually not protectable, Creations are protected by copyright or trademark, Inventions can be protected for a limited time through patents (or kept secret) and Innovations can be protected through market competition but are not defensible through legal means.
Innovation is a lot of talked about nowdays as essential to businesses to do. Is innovation essential for development work? article tells that innovation has become central to the way development organisations go about their work. In November 2011, Bill Gates told the G20 that innovation was the key to development. Donors increasingly stress innovation as a key condition for funding, and many civil society organisations emphasise that innovation is central to the work they do.
Some innovation ideas are pretty simple, and some are much more complicated and even sound crazy when heard first. The is place for crazy sounding ideas: venture capitalists are gravely concerned that the tech startups they’re investing in just aren’t crazy enough:
Not all development problems require new solutions, sometimes you just need to use old things in a slightly new way. Development innovations may involve devising technology (such as a nanotech water treatment kit), creating a new approach (such as microfinance), finding a better way of delivering public services (such as one-stop egovernment service centres), identifying ways of working with communities (such as participation), or generating a management technique (such as organisation learning).
Theorists of innovation identify innovation itself as a brief moment of creativity, to be followed by the main routine work of producing and selling the innovation. When it comes to development, things are more complicated. Innovation needs to be viewed as tool, not master. Innovation is a process, not a one time event. Genuine innovation is valuable but rare.
There are many views on the innovation and innvation process. I try to collect together there some views I have found on-line. Hopefully they help you more than confuze. Managing complexity and reducing risk article has this drawing which I think pretty well describes innovation as done in product development:
8 essential practices of successful innovation from The Innovator’s Way shows essential practices in innovation process. Those practices are all integrated into a non-sequential, coherent whole and style in the person of the innovator.
In the IT work there is lots of work where a little thinking can be a source of innovation. Automating IT processes can be a huge time saver or it can fail depending on situation. XKCD comic strip Automation as illustrates this:
System integration is a critical element in project design article has an interesting project cost influence graphic. The recommendation is to involve a system integrator early in project design to help ensure high-quality projects that satisfy project requirements. Of course this article tries to market system integration services, but has also valid points to consider.
Core Contributor Loop (CTTDC) from Art Journal blog posting Blog Is The New Black tries to link inventing an idea to theory of entrepreneurship. It is essential to tune the engine by making improvements in product, marketing, code, design and operations.
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Tomi Engdahl says:
Liquid metal unlocks a way to make artificial blood vessels
The unusual properties of gallium have helped scientists to create delicate moulds that can be used to grow cultures of human cells resembling tiny blood vessels
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2459445-liquid-metal-unlocks-a-way-to-make-artificial-blood-vessels/#Echobox=1733950360
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The faster-than-light engine predicted by Einstein has been created – Here’s how it works
https://www.riazor.org/news/warp-drive-faster-than-light-engine/2685/#google_vignette
Tomi Engdahl says:
Meitä on huijattu 75 vuotta putkeen, kemisti todisti – Viinan ja maailman yleisimmän räjähdysaineen salaisuudet kääntyivät päälaelleen
Elektronegatiivisuus on yksi kemian peruskäsitteistä. Sitä on käytetty oppikirjoissa väärin 75 vuoden ajan erään hankalan ilmiön selittämiseen.
https://www.tekniikkatalous.fi/uutiset/meita-on-huijattu-75-vuotta-putkeen-kemisti-todisti-viinan-ja-maailman-yleisimman-rajahdysaineen-salaisuudet-kaantyivat-paalaelleen/5504fdf9-b566-4f27-ac90-6c27be3d9e80
Tomi Engdahl says:
Straight Out of a Sci-Fi Movie: For the First Time in History, We Have a Clear Image of a Star in Another Galaxy
In a groundbreaking achievement that rivals the most imaginative science fiction scenarios, astronomers have captured the first clear image of a star located in another galaxy. This monumental feat marks a significant milestone in our exploration of the cosmos, pushing the boundaries of what we thought possible in astronomical observation.
https://dailygalaxy.com/2024/12/straight-out-of-a-sci-fi-movie-for-the-first-time-in-history-we-have-a-clear-image-of-a-star-in-another-galaxy/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Playing Video Games Has an Unexpected Effect on Kids’ IQ, Says Study
https://www.sciencealert.com/playing-video-games-has-an-unexpected-effect-on-kids-iq-says-study
Researchers have linked spending more time playing video games with a boost in intelligence in children, which goes some way to contradicting the narrative that gaming is bad for young minds.
Tomi Engdahl says:
China’s humanoid robot army turns factory into precision-packed powerhouse
The humanoids also demonstrate small-scale collaborative operations, showcasing their ability to work efficiently together.
https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/magiclab-robot-army-in-factory
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tulevaisuususkoa oivalluksista ja erehdyksistä
Tulevaisuususkoon tarvitsemme arvovalintoja ja vision siitä, minkälaista Suomea ja maailmaa haluamme rakentaa, kirjoittaa Tieteessä tapahtuu -lehden päätoimittaja ja Tieteellisten seurain valtuuskunnan viestintäpäällikkö Anna Kotaviita.
https://www.tieteessatapahtuu.fi/numerot/5-2024/tulevaisuususkoa-oivalluksista-ja-erehdyksista
Tomi Engdahl says:
The surprising uses of games controllers
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20141212-press-x-press-y-fire-laser
The devices we use to control our computer games have, over decades, morphed into much more sophisticated designs. And they are finding uses outside of video games – from surgery to defusing bombs. Peter Ray Allison investigates.
Games controllers can end up in the strangest places. Just this week, the US Navy announced it had approved a laser weapon to be deployed on an amphibious vessel serving in the Persian Gulf. The weapon is essentially the kind of death ray that science fiction has been promising for decades. And, as the demonstration showed, this space age weapon is guided by something every self-respecting 14-year-old is familiar with: a controller just like those used to play video games.
They used to be such simple devices. A single control stick and a few buttons were all a gamer needed to blast aliens or score a winning goal on the primitive, pioneering games consoles.
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Breakthrough proton battery beats lithium limit, boasts 3,500 charging cycles
The team’s rechargeable proton battery uses a new organic material, tetraamino-benzoquinone (TABQ), which allows protons to move quickly and efficiently store energy.
https://interestingengineering.com/energy/breakthrough-proton-battery-beats-lithium-limit-boasts-3500-charging-cycles
Tomi Engdahl says:
Scientists use Matrix-style learning to ‘write’ skills into human brain noninvasively
The wobbling stopped when a participant’s brain activity matched the target pattern, effectively “sculpting” their brain activity towards the desired pattern through this feedback mechanism.
https://interestingengineering.com/science/implant-information-directly-into-brain
Tomi Engdahl says:
By tweaking materials, scientists create transistors that remember
https://techxplore.com/news/2024-12-tweaking-materials-scientists-transistors.html#google_vignette
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https://www.cracked.com/pictofacts-872-20-common-behaviors-that-are-actually-super-creepy
Tomi Engdahl says:
Rewriting Biology Textbooks: Johns Hopkins Scientists Debunk Century-Old Assumption About Brain Cells
https://scitechdaily.com/rewriting-biology-textbooks-johns-hopkins-scientists-debunk-century-old-assumption-about-brain-cells/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Quantum systems will always have some secrets, reveals photon experiment
The researchers found that a photon’s movement influences how much information it reveals, with circular motion being more informative than oscillation.
https://interestingengineering.com/science/photon-duality-and-quantum-secret
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/what-does-alcohol-actually-do-to-your-brain-77081
Tomi Engdahl says:
China develops new iron making method that boosts productivity by 3,600 times
Researchers claim the method can complete the iron making process in just three to six seconds, compared to the five to six hours required by traditional blast furnaces.
https://interestingengineering.com/science/china-new-ironmaking-method-boosts-productivity-3600-times
Tomi Engdahl says:
Magnetrons Unleashed: From Microwave Popcorn to Cutting-Edge Particle Accelerators
https://scitechdaily.com/magnetrons-unleashed-from-microwave-popcorn-to-cutting-edge-particle-accelerators/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://techxplore.com/news/2024-12-algorithm-robots-good-decisions-real.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Vortex electric field discovery could impact quantum computing
https://phys.org/news/2024-12-vortex-electric-field-discovery-impact.html#google_vignette
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://hackaday.com/2024/12/03/holograms-the-art-of-recording-wavefronts/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Engineers develop device that merges sensing and computing functions for reconfigurable computing platform
https://techxplore.com/news/2024-12-device-merges-functions-reconfigurable-platform.html#google_vignette
Tomi Engdahl says:
Legendary video game developer imagines a future where GPUs don’t need PCs — John Carmack envisions a GPU with Linux onboard, so you would just add power and a display
https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/gpus/legendary-video-game-developer-imagines-a-future-where-gpus-dont-need-pcs-john-carmack-envisions-a-gpu-with-linux-onboard-so-you-would-just-add-power-and-a-display
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://scitechdaily.com/are-quarks-about-to-rewrite-the-laws-of-physics/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://futurism.com/neoscope/scientists-warn-perfume
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/four-conspiracy-theories-that-turned-out-to-be-completely-true-66907
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://hackaday.com/2024/12/06/retro-computer-goes-back-to-the-1950s/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://themindsjournal.com/what-do-introverts-do-when-they-are-alone-7-ways-introverts-embrace-solitude/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://phys.org/news/2024-11-quantum-advantage-storage-photonic-processor.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.livescience.com/technology/computing/accidental-discovery-creates-candidate-for-universal-memory-a-weird-semiconductor-that-consumes-a-billion-times-less-power
Tomi Engdahl says:
The average human ejaculation contains about 15.8 terabytes of information. This is because each sperm contains around 37.5 megabytes of DNA information
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://hackaday.com/2024/12/16/single-crystal-electrode-lithium-ion-batteries-last-a-long-time/
Tomi Engdahl says:
‘Maya blue’: The mystery dye recreated two centuries after it was lost
A ceramicist in Mexico retraces his Maya roots to recreate a long-lost pre-Hispanic pigment for the first time in more than two centuries.
https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2024/12/1/maya-blue-the-mystery-dye-recreated-two-centuries-after-it-was-lost
Tomi Engdahl says:
Scientists Warn of an ‘Unprecedented Risk’ From Synthetic ‘Mirror Life,’ Built With a Reverse Version of Natural Proteins and Sugars
So-called mirror cells could rampage through our ecosystems, food supply and immune systems, experts say, potentially without existing barriers to protect against them
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-warn-of-an-unprecedented-risk-from-synthetic-mirror-life-built-with-a-reverse-version-of-natural-proteins-and-sugars-180985670/?fbclid=IwY2xjawHNJjNleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHQMVx-oW8PGCIklDVuQpu5y4lO_TiP3mUGYlchQ1A3FvsdZTQ2AGP-9poQ_aem_GvnDZgrdEiZ9ZaU0rjF4rQ
On Thursday, a group of notable scientists, including Nobel Prize winners and global health experts, issued a warning against researchers synthesizing a type of artificial cell that could rampage through life on Earth with practically no barriers to stop it.
“Mirror cells,” as they are known, could one day compose “mirror life,” a type of synthetic organism that, on the molecular level, is the complete reverse of the life forms we know. But the 38 co-authors of the warning article published in the journal Science recommend that research into mirror life be blocked immediately, before it spirals out of control
Tomi Engdahl says:
Nokia Bell Labs tutkii sykkeen mittausta radioverkon yli
https://etn.fi/index.php/13-news/16964-nokia-bell-labs-tutkii-etaesykkeen-mittausta-radioverkon-yli
Nokia ilmoitti tänään käynnistävänsä tutkimusyhteistyön Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Instituten (HHI) ja Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlinin kanssa. Tavoitteena on tutkia langattomien anturiteknologioiden hyödyntämistä lääketieteellisissä sovelluksissa. Yhteistyössä keskitytään siihen, miten 90-300 gigahertsin taajuuksia voidaan hyödyntää ihmisten elintoimintojen, kuten sykkeen ja hengityksen, mittaamiseen etänä.
Nämä ns. sub-THz-taajuudet (90 GHz – 300 GHz) tarjoavat ainutlaatuisia ominaisuuksia langattomiin mittaussovelluksiin. Nämä taajuudet toimivat tutkan tavoin, mutta huomattavasti tarkemmin, sillä aallonpituus on hyvin lyhyt ja sen kaistanleveys suuri. Nokia Bell Labs, Fraunhofer HHI ja Charité tutkivat yhdessä, kuinka tällaisiin taajuuksiin perustuvat sensoriverkot voivat tuottaa äärimmäisen tarkkoja tilaskannauksia sairaalaympäristöissä potilaiden elintoimintojen seurantaan.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Älykäs ei tuhlaa yleensä aikaansa näihin 12 asiaan
https://www.findance.com/uutiset/68261/alykas-ei-tuhlaa-yleensa-aikaansa-naihin-12-asiaan
12 asiaa, joita älykäs ei tee, koska niihin ei kannata tuhlata aikaansa:
1. Juoruilua, koska mitä siitä oikein hyötyy?
2. Vertailua, jossa vertailee itseään muihin.
3. Menneisyydessä tehtyjen virheiden ajattelua.
4. Kantaa huolta huomisesta.
5. Kaikkien miellyttämistä.
6. Viivyttelemistä asioiden teossa.
7. Ajatella itsestään kielteisesti.
8. Yrittää hallita jokaista pientäkin asiaa.
9. Pitää kaunaa.
10. Olla riippuvainen sosiaalisesta mediasta.
11. Yrittää olla täydellinen.
12. Katsoa liikaa televisiota.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Johtaja huolestui etätyön vaikutuksista it-alalle – ”Olemme menettämässä kyvyn innovoida”
Tivi16.12.202422:10Digitalous
Etätyön yleistyminen on Netumin Mikko Pitkäsen mukaan kaventanut työyhteisöjen vuorovaikutusta, mikä näkyy erityisesti it-alan luovuuden hiipumisena.
https://www.tivi.fi/uutiset/johtaja-huolestui-etatyon-vaikutuksista-it-alalle-olemme-menettamassa-kyvyn-innovoida/a9350026-13c1-4cfc-b0eb-d5d1b051040f