Forum Issue

Real Innovation

We have already covered much of the theory of discovery, science, creativity and innovation in Previous Issues of the if++ Innovation Forum. Now we take a look at applied innovation, by focusing on topical issues and articles in the news. You can, however, also steer the course of if++ by voting on your chosen areas of interest and expressing your own views.

The article below uses elements of theory (covered earlier) to analyse real world innovations.

Biotechnology: Sustainability

Biotechnology >

In the last issue we looked at GM but as with all innovation it is time for us to move on. Just before we do though, those of you interested in GM and/or biotechnology may want to read this article:

Biotechnology: the case for sustainability

It makes an interesting case for biotec in a wider arena, promoting the potential benefits of some areas and down-playing others. The other interesting aspect is the web site this article is hosted on: open democracy. Perhaps someday all democracy will be open, and we will all have a say and vote on most matters of the democratic process. Just imagine: no politicians, no spin, no . . .

Up, up and into Space

Now we leave the GM crops on the ground, and its pollen in the air, to imagine rising steadily to a planned altitude of over 100,000 feet in a balloon! QinetiQ 1 is a helium filled balloon as tall as the Empire State Building, and it aims to break the world record altitude for manned balloon flight.

Thinking from such a perspective provides a rich source of inspiration when you need to be creative. Here are some aspects, issues, facts and myths, to identify and consider:

What is the air like at this altitude? (e.g. breathable, pressure, temperature)
What is the exposure like? (e.g. sun light, radiation level)
What is the gravity like? (e.g. would you feel weight-less)
Will the balloon keep rising indefinitely? What determines this?
What is the connection between QinetiQ and James Bond (aka 007)?

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< Balloon

Space Shuttle >

The verdict is in on the Space Shuttle disaster, the one that broke up on re-entry into the atmosphere. Management, their procedures and communications got criticised for playing a key role in the disaster. Some of the engineers at NASA expressed concerns over the fact that insulating foam had fallen off during take off and could have damaged the tiles that form the protective heat shield for re-entry. Of course, the engineers, at the time, were not sure that any critical damage had been done and management effectively ignored their concerns.

In innovation and creative thinking, simple solutions are often best, and you may be able to find these by coming at the problem from a different perspective. For example, in the case of the shuttle, it may be a good idea in the future to perform inspections of the tiles when the shuttle is in orbit. Then if a problem is definitely identified the management can take action to solve it. Inspections could be performed by a space walk, or by using an external, remotely-controlled, camera. A small price to pay for saving lives and keeping the space programme active.

It is a first for Europe. The first trip to the Moon, and the innovative use of a new type of propulsion system (the ion drive) and the first ever global X-ray map of the surface of the Moon. Plus innovative instrumentation and control technologies . . . More here

UK scientists have a lead role in the mission. Could UK and European space agencies be set for a major role in space innovation in the future? It is important to set ambitious goals if you want to achieve ambitious results. The same applies to your innovation and goal setting too - but balance the ambition with achievable goal setting.

< Euro Innovation goes to the Moon

On to Mars >

. . . And yes UK scientists even have a probe on its way to Mars. Given that it is at its closest to the Earth for first time in many thousands of years you have got to make the most of the opportunity - even if it is still over 30 million miles away and the probe will not get there until Christmas!

There are often huge distances, high speeds and extremely long periods associated with things on a universal scale. Such aspects help to stimulate your creative thinking abilities by changing your perspectives and thinking on a bigger scale, much bigger!

How big is the universe? Consider this: imagine the Earth represents the entire universe (yes it is thought to be finite in size). One grain of sand on this scale may represent the size of our complete solar system (our sun, and the orbits of Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter . . . Pluto). [Rough approximation]

DVD/CD down and out

CD moves out >	Did you know that Acro Logic provides future forecasting of trends? One such prediction was the demise of the CD due to the Internet and broadband connectivity. Well this prediction has just been validated by recent research which shows a trend towards Internet downloads as opposed to CDs. The research estimates that in five years a third of music purchases will be for Internet downloads rather than CD. Similar trends are predicted for DVD and video.
	Did you know? Broadband is a term used in the UK today to represent speeds that are very much slower than the term represented many years ago!? Also, some countries have much better broadband infrastructures than the UK, which are capable of much greater capacities, faster speeds and better quality of service. Did you know that some of the leading countries are Sweden and Korea? More facts are available from Acro Logic.	< Broadband Bits

NHS IT

NHS-IT >

Some years ago huge sums of public money were spent on developing a custom IT infrastructure and IT applications for the NHS. That was an innovation attempt which achieved some level of success, but failed to achieve great breakthroughs in efficiency and effectiveness for the NHS. Now they are about to do a similar thing again, spending a further 2,300 million pounds on another version.

Real innovation always comes with risk, but why does so much money need to be spent on such an IT system? Does it really require 2,300 million pounds? Take a look at what others are able to do with much less money. For example, there are other companies that have used huge computer farms (e.g. 10,000 PCs) to deliver their Web services across the Internet to the whole world, and they have spent about one hundredth of the amount allocated to this NHS project. The Internet, and its standard set of technologies, can provide all the IT functionality any organisation would need, and can even provide reliability and security. Will the NHS project create a proprietary system? Will they be held to ransom by its supplier? Will it over-run the timescales and budgets like other public funded projects? Will there be a take 3, or will they get it right this time?

Of course, innovation is always about more than just the technology - it is about the people that use the technology, and how they use it.

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