http://ecoble.com/2009/01/04/top-15-eco-innovations-of-the-21st-century/
I found an interesting page on the the website Ecoble:Stuff for the Green Consumer, Reader and Thinker. It discussed the top 15 eco innovations of the 21st century. Some of these "eco innovations" include a solar aviation, animal waste energy, bamboo, green gadget power and reusable shopping bags. These are not just convenient and exciting new technologies and innovations, they are also very beneficial to our environment. The first solar aviation consists of solar powered airplanes that is becoming more and more of a reality. In 2008, a solar powered Zephr set a record for unmanned non-fueled flight when it flew for more than 83 hours straight. Animal waste energy was another intriguing innovation discussed. In Wisconsin, "Dairyland Power" operates 3 animanl waste to energy plants. This technology, the reusing animal waste to generate energy, is considered one of the greatest eco innovations of the 21st century. Bamboo, although it has been around for centuries, is part of another eco innovation. It is not being used to make skateboards, furniture, biodegradable plates, clothing, and golf tees. 21st technology has allowed this natural resource to be used in a number of different eco friendly ways. There have also been green innovations to keep our electronics constantly charged. These charges can find energy from the wind and sun. The reusable shopping bag is a popular innovation that is a much greener substitute for the plastic bag. Many stores are making these reusable shopping totes available to their customers. I found all of these innovations extremely interesting and eye opening. Creative innovation cannot only benefit a business or provide convenience for the consumer, it also has the ability to help our environment at the same time.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Friday, October 9, 2009
Nature Inspired Innovation
http://www.treehugger.com/galleries/2009/01/nature-inspired-innovation-9-examples-of-biomimicry-at-work-image-gallery.php?page=1
This was a very interesting gallery that I found on the site treehugger.com. TreeHugger: A Discovery Company is a media outlet for "green" news, solutions, and product information. The site provides various examples of recent innovations that were inspired by something in nature. There is a picture of each innovation along with a picture of the aspect of nature that inspired it. The first innovation is Japan’s bullet train. The nosecone shape of the front is inspired by the kingfisher, a bird that dives seamlessly into water. The goal of this innovation was to eliminate the loud claps that were heard when the train emerged from the tunnel. Another example was Mercedes-Benz’s bionic car, which was inspired by the boxfish. Scientists noticed the aerodynamics of the boxfish’s shape and modeled the car after it. This resulted in a vehicle with a 65% lower drag coefficient than other cars at the time. Another rather interesting example is the innovations in hardwood plywood products which were inspired by mussels. Mussels have a great ability to stick to things, like rocks, and Columbia Forest products took note of this. They looked at the natural adhesive abilities of mussels and found a way to use soy-based formaldehyde-free technology when constructing hardwood plywood products. These and other forms of biomimicry are extremely interesting examples of very creative innovation.
This was a very interesting gallery that I found on the site treehugger.com. TreeHugger: A Discovery Company is a media outlet for "green" news, solutions, and product information. The site provides various examples of recent innovations that were inspired by something in nature. There is a picture of each innovation along with a picture of the aspect of nature that inspired it. The first innovation is Japan’s bullet train. The nosecone shape of the front is inspired by the kingfisher, a bird that dives seamlessly into water. The goal of this innovation was to eliminate the loud claps that were heard when the train emerged from the tunnel. Another example was Mercedes-Benz’s bionic car, which was inspired by the boxfish. Scientists noticed the aerodynamics of the boxfish’s shape and modeled the car after it. This resulted in a vehicle with a 65% lower drag coefficient than other cars at the time. Another rather interesting example is the innovations in hardwood plywood products which were inspired by mussels. Mussels have a great ability to stick to things, like rocks, and Columbia Forest products took note of this. They looked at the natural adhesive abilities of mussels and found a way to use soy-based formaldehyde-free technology when constructing hardwood plywood products. These and other forms of biomimicry are extremely interesting examples of very creative innovation.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Service Innovation: The Next Big Thing
http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/mar2007/id20070329_376916.htm
This is an article from Business Week by Reena Jana from March 2007. The focus of the article is the importance of Service Innovation in business today. The focus is shifting from product innovation to service innovation as the next hot area. Service innovation is not a new or unheard of subject; it is simply more hidden and often looked over when thinking of inventions and innovations. The article provides the example of Thomas Edison’s light bulb invention. “People don’t tend to think of the related service innovations—getting light bulbs into houses and schools, setting prices for the electricity services to keep them lit. That’s all service innovation.” IBM has recognized the importance of service innovation in the last few years. To connect with other companies developing service innovation, they contacted the Technology Professional Services Assn. and the Services & Support Professionals Assn. They used the idea that service innovation is not a “one-company thing” but something that can be developed more fully in a community.
The article also discusses the Service Research & Innovation (SRI) initiative, a nonprofit founded by executives of IBM and Oracle. Having an information resource like the initiative will hopefully make service innovation a more common practice in business. The initiative should be more effective than earlier service innovation groups due to its future online social-networking and public archive features. The article does recognize the fact that service innovation will not grow overnight success and that it is a very broad field. Service innovation is the new playing field of business that is receiving a great deal of recognition even in academia. Service innovation is something that all companies should be working to develop, if they have not already, and the SRI Initiative offers up suggested paths of action for companies hoping to jump on this bandwagon.
This is an article from Business Week by Reena Jana from March 2007. The focus of the article is the importance of Service Innovation in business today. The focus is shifting from product innovation to service innovation as the next hot area. Service innovation is not a new or unheard of subject; it is simply more hidden and often looked over when thinking of inventions and innovations. The article provides the example of Thomas Edison’s light bulb invention. “People don’t tend to think of the related service innovations—getting light bulbs into houses and schools, setting prices for the electricity services to keep them lit. That’s all service innovation.” IBM has recognized the importance of service innovation in the last few years. To connect with other companies developing service innovation, they contacted the Technology Professional Services Assn. and the Services & Support Professionals Assn. They used the idea that service innovation is not a “one-company thing” but something that can be developed more fully in a community.
The article also discusses the Service Research & Innovation (SRI) initiative, a nonprofit founded by executives of IBM and Oracle. Having an information resource like the initiative will hopefully make service innovation a more common practice in business. The initiative should be more effective than earlier service innovation groups due to its future online social-networking and public archive features. The article does recognize the fact that service innovation will not grow overnight success and that it is a very broad field. Service innovation is the new playing field of business that is receiving a great deal of recognition even in academia. Service innovation is something that all companies should be working to develop, if they have not already, and the SRI Initiative offers up suggested paths of action for companies hoping to jump on this bandwagon.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Top 12 Areas for Technology Innovation Through 2025
http://changewaves.socialtechnologies.com/home/2007/11/20/top-12-areas-for-technology-innovation-through-2025.html
I found an interesting blog called "Change Waves: Observations on the Future" by Social Technologies. In this particular blog, they are predicting the top 12 areas for scientific and technological breakthroughs in the next 16 years. In order to predict these, Social Technologies' "Technology Foresight" program conducted a global focus group of experts in technology, innovation, and business strategy. The top 12 areas for technology innovation include: Personalized medicine, distributed energy, pervasive computing, nanomaterials, biomarkers for health, biofuels, advanced manufacturing, universal water, carbon management, engineered agriculture, security and tracking, and advanced transportation.
A few of them that I found particularly interesting were the areas of distributed energy, biofuels, universal water, engineered agriculture, and advanced transportation. Distributed energy is predicted to increasingly feature local generators that can be linked when needed for greater output. Possible innovations in this area include advanced batteries and electric storage devices of all sizes, power systems with source-switching ability, and new energy management systems. Being able to better control energy distribution can be beneficial both ethically and financially. I also found the projected innovations in biofuels interesting. The idea that further advances will be made in renewable biomass fuels so that they can supplement and eventually replace gas and diesel is very exciting, especially now. Universal water was another area that was discussed that I never actually realized was an issue until reading this. Water supplies are becoming increasingly strained and it is important that we are able to keep fresh water clean and make more fresh water from salt water. Technologies to improve this issue include ultra-fine filters and new energy sources for desalination and purification. Engineered agriculture was also another intriguing area with potential breakthroughs such as crop produced pharmaceuticals and chemical feedstocks and crops designed specifically for energy content and conversion. One final area that I found interesting and one that will be exciting to watch progress is advanced transportation. Both public and private transportation are believed to experience significant breakthroughs. Personal transportation will be coordinated through wireless networks, information systems, and the internet and on board sensors and computers will be offered for smart vehicles. While this blog was relatively brief, it was a very interesting insight into what the experts foresee as the major innovations in the next 15-20 years.
I found an interesting blog called "Change Waves: Observations on the Future" by Social Technologies. In this particular blog, they are predicting the top 12 areas for scientific and technological breakthroughs in the next 16 years. In order to predict these, Social Technologies' "Technology Foresight" program conducted a global focus group of experts in technology, innovation, and business strategy. The top 12 areas for technology innovation include: Personalized medicine, distributed energy, pervasive computing, nanomaterials, biomarkers for health, biofuels, advanced manufacturing, universal water, carbon management, engineered agriculture, security and tracking, and advanced transportation.
A few of them that I found particularly interesting were the areas of distributed energy, biofuels, universal water, engineered agriculture, and advanced transportation. Distributed energy is predicted to increasingly feature local generators that can be linked when needed for greater output. Possible innovations in this area include advanced batteries and electric storage devices of all sizes, power systems with source-switching ability, and new energy management systems. Being able to better control energy distribution can be beneficial both ethically and financially. I also found the projected innovations in biofuels interesting. The idea that further advances will be made in renewable biomass fuels so that they can supplement and eventually replace gas and diesel is very exciting, especially now. Universal water was another area that was discussed that I never actually realized was an issue until reading this. Water supplies are becoming increasingly strained and it is important that we are able to keep fresh water clean and make more fresh water from salt water. Technologies to improve this issue include ultra-fine filters and new energy sources for desalination and purification. Engineered agriculture was also another intriguing area with potential breakthroughs such as crop produced pharmaceuticals and chemical feedstocks and crops designed specifically for energy content and conversion. One final area that I found interesting and one that will be exciting to watch progress is advanced transportation. Both public and private transportation are believed to experience significant breakthroughs. Personal transportation will be coordinated through wireless networks, information systems, and the internet and on board sensors and computers will be offered for smart vehicles. While this blog was relatively brief, it was a very interesting insight into what the experts foresee as the major innovations in the next 15-20 years.
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