Cult of Innovation

Check out this really cool ad for a scholarship program at Langara College, created by Rethink Communications.

–via Swiss Miss and babeltower

And now for more news from the exciting world of semiconductors, this time, from Bell Labs. I’ve recently discovered that the folks at Bell have long been involved in cutting-edge research and invention.  Just some of their groundbreaking work includes the detection of radio waves from outer space, the creation of the transistor by William Shockley and several others, before he created his own company, (for more about his work, see previous post: The Man Behind Mortenson), the conception of the first laser, and development of the UNIX operating system.  So what is it about this particular lab that has fostered so much innovation?

According to Nobel Prize winning physicist Willard Boyle in American Heritage’s Invention and Technology, rather than vetoing off the wall ideas or discouraging the development of complex items, “the atmosphere set up by the management  [at Bell Labs] was very conducive to people being creative.”  Supervisors encouraged experimentation and fostered competitiveness between coworkers. Indeed, this spirit of competition and exploration resulted in an experiment that paved the way for the imaging technique now used by computers, cell phones, astronomy, and medical equipment.

Spurred by their boss’s request to come up with a new project so they didn’t lose money to another department, Boyle and his partner George E. Smith came up with the charge-coupled device, or CCD, the system of silicon-data storage and retrieval responsible for all of our now-ubiquitous digital images. Hmm, so maybe the next time you’re embarrassed by those drunken pictures of you at 2am, it will comfort you to know that you may ultimately have saved a couple of nerdy guys their jobs back in 1969.

Do you think we still have environments like this today, and if not, why?

To create cool, beautiful new things, businesses rely heavily on innovation.  And in order to thrive in the marketplace, innovations require business.  Much like romantic relationships, the two can result in a sort of symbiotic connection.

So how do you find the right partner?  While conversing with Chris Sallquist of Design Mind On Air, e-commerce expert Yobie Benjamin suggests considering some rather romantic-sounding qualities, like compatibility, mutual understanding, and shared passion.

Without it, we are nothing,” so says Eric R. Kandel, recipient of the 2000 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine and subject of the film “In Search of Memory” now playing a few small theaters, such as the IFC Center, nationwide.

Directed by Petra Seeger and based on Kandel’s autobiography of the same name, the movie traces the neuroscientist’s life — from his early childhood in Nazi-occupied Austria to his groundbreaking research into the physiological basis of memory storage in neurons — and ultimately joins him at the age of seventy-nine, reflecting on the philosophical impact of memories on life itself.

Rather than providing a comprehensive understanding of the brain and all of its complex scientific functionality, “In Search of Memory” explores and celebrates Kandel’s rather inspiring life and invites each one of us to ponder the inventory of memories that contribute to our own personal narratives.  Really fascinating stuff.

“Executives and innovation leaders have failed to link innovation with the overall corporate strategy. As a result, the innovation efforts have no clear directions and there is not a proper mix of incremental, breakthrough and radical innovation. No strategy, no focused effort, no results.”

and nine other things your company cannot overlook if you want to be innovative.

From Stephan Lindegaard, speaker, network facilitator and strategic advisor focusing on topics of open innovation, entrepreneurship, and identifying and developing people who drive innovation, via Blogging Innovation.

With construction interrupted by the discovery of the remains of an ancient Roman villa beneath its foundation, the assassination of Rafik Hariri, the 34-day war between Hezbollah and Israel, and an 18-month blockade in the area of Beirut where it was too be built, iconoclastic Gordon Campbell Gray’s Le Gray Hotel had to overcome a lot of challenges in order to be completed.

But this hotel — thoroughly modern yet taking into consideration environmental issues and the Beirut aesthetic — fills a need for a destination hotel in what Wallpaper magazine’s Warren Singh-Bartlett calls “one of the world’s sexiest cities.” Yalla!

From Line25.com, a really neat site about creative Web design:

Gleaned from the pages of February’s edition of Inc., check out this story about Saul Griffith, called a “prodigy of invention in service of the world community” by the MacArthur Foundation, he’s considered “a hybrid of inventor and entrepreneur with the aptitude to identify things that the world needs and then make and sell them.”

In other news, I’m in love.  Too bad he’s married to Tim O’Reilly’s daughter.  I never even stood a chance.

Last night, my literary agent friend and I were wondering just when it is that something innovative changes from something new and exciting to something that we consider mundane and take for granted.

Any thoughts?

Today, I walked into an actual brick and mortar bookstore, and while browsing the “New Arrivals” table, I saw a lot of interesting books that I would really love to read. Most likely, I’ll just order them from Amazon due to a few enormous price differences (don’t worry, I supported the store by buying $30 worth of technology magazines anyway) but man, it was hard to control my impulses.

Some of the titles I covet: Bright-Sided, Drive, Design Thinking, and Design-Driven Innovation. The one that intrigued me the most, however, was a funny-looking, newly expanded version of a book called The Back of the Napkin ($28.95 in the store versus $19.11 on Amazon!).