Combine prize-driven innovation with the vast communication capability of the web and what do you get? Solutions. A July 22, 2008 New York Times article, If You Have a Problem, Ask Everyone, reports that "open source science" is catching on, and cites success stories that show that the technique has promise. One example of a successful problem-solver is John Davis, a chemist who knows all about concrete and techniques to keep it vibrating so that it won't set up before it can be used. Mr. Davis applied his knowledge to a seemingly unrelated problem when he figured out that devices used for vibrating concrete can be adapted to keep oil in Alaskan storage tanks from freezing. He was paid $20,000 for his idea.

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Posted by Keith Cowing at 8:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Bigelow Spacecraft Carries NASA 'GeneBox' for Tests in Orbit, NASA ARC

"On July 12, a Russian rocket lofted 'GeneBox' into Earth orbit within Bigelow Corporation's Genesis I test spacecraft. Attached to the large inflatable spacecraft's internal structure, GeneBox contains a miniature laboratory. In future flights, it will analyze how the near weightlessness of space affects genes in microscopic cells and other small life forms."

Posted by Keith Cowing at 12:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A satellite session is scheduled for November 2, 2006, from 2-5 p.m., the day before the 22nd annual ASGSB meeting officially starts. The title of the session is "Small Satellites as Platforms for Science."

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Posted by Keith Cowing at 11:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)