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.
5,163 Comments
Tomi Engdahl says:
Maailman ensimmäinen lentävä mikropiiri
https://etn.fi/index.php/13-news/12617-maailman-ensimmaeinen-lentaevae-mikropiiri
Mitä jos ihmisjoukkoja voisi valvoa pienillä lentävillä mikropiireillä? Hiekanjyvän kokoisilla, joita ihmissilmän on vaikea erottaa? Tämä kuulostaa scifi-dystopialta, mutta Northwestern universityn tutkijat ovat rakentaneet tällaisen lentävän mikropiirin.
Noin hiekanjyvän kokoisella lentävällä mikrosirulla ei ole moottoria. Sen sijaan pienet laitteet sieppaavat tuulen ja lentävät (tai kelluvat) samalla tavalla kuin vaahteran siemenpalot.
Rakenne tarkoittaa samalla siltä, että suoran putoamisen sijaan nämä mikrodronet (microfliers) putoavat hitaammin ja hallitusti. Tämän laskeutumisen aikana niitä voidaan käyttää ilmakehän eri olosuhteiden mittaamiseen.
Mikroskooppiset droonit koostuvat kahdesta osasta, elektronisten komponenttien ja antureiden alustasta ja siivistä laskeutumisen hallitsemiseksi.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Opinion: How Estonia’s leading enterpreneurs are innovating the country’s education landscape
Karin Künnapas, Head of School at Kood / Jõhvi explains how adaptive and personalised education has come to change Estonia. And how this is just the beginning.
https://investinestonia.com/opinion-how-estonias-leading-enterpreneurs-are-innovating-the-countrys-education-landscape/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=content&utm_campaign=socialmedia&utm_content=opinion-how-estonias-leading-enterpreneurs-are-innovating-the-countrys-education-landscape&fbclid=IwAR1QJgkKkh-ArS2tD21IxxfL1W9UrPk35pHdIh7kCm0nZ-8qj4Dv2yYkj80
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2021/09/29/kilpailun-kiristyminen-kannustaa-investoimaan-tutkimukseen-ja-kehitykseen/
Tomi Engdahl says:
How Hidden Technology Transformed Bowling
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFPJf-wKTd0
Bowling has been reinvented many times over the past seven thousand years but especially in the last 30. This is the fascinating physics of balls, oil, lane and pins.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://hackaday.com/2021/09/29/101-uses-for-an-everready-flashlight-history/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Is China a Global Leader in Research and Development?
https://chinapower.csis.org/china-research-and-development-rnd/
Research and Development (R&D) is the backbone of innovation. It supports the development of new products and services, which have the potential to touch all aspects of modern life in the ways that personal computers and smartphones have and that artificial intelligence and robotics are expected to in the near future. In a global community built on technology, how countries leverage their R&D efforts has a profound impact on their economic prosperity and the quality of life enjoyed by their citizens.
China has leaned on its manufacturing prowess for decades to support economic development, but it is increasingly seeking to contend with countries whose economies are deeply rooted in innovation-based growth. China has made considerable progress in establishing itself as a pioneer in emerging industries and its leaders are increasingly looking toward innovation as a driver of its economic growth.
This interactive showcases trends in R&D financing across the world.
Tomi Engdahl says:
MicroSynth Is a Tiny Business Card That Plays Tunes
David Levi’s MicroSynth features touch sensors for keys and use a pair of op-amps instead of a 555 timer to play music.
https://www.hackster.io/news/microsynth-is-a-tiny-business-card-that-plays-tunes-45c259d58734
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/technology/winged-microchips-are-tiniest-humanmade-flying-structure-ever/
Tomi Engdahl says:
We created holograms you can touch – you could soon shake a virtual colleague’s hand
https://theconversation.com/we-created-holograms-you-can-touch-you-could-soon-shake-a-virtual-colleagues-hand-167478
Pseudo-Hologram with Aerohaptic Feedback for Interactive Volumetric Displays
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/aisy.202100090
Tomi Engdahl says:
Innovating towards a new era of sustainable energy
The renewable revolution needs to happen quickly – and that’s why Enel Green Power, a renewable supermajor, is developing technologies and testing ideas to accelerate the shift towards sustainable energy
https://www.wired.co.uk/bc/article/innovating-towards-a-new-era-of-sustainable-energy
Tomi Engdahl says:
Meille on opetettu, että ideointi on hyve, mutta liian usein ideat jäävät vain fläppitaululle haalistuviksi harakanvarpaiksi.
Ideointi ja luovuuden käyttö eivät itsessään ole ongelmia, mutta useimmiten puuhaan ryhdytään vailla riittävää kontekstia.
Ideariihi on huomattavan paljon hedelmällisempää, kun ensin peruutetaan taaksepäin ja mietitään miksi ja mitä pitää ideoida. Liiketoiminnan kannalta tämä on kriittistä, sillä näin vältetään turhaa ajankäyttöä ja pahimmillaan kuukausia kestäviä kehitysprojekteja.
Ideoitko ideoimisen ilosta vai ratkaisetko oleellisia ongelmia?
https://www.meom.fi/venture/blogi/ideoitko-ideoimisen-ilosta-vai-ratkaisetko-oleellisia-ongelmia/?utm_id=61488666cffddb8bbd6ec1da&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook%2Binstagram&utm_campaign=Sis%C3%A4ll%C3%B6t+-+AutomatedAds+-+Kiva&utm_content=Sis%C3%A4lt%C3%B6+Ideoinnin+ilosta&hsa_acc=63781965&hsa_cam=6249084561936&hsa_grp=6249084568336&hsa_ad=6249084689936&hsa_src=fb&hsa_net=facebook&hsa_ver=3&fbclid=IwAR0K0RlC04XUBn6tFpJfR26e7UVx5XGxmJilLf9XfyajpKlFnA1lc_AvSRs
Tomi Engdahl says:
MOSFET – The Most significant invention of the 20th Century
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHwl8TdEI6k
What makes a truly world-changing invention?. Of all the inventions of the 20th century just one could be said to have changed the world in such a way that it touches virtually everybody on the planet’s lives on a daily basis. It has enabled the most rapid development in technology in history and yet you cant see the vast majority of them directly and their individual job is just to switch on and off. This is the story of the MOSFET and how it changed the world.
Video comments:
One of the more important features of MOSFETs that you didn’t mention is that at full saturation, internal resistance is very low, unlike bipolar transistors. This means MOSFETs are capable of switching very high current loads without generating much heat. This allows for the use of MOSFETs to replace electromechanical relays, as well as for high-speed, high-current switching. This is why our “power bricks” of today (including cell phone chargers!) have evolved from heavy devices containing iron-core step-down transformers, into tiny, switching power supplies capable of producing huge amounts of current from a tiny power supply with very little heat and very high efficiency.
Tomi Engdahl says:
What is the single most produced item in human history?
https://www.reddit.com/r/NoStupidQuestions/comments/3jmrx0/what_is_the_single_most_produced_item_in_human/
https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-single-most-populous-man-made-item-in-the-world-My-dad-reckons-the-wheel-is
Tomi Engdahl says:
Happy IEEE Day! Engineers worldwide celebrate innovation and collaboration “for a better tomorrow”
https://spectrum.ieee.org/ieee-day?utm_campaign=post-teaser&utm_content=b609nsby
Happy IEEE Day! IEEE Day celebrates the first time in history when engineers worldwide and IEEE members gathered to share their technical ideas in 1884.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Stressed-Out Black Phosphorus Becomes Wavelength-Tunable LED, Photodetector
Oct. 4, 2021
Using a phosphorus layer whose electro-optical wavelength can be shifted by mechanical stress opens new opportunities for test-and-measurement instruments.
https://www.electronicdesign.com/technologies/iot/article/21173483/semtech-reimagining-the-endtoend-retail-experience-with-iot-technology?utm_source=EG%20ED%20Connected%20Solutions&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=CPS211006024&o_eid=7211D2691390C9R&rdx.ident%5Bpull%5D=omeda%7C7211D2691390C9R&oly_enc_id=7211D2691390C9R
Tomi Engdahl says:
Room Temperature Superconductor: Holy Grail or Red Herring?
Scientists have crushed the quest for room temperature superconductors, but only at ridiculously high pressures.
https://www.insidescience.org/news/room-temperature-superconductor-holy-grail-or-red-herring
Tomi Engdahl says:
Sandwich-Style Semiconductors Powered by Exiton-Polaritons Could Dramatically Boost Efficiency
https://www.hackster.io/news/sandwich-style-semiconductors-powered-by-exiton-polaritons-could-dramatically-boost-efficiency-4d82c4120689
Designed to replace existing electronics with “excitronics,” the novel technique creates a device that doesn’t waste any energy as heat.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Sandwich-Style Semiconductors Powered by Exiton-Polaritons Could Dramatically Boost Efficiency
Designed to replace existing electronics with “excitronics,” the novel technique creates a device that doesn’t waste any energy as heat.
https://www.hackster.io/news/sandwich-style-semiconductors-powered-by-exiton-polaritons-could-dramatically-boost-efficiency-4d82c4120689
Tomi Engdahl says:
This is how shorter working hours can affect your productivity
https://voxeu.org/article/teams-become-more-productive-when-their-hours-are-shorter
It has been argued that when workers are already working long weeks, adding more hours can reduce productivity.
A recent study in Japan found that long working hours of key team members harm team productivity.
In contrast, shorter hours cause the opposite effect, perhaps because workers recover from fatigue and arrive for work with increased energy and focus.
Tomi Engdahl says:
How Safe is a Sawstop Saw? – Never Before Seen 19,000 FPS HD Slow-Mo Video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYLAi4jwXcs
To better understand how safe a Sawstop Tablesaw is we rented the Phantom V2640 high definition slow motion camera. We did nine activations and analyzed the footage. This was done on their 5 hp ICS Model and would certainly perform even better on a PCS or Job-site Model.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Elektronit käyttäytyvät kuin tsunamiaallot
https://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2021/10/11/elektronit-kayttaytyvat-kuin-tsunamiaallot/
Sijainti
Etusivu > Artikkelit/raportit > Elektronit käyttäytyvät kuin tsunamiaallot
Elektronit käyttäytyvät kuin tsunamiaallot
Artikkelit/raportit
- 11.10.2021
Valtamerien tsunamien kaltainen ilmiö on nyt löydetty kaksiulotteisista elektronirakenteista kuten grafeeneista kansainvälisessä yhteistyössä. Tulosten perusteella saatetaan pystyä selittämään jopa suprajohtavuuden syntyä.
Aikaisemmin haaravirtausta on löydetty valtamerien lisäksi muun muassa avaruuden mikroaaltosäteilystä, valon liikkeistä saippuakuplissa sekä elektronien liikkeestä puolijohteessa. Nyt Tampereen yliopiston, Madridin Rey Juan Carlos -yliopiston sekä Harvardin yliopiston fyysikot ovat yhteistyössä löytäneet haaravirtauksen kaksiulotteisesta elektronihilasta.
’’Löytö on ainutlaatuinen, sillä tähän mennessä kaoottista haaravirtausta ei ole ajateltu esiintyvän säännönmukaisessa rakenteessa kuten kiinteässä aineessa, jossa atomit ovat järjestäytyneet säännölliseen hilaan’’, kertoo professori Esa Räsänen Tampereen yliopiston fysiikan yksiköstä.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Stacks of atomically thin molybdenum disulfide channel heat 880 times faster along two axes compared to the third—which could lead to new, more tightly packed transistors.
New material could pack transistors closer together Stacks of atomically thin films both move and block heat
https://spectrum.ieee.org/molybdenum-disulfide-transistor
Tomi Engdahl says:
“Class Clowns” May Actually Be The Smartest Kids In School, Study Suggests
https://www.iflscience.com/brain/the-class-clown-may-be-the-smartest-kid-in-school-suggests-new-study/
Every classroom has its own spectrum of personalities. There’s the Cool Crew who throw the best parties, the Nerds who can answer any question and ace any test, and the Bad Kids who spend more time in detention than actual classes. And somewhere in between the bunch, there’s the Class Clown: the smart alec with a joke or a prank for any occasion, who the teacher just loved to hate.
But according to new research appearing in the latest issue of the journal Humor, those jokesters may actually be Nerds in hiding.
“Parents and teachers should be aware that if their children or students frequently make good quality humor, it is highly likely that they have extraordinary intelligence.”
Being funny has been considered a sign of high intelligence since – well, pretty much forever, actually. It’s such an ingrained idea across the globe that some researchers believe humor is basically the human equivalent of the tail of a peacock, or the grossly overinflated nasal septum of the hooded seal – a way of signaling that you have good genes, and should probably be mated with by all the most eligible tribespeople. Science has backed this idea up too: in adults, at least, an ability to make people laugh is associated with higher intelligence.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Espoolaisfyysikon transistoriläpimurto leikkaa hukkatehoa 99,9999 % ja parantaa säteilyn kestoa kertaluokan – Voi mullistaa satelliitit ja iot:n
Tuomas Kangasniemi8.10.202108:37|päivitetty8.10.202108:37ELEKTRONIIKKASTARTUP
Hyperion Semiconductorsin keksintö on uusi transistorikytkentä, joka yhdistää mosfet- ja jfet-tekniikoiden etuja.
https://www.tekniikkatalous.fi/uutiset/espoolaisfyysikon-transistorilapimurto-leikkaa-hukkatehoa-99-9999-ja-parantaa-sateilyn-kestoa-kertaluokan-voi-mullistaa-satelliitit-ja-iotn/221ace3a-8c44-4d9a-97ce-cc8a4ef5012d
Mikropiireistä yli 99 prosenttia on valmistettu jo vuosikymmenten ajan niin sanotuista mosfet-transistoreista. Tätä tilannetta espoolainen puolijohdefyysikko Artto Aurola yrittää muuttaa keksinnöllään, joka yhdistää samaan pakettiin sekä mosfetin että vaihtoehtoisen jfet-tekniikan hyviä puolia.
Aurolan keksintö paikkaa jfet-teknologian pahan puutteen: liian korkean vuotovirran staattisessa tilassa eli silloin, kun virtapiiri ei tee mitään. Korjaus onnistuu uudenlaisella kytkennällä, joka yhdistää p-tyypin ja n-tyypin jfet-transistorit yhden transistorin tapaan toimivaksi kokonaisuudeksi.
Koska jfet-tekniikka kestää kestää säteilyä ”ainakin kertaluokkaa paremmin” kuin mosfetit, edut satelliittiteknologiassa olisivat ilmeiset.
Tämän lisäksi Aurolan keksinnöllä vuotovirta saataisiin leikattua jopa 1 000 000 kertaa pienemmäksi kuin nykyisellä mosfet-teknologialla.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tiny Winged Circuits Fall With Style
https://hackaday.com/2021/10/11/tiny-winged-circuits-fall-with-style/
Researchers at Northwestern University is moving the goalposts on how small you can make a tiny flying object down to 0.5 mm, effectively creating flying microchips. Although “falling with style” is probably a more accurate description.
Like similar projects we featured before from the Singapore University of Technology and Design, these tiny gliders are inspired by the “helicopter seeds” produced by various tree species. They consist of a single shape memory polymer substrate, with circuitry consisting of silicon nanomembrane transistors and chromium/gold interconnects transferred onto it.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Things Are Looking Brighter! But Not The Stars
https://hackaday.com/2021/10/11/things-are-looking-brighter-but-not-the-stars/
Growing up in Montana I remember looking out at night and seeing the Milky Way, reminding me of my insignificance in the universe. Now that I live in a city, such introspection is no longer easy, and like 1/2 of humanity that also lives in urban areas, I must rely on satellites to provide the imagery. Yet satellites are part of the problem. Light pollution has been getting worse for decades, and with the recent steady stream of satellite launches and billionaire joyrides we have a relatively new addition to the sources of interference. So how bad is it, and how much worse will it get?
Looking up at the night sky, you can usually tell the difference between various man-made objects. Planes go fairly slowly across the sky, and you can sometimes see them blinking green and red. Meteors are fast and difficult to see. Geostationary satellites don’t appear to move at all because they are orbiting at the same rate as earth’s rotation, while other orbit types will zip by.
SpaceX has committed to reducing satellite brightness, and some observations have confirmed that new models are a full magnitude darker, right at the threshold of naked-eye observation. Unfortunately, it’s only a step in the right direction, and not enough to satisfy astronomers, who aren’t looking up at the night sky with their naked eyes, naturally.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Before the internet, people thought lack of access to information was the cause of stupidity. Really! It wasn’t that.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Nobody’s ever wrong on the Internet, it’s a waste of time trying to convince them otherwise.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Use it to your advantage, eg on stackoverflow. Post a question (which nobody will answer anyway), then login with a second account and post some rubbish answer to your own question. Within minutes you’ll have an army of keyboard warriors telling you how bad this solution is, how wrong you are, how stupid you are, and what’s the right way to do it. Lifehack #341.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Who famously said, “A person who never made a mistake, never tried anything new.”?
Tomi Engdahl says:
Neuroscientist: “First Hour of The Morning is CRUCIAL” | Andrew Huberman
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBwM-mCLQQo
Stanford Neuroscientist explains how to literally change your life.
“NEVER DO THIS IN THE MORNING!
“Addiction is a progressive narrowing of the things that bring you pleasure.” I like this definition
Video: “visual overstimulation through rapid context switching is bad for you.”
Video: *visually overstimulates through rapid context switching.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Southlake school leader tells teachers to balance Holocaust books with ‘opposing’ views
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/southlake-texas-holocaust-books-schools-rcna2965
Teachers in the Carroll school district say they fear being punished for stocking classrooms with books dealing with racism, slavery and now the Holocaust.
SOUTHLAKE, Texas — A top administrator with the Carroll Independent School District in Southlake advised teachers last week that if they have a book about the Holocaust in their classroom, they should also offer students access to a book from an “opposing” perspective, according to an audio recording obtained by NBC News.
Gina Peddy, the Carroll school district’s executive director of curriculum and instruction, made the comment Friday afternoon during a training session on which books teachers can have in classroom libraries. The training came four days after the Carroll school board, responding to a parent’s complaint, voted to reprimand a fourth grade teacher who had kept an anti-racism book in her classroom.
“Just try to remember the concepts of [House Bill] 3979,” Peddy said in the recording, referring to a new Texas law that requires teachers to present multiple perspectives when discussing “widely debated and currently controversial” issues. “And make sure that if you have a book on the Holocaust,” Peddy continued, “that you have one that has an opposing, that has other perspectives.”
“Our district recognizes that all Texas teachers are in a precarious position with the latest legal requirements,” Fitzgerald wrote, noting that the district’s interpretation of the new Texas law requires teachers to provide balanced perspectives not just during classroom instruction, but in the books that are available to students in class during free time. “Our purpose is to support our teachers in ensuring they have all of the professional development, resources and materials needed. Our district has not and will not mandate books be removed nor will we mandate that classroom libraries be unavailable.”
Fitzgerald said that teachers who are unsure about a specific book “should visit with their campus principal, campus team and curriculum coordinators about appropriate next steps.”
Robison said the book guidelines at Carroll, a suburban school district near Fort Worth, are an “overreaction” and a “misinterpretation” of the law. Three other Texas education policy experts agreed.
“We find it reprehensible for an educator to require a Holocaust denier to get equal treatment with the facts of history,” Robison said. “That’s absurd. It’s worse than absurd. And this law does not require it.”
“Teachers are literally afraid that we’re going to be punished for having books in our classes,” an elementary school teacher said. “There are no children’s books that show the ‘opposing perspective’ of the Holocaust or the ‘opposing perspective’ of slavery. Are we supposed to get rid of all of the books on those subjects?”
“As we continue to work through implementation of HB [House Bill] 3979, we also understand this bill does not require an opposing viewpoint on historical facts,” he added, referring to the new Texas law.
Teachers grew more concerned last Thursday, Oct. 7, when Carroll administrators sent an email directing them to close their classroom libraries “until they can be vetted by the teacher.” Another email sent to teachers that day included a rubric that asked them to grade books based on whether they provide multiple perspectives and to set aside any that present singular, dominant narratives “in such a way that it … may be considered offensive.”
“We are in the middle of a political mess,”
“I am offended as hell by somebody who says I should have an opposing view to the Holocaust in my library,” a teacher said, her voice quavering.
Another replied: “They don’t understand what they have done. And they are going to lose incredible teachers, myself potentially being with them.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Research Review: Depression And Anxiety Less Prevalent In Meat-Eaters Than Vegetarians
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/research-review-depression-and-anxiety-less-prevalent-in-meateaters-than-vegetarians/
To eat meat, or not eat meat? A question that has been high on the minds of the environmentally-conscious in recent years, as mounting evidence has pointed towards the negative impacts of animal agriculture on climate change (though people are potty-training cows and shooting their sh!t with plasma to improve this). While its impact on the environment is easier to quantify, food’s effect on our mood is harder to establish.
Tomi Engdahl says:
http://www.thespaceacademy.org/2021/10/new-quantum-teleportation-record-broken.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Christopher Mims / Wall Street Journal:
How the tech used to make giant, ultrahigh-precision mirrors and lenses for the James Webb Space Telescope was repurposed to develop displays for mobile devices
How the Search for Extraterrestrial Life Helped Make Your Smartphone’s Screen Possible
https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-the-search-for-extraterrestrial-life-helped-make-your-smartphones-screen-possible-11634356804?mod=djemalertNEWS
To peer deeper than ever into space, NASA needed optics of unprecedented size; the technology to make them was later repurposed to manufacture the display you might be looking at this very moment
In December, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and its partners plan to launch the James Webb Space Telescope. A technological marvel 100 times as powerful as the Hubble telescope, it has enough visual acuity to examine the atmospheres of planets far outside our solar system for evidence of extraterrestrial life.
The Webb, a NASA collaboration with space agencies in Europe and Canada, will do its work at an orbit around the sun 1 million miles away from our world. Here on Earth, though, part of the technology that went into the giant telescope is also visible when you look at the screen of a smartphone, smartwatch, tablet, or laptop computer with the latest high-resolution displays.
The connection between humanity’s boldest experiment in deep-space exploration and the gadgets in your hands is the technology to produce giant, ultrahigh-precision mirrors and lenses. Such “optics” weren’t possible until NASA asked a handful of companies more than 20 years ago to bid on the rights to figure out a way.
The result, developed by a company called Tinsley Integrated Optical Systems, was a technique that enabled production of very large mirror surfaces that are so nearly flawless that any imperfections on their surface are only a few atoms thick. And that technology can also be involved in producing many displays—using lasers to transform extra-large sheets of silicon deposited on glass—significantly reducing the costs of electronic components for some displays.
The transfer of know-how from space telescopes to the manufacture of displays is the latest in a long line of commercial technologies with similar lineage, from digital-camera sensors to the Dustbuster, which was developed by Black & Decker out of its partnership with NASA.
With the Webb telescope, the connection between space tech and regular-life tech is more than just the transfer of insights gained from research and development conducted on NASA’s dime. It turns out that the very same factory where the mirrors for the space telescope were polished are now where the optics required for manufacture of OLED displays—short for organic light emitting diode, the screens in the latest generation of smartphones—are made.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Where You Are Influences What You Invent
https://hackaday.com/2021/10/16/where-you-are-influences-what-you-invent/
Tomi Engdahl says:
They Milk Cows, Don’t They?
https://hackaday.com/2021/10/18/they-milk-cows-dont-they/
What is Milk, Anyway?
The stuff that Perfect Day pumps out is real milk, no doubt about it. As it turns out, milk is relatively easy to create — it consists of six proteins, plus some fats, sugars, and minerals, all in a water suspension.
Even so, both the US and the UK have fairly restrictive definitions for ‘milk’, ‘cheese’, and ‘dairy’. In the US, the FDA currently defines milk as “the lacteal secretion, practically free from colostrum, obtained by the complete milking of one or more healthy cows“, which sounds like it leaves no room for microbial fermentation. However, the FDA already approves of fermentation for cheeses and so on, so they’re kind of in a tight spot.
Surely the dairy industry will lobby against lab-grown milk — they probably already are. But the dairy industry doesn’t really have a leg to stand on. It is wrought with problems, from over-milking cows to over-breeding them to routinely ripping cow families apart.
Plus, the dairy industry is responsible for 4% of greenhouse gas emissions, which is more than shipping and aviation put together. Considering the climate crisis, it’s utterly ridiculous to impede progress on this front.
Tomi Engdahl says:
What Happens When Maths Goes Wrong? – with Matt Parker
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JwEYamjXpA
Most of the time, the maths in our everyday lives works quietly behind the scenes, until someone forgets to carry a ’1′ and a bridge collapses or a plane drops out of the sky.
Matt Parker is a stand-up comedian and mathematician. He appears regularly on TV and online: as well as being a presenter on the Discovery Channel. His YouTube videos have been viewed over 37 million times. Previously a high-school mathematics teacher, Matt visits schools to talk to students about maths as part of Think Maths and he is involved in the Maths Inspiration shows. In his remaining free time, Matt wrote the books Things To Make and Do in the Fourth Dimension and Humble Pi: A Comedy of Maths Errors. He is also the Public Engagement in Mathematics Fellow at Queen Mary University of London.
This talk was filmed in the Ri on 1 March 2019.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Gen Z Kids Are Like Their Great-Grandparents. Here’s Why.
http://www.generationaledge.com/blog/posts/genz-like-grandparents
Alas, it’s the Millennials’ turn to feel old. Gen Z (also called Homelanders or GenEdge) is coming of age.
The oldest Zs turn 22 this year. They are the newest employees and interns in your company and the youngest people who buy what you sell. Zs are the kids in your house, teens at the mall, students in our classrooms, your nieces, nephews, and grandkids.
Here’s the surprise. Gen Z shares generational DNA with their grandparents and great-grands, the Silent generation that came of age in the wake of World War II.
“What?” you ask (or I’ll ask for you.) “How on earth can 21st-century babies, digital natives born with iPhones in their hands, Gen Z or Gen Edge or whatever you call them, possibly have the same generational personality as the hardworking, patriotic sensible, loyal Silent generation?”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Laserkytkin mullistaa tietokoneet
https://etn.fi/index.php/13-news/12734-laserkytkin-mullistaa-tietokoneet
IBM:n Zürichin tutkimuskeskuksessa kehitetty optinen kytkin voi tehdä tietokoneista vähintään sata, ehkä jopa tuhat kertaa nykyistä nopeampia. Laserkytkin on niin nopea, että tekniikka voi siirtää nykyiset transistorit historiaan.
Kytkimen avulla on tulevaisuudessa mahdollisuus luoda laitteita, jotka toimivat valon eikä elektroniikan sijasta. Tällaiset fotoniikkalaitteet voivat menestyä sekä nopeuden että energiatehokkuuden suhteen.
Laite käyttää kahta laseria asettaakseen tilansa “0″ tai “1″ ja vaihtaakseen niiden välillä. Hyvin heikkoa ohjauslasersädettä käytetään toisen, kirkkaamman lasersäteen kytkemiseen päälle tai pois. Ohjaussäde vaatii vain muutaman fotonin, mikä selittää laitteen korkean hyötysuhteen.
IBM:n mukaan bitin vaihtaminen vaatii hyvin vähän energiaa, noin 1 attojoulea (10-18). Näin pienellä energialla toimivia transistoreja on, mutta ne ovat selvästi hitaampia eivätkä toimi huoneenlämmössä, tutkijat selventävät.
tse kytkin toimii laserien ja peilien avulla. Tutkijat kehittivät 35 nanometrin leveän orgaanisen puolijohdepolymeerikalvon, jonka he sitten panivat kahden erittäin heijastavan peilin väliin. Tätä tutkijat kutsuvat mikro-onteloksi. Peilien avulla polymeerikalvoon osuva laserpulssi pysyy loukussa ja liittyy ontelon eksitoneihin muodostaen eksiton-polaritoneja. Ohjauslaserin avulla eksiton-polaritonien tila voidaan mitattavasti muuttaa ykköseksi tai nollaksi.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Quantum Materials Cut Closer Than Ever for Faster, More Energy-Efficient Electronics
https://scitechdaily.com/quantum-materials-cut-closer-than-ever-for-faster-more-energy-efficient-electronics/
Tomi Engdahl says:
New Optical Switch up to 1000x Faster Than Transistors
“Optical accelerator” devices could one day soon turbocharge tailored applications
https://spectrum.ieee.org/optical-switch-1000x-faster-transistors
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://interestingengineering.com/a-new-stretchable-tool-generates-electrical-power-with-tiny-magnets
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.hackster.io/news/new-totimorphic-material-can-morph-into-almost-any-shape-17523960be9e
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://etn.fi/index.php/13-news/12734-laserkytkin-mullistaa-tietokoneet
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.vice.com/en/article/dypgkw/the-14-year-old-who-founded-girls-who-hack-is-inspiring-the-next-generation-of-hackers?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=adsales&utm_campaign=ES_FutureProof%2FUpwork&fbclid=IwAR1xeFy1bO7MWIbp_3_ieCLwiN4FhqIhaByxX9PzPssy_lMNbMD_XQ6oT70
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.electronicdesign.com/technologies/analog/article/21179363/electronic-design-subtle-magnetic-effect-leads-to-bioelectronic-sensor-plus-energy-harvesting?utm_source=EG%20ED%20Analog%20%26%20Power%20Source&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=CPS211025089&o_eid=7211D2691390C9R&rdx.ident%5Bpull%5D=omeda%7C7211D2691390C9R&oly_enc_id=7211D2691390C9R
Tomi Engdahl says:
http://www.thespaceacademy.org/2021/10/latest-atomic-clock-is-so-precise-that.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Inspire Kids to Study STEM with These Educational Resources A new portal includes best practices, programs, and events
https://spectrum.ieee.org/stem-educational-resources-for-kids
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.tivi.fi/uutiset/suomalaiskeksija-ei-saanut-patenttia-aku-ankassa-oli-jo-ehditty-esitella-mielikuvituskeksinto/b8f83a32-3684-4944-b81f-5b70bae07955