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:
Scientists now know exactly how old our Milky Way galaxy is
Using stars as clocks, scientists have provided the most accurate age of the Milky Way galaxy yet
https://www.independent.co.uk/space/milky-way-galaxy-galaxies-stars-b2042313.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Wind Turbine Blades Destined for the Afterlife RecycleBlades, Air Taxis, and more in this month’s Big Picture
https://spectrum.ieee.org/wind-turbine-blades-destined-for-the-afterlife
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/science-of-nuclear-weapons/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/why-people-are-panic-buying-iodine-tablets-amid-fear-of-nuclear-war/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/scientists-are-working-on-contagious-vaccines/
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https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/microplastics-found-in-human-blood-in-firstofitskind-study/
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https://tieku.fi/luonto/sienet-hallitsevat-maailmaa
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https://futurism.com/neoscope/quantum-physics-mutate-human-dna
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://hackaday.com/2022/03/23/two-dimensional-polymer-is-a-new-ultra-strong-material/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://hackaday.com/2022/03/26/who-needs-yeast-when-you-have-lab-equipment/
This particular story on researchers successfully making yeast-free pizza dough has been making the rounds. As usual with stories written from a scientific angle, it’s worth digging into the details for some interesting bits. We took a look at the actual research paper and there are a few curious details worth sharing. Turns out that this isn’t the first method for yeast-free baking that has been developed, but it is the first method to combine leavening and baking together for a result on par with traditional bread-making processes.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Interior of Protons Exhibit Maximum Quantum Entanglement – May Share Common Physics With Black Holes
https://scitechdaily.com/interior-of-protons-exhibit-maximum-quantum-entanglement-may-share-common-physics-with-black-holes/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Scientists create the 5th form of matter for 6 minutes
It’s exotic, incredibly cold stuff.
https://bigthink.com/hard-science/bose-einstein-condensate-in-space/#Echobox=1648175010
Tomi Engdahl says:
Quantum physics sets a speed limit to electronics
https://phys.org/news/2022-03-quantum-physics-limit-electronics.html
How fast can electronics be? When computer chips work with ever shorter signals and time intervals, at some point they come up against physical limits. The quantum-mechanical processes that enable the generation of electric current in a semiconductor material take a certain amount of time. This puts a limit to the speed of signal generation and signal transmission.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Direct generation of complex structured light
https://phys.org/news/2022-03-complex.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Single-photon source paves the way for practical quantum encryption
https://phys.org/news/2022-03-single-photon-source-paves-quantum-encryption.html
Researchers have developed a new high-purity single-photon source that can operate at room temperature. The source is an important step toward practical applications of quantum technology, such as highly secure communication based on quantum key distribution (QKD).
Tomi Engdahl says:
A completely paralysed man, who was left unable to communicate for months after losing the ability to even move his eyes, has used a brain implant to ask his caregivers for a beer.
Composing sentences at a rate of just one character per minute, the man also asked to listen to the band Tool “loud”, requested a head massage from his mother, and ordered a curry – all through the power of thought.
‘I want a beer’: Paralysed man communicates first words in months using brain implant
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/want-beer-paralysed-man-communicates-154452109.html?guccounter=1
The man, who is now 36, had two square electrode arrays surgically implanted into his brain to facilitate communication in March 2019 after being left in a locked-in state as a result of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Tomi Engdahl says:
Most Satisfying Machines and Ingenious Tools
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuSjDbF1_QI
We’ve been using machines for more than a century, and now they work so perfectly that they can be super satisfying to watch. We know you live them, so here we bring you a review of super satisfying machines. Enjoy!
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2022/04/01/uudenlainen-piikalvo-litiumioniakkujen-voimanlahteeksi/
Tomi Engdahl says:
That unbelievable function that can compute EVERYTHING! An Adventure in Discrete Mathematics
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NsZES_rQ7U
Well, this is a video all about 0′s and 1′s. Rather a lot of them really.
It’s about universal operations and exploring how very simple sets of operations can be used to theoretically compute anything at all.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Rubber Band “Slide Rule” Doesn’t Slide, But Rotates
https://hackaday.com/2022/04/04/rubber-band-slide-rule-doesnt-slide-but-rotates/
Around here we mostly enjoy slide rules. We even have our own collections including some cylindrical and circular ones. But [Mathologer] discusses a recent Reddit post that explains a circular slide rule-like device using a wheel and a stretchable rubber band. While it probably would be difficult to build the actual device using a rubber band, it can do wonders for your understanding of logarithms which still show up in our lives when, for example, you are calculating decibels
Tomi Engdahl says:
“If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it.” – Albert Einstein
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https://etn.fi/index.php/13-news/13413-maailman-ensimmaeinen-lasipohjainen-fotonipiiri
Tomi Engdahl says:
We’re finding it difficult to recall simple things: names of friends and co-workers we haven’t seen in a while, words that should come easily, even how to perform routine acts. Here’s why.
Why We’re All Forgetting Things Right Now
https://www.wsj.com/articles/why-were-all-forgetting-things-right-now-11649166214?mod=e2fb&fbclid=IwAR3rF-1kaKN6yT-be85ZjgRw7ySd9SzsoTkz83yEBd-TjL_m8luy8EP-9_w
Short, temporary moments of forgetfulness are happening to more of us more often these days, memory experts say
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2022/04/11/robotiikka-ja-uusin-teknologia-eivat-korvaa-ihmista/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Surprise W boson measurement could rewrite particle physics
https://www.space.com/w-boson-mass-defies-standard-model
A subatomic particle called the W boson may be heavier than expected, a surprising finding that might lead to a shake-up of physics’ grand model of how the world works on the microscale.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://futurism.com/the-byte/cursed-wifi-nuclear-radiation
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://phys.org/news/2022-04-discovery-matter-wave-polaritons-photonic-quantum.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Shock result in particle experiment could spark physics revolution
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-60993523
Tomi Engdahl says:
HOW A PARACHUTE ACCIDENT HELPED JUMP-START AUGMENTED REALITY
In 1992, hardware for the first interactive AR system literally fell from the skies
https://spectrum.ieee.org/history-of-augmented-reality
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.ft.com/partnercontent/omron/shaping-the-future-through-automation.html?utm_source=FB&utm_medium=paid&fbclid=IwAR3GSwi7LDKehD-CmrKgsHzki2WT89l5zWn24aMyro67Zd0tMPEWV9GekMo
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://tekniikanmaailma.fi/voit-onnittella-itseasi-silla-olet-elossa-sina-vuonna-kun-nakymattomyyskilvet-tulevat-kuluttajamarkkinoille/
Tomi Engdahl says:
The First Digital Camera Was the Size of a Toaster Kodak’s camera displayed photos on a TV screen
https://spectrum.ieee.org/first-digital-camera-history
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/space/the-universes-expansion-era-could-be-nearing-its-end-study-suggests/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Study shows how superconductivity can be switched on and off in superconductors
https://phys.org/news/2022-03-superconductivity-superconductors.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://techcrunch.com/2022/03/29/dyson-is-betting-youll-want-to-strap-an-air-purifier-to-your-face/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/plants-emit-sounds-too-high-for-human-ears-when-stressed-out/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.iflscience.com/space/humanity-has-a-new-message-to-send-to-aliens-despite-stephen-hawkings-concerns/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Molten-Salt Battery Freezes Energy Over a Whole Season Researchers demonstrate a low-cost, freeze-thaw battery that stores electricity for months
https://spectrum.ieee.org/long-term-energy-storage-molten-salt?share_id=7008355
Tomi Engdahl says:
A new transistor design could cut 5 percent of the world’s digital energy budget
The new microchips can even retain memory during a power loss.
https://interestingengineering.com/transistor-design-5-percent-energy
“The traditional integrated circuit is facing some serious problems,” said the physicist Peter Dowben, who’s also the Charles Bessey Professor of physics and astronomy at Nebraska, in a Monday statement from Nebraska University.
“There is a limit to how much smaller it can get. We’re basically down to the range where we’re talking about 25 or fewer silicon atoms wide,” added Dowben. “And you generate heat with every device on an (integrated circuit), so you can’t any longer carry away enough heat to make everything work, either.”
But a new advancement could reduce the number of transistors needed to store data by as much as 75 percent, even cutting up to 5 percent of the world’s energy requirements, according to a recent study published in the journal Advanced Materials.
A new approach to transistors
Dowben and his team needed a new approach to transistors, and they found it. They switched from depending on electric charges to relying on spin: a magnetism-related property of electrons that points up or down and can be read, like electric charge can; as a 1 or a 0.
They then used graphene underlayed by magneto-electric chromium oxide to produce a spintronic-based transistor. The end result was that when applying positive voltage, the spins of the underlying chromium oxide pointed up — yielding a detectable signal in the process.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://spectrum.ieee.org/ieee-standard-protecting-kids-online
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://pikkuapuri.fi/digielaman-uudelleenjarjestelya/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Evrnu’s Recycled Waste Fiber Launches Today, And Could Outperform 90% Of Existing Textiles
https://www.forbes.com/sites/brookerobertsislam/2022/04/01/evrnus-recycled-waste-fiber—launches-today-and-could-outperform-90-of-existing-textiles/
It’s much-maligned by many fashion industry stakeholders that sustainability is a siloed challenge shuttled up and down the supply chain when only holistic and collaborative action can measure up to the global climate crisis. Consider the brilliant and exciting developments by many textile innovators, like recycled textile pulp in place of virgin tree pulp allowing the creation of circular fibers. Then consider that this pulp can be processed into environmentally safe and circular fibers like lyocell, or conversely, into rayon using harsh solvents that pollute wastewater and the environment and cannot be recycled.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Everything Everywhere All at Once, explained by a quantum physicist
The probability that we’re all living in the multiverse, and why that idea is so appealing
https://www.vox.com/culture/23024945/everything-everywhere-all-at-once-multiverse-explained-quantum-physicist
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.cnn.com/2022/04/15/world/space-laser-megamaser-scn/index.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Generating Electricity from Heat with No Moving Parts Record-high thermophotovoltaic efficiency exceeding 40 percent could lead to thermal batteries for power grids
https://spectrum.ieee.org/thermophotovoltaic
Tomi Engdahl says:
Uutta näyttöä koulutuksen merkityksestä aivoterveydelle
Suomalainen kaksostutkimus osoitti, että sydän- ja verisuonitautien riskitekijöiden vaikutus ikääntyneiden muistiin korostuu vähän koulutetuilla.
https://www.helsinki.fi/fi/uutiset/terveempi-maailma/uutta-nayttoa-koulutuksen-merkityksesta-aivoterveydelle
Tomi Engdahl says:
Gartner® Hype Cycle™ for Digital Business Capabilities
https://www.arduino.cc/pro/why-pro#hype-cycle
“Digital business continues changing the way organizations approach and execute strategy. New concepts are forcing the evaluation of competitive advantage and disrupting industries.”
GARTNER
Tomi Engdahl says:
One Twin Went Vegan, The Other Ate Meat. This Is What Happened.
https://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/one-twin-went-vegan-the-other-ate-meat-this-is-what-happened/
Identical twins Hugo and Ross Turner have submitted themselves to become a pair of human guinea pigs and investigate whether a vegan diet is healthier than eating meat and dairy.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://newsinstact.com/articles/nasa-reveals-that-once-every-8-minutes-mysterious-portals-connect-our-planet-with-the-sun/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.scienceacumen.com/2022/03/researchers-find-microplastics-in-human.html