Accidental Inventions

I enjoyed this article on accidental inventions, most of which I had heard of, but not all. A few comments...

1) The #1 accidental invention, the microwave, was invented by a fellow native Mainer, Percy Spencer.

2) I wouldn't really call velcro an accidental invention. George de Mestral got the idea from walking his dog, but had to do a lot more work and experimentation to actually "invent" velcro.

3) I'm very surprised that Post-It Sticky Notes didn't make the list. In my opinion, it is probably the most well known story of accidental invention. The inventors were actually trying to make a strong adhesive when they instead created a reusable, pressure-sensitive adhesive. They found when applied to paper, it could be used to stick the paper to surfaces multiple times. I've heard that the yellow color was just a coincidence as well - a lab next door had a bunch of scrap yellow paper lying around.

The good news of all these stories is that stimulus for new ideas surrounds us every day. Seek out new information, but also observe the everyday opportunities and challenges around you. Who knows what you will discover!

New Television Series

We've gotten word that a new show about inventors is looking for people to showcase for a new television show for the Discovery Channel. This could be a great opportunity to get your invention in front of a national audience.

Sean McKnight of Half Yard Productions is looking for inventors, innovators, and idea men and women for a new primetime television series which will feature YOU, YOUR GREAT IDEA, and their hosts, EXPERT(S) FROM THE INVENTION COMMUNITY WHO WILL ASSESS YOUR WORK AND ENSURE YOU’RE ON THE RIGHT COURSE FOR SUCCESS!

Interested people please forward the following to inventorshow@gmail.com:

• your contact information (email and phone) 

• your location
• a recent photo and/or a link to recent video 

• short bio in one or two paragraphs (Who are you?, why are you passionate about your invention/inventing as a whole?, How would you describe your personality, how did you began inventing?),
• a description of your invention or idea (What’s great about it, are there problems with it that you can’t seem to figure out?).

Just be sure not to disclose proprietary information if you haven't pursued patent protection yet. Talk about the benefit, not the how...

Frisbee Inventor Walter Frederick Morrison (1920-2010)

Last week, the inventor of the Frisbee, Walter "Fred" Morrison passed away at the age of 90. Fred came up with the idea for the Frisbee shortly after World War II. He realized that flinging cake pans through the air was a lot of fun, but a more aerodynamic "pan" would work a lot better. In fact, a lot of people and groups lay claim to "inventing" the Frisbee concept since tossing pie and cake pans was apparently a pretty popular activity on college campuses and beaches for many years. But, it was Fred Morrison, with the help of his wife and some colleagues, who developed a better flying disc made out of plastic.

He originally named the disc the "Pluto Platter" to cash in on the flying saucer craze of the 1950s. He sold the invention to the Wham-O toy company, which eventually changed the name to Frisbee because that's what college students in New England were calling it since they associated the toy with the tossed pies of the Frisbie Pie Company.

This innovation has created hours of enjoyment for people everywhere and for many happy dogs. Thanks, Fred, for all the fun!

Pepsi is Looking for Your Ideas

You have probably seen the commercials, but just in case you haven't, I want to let you know that Pepsi is looking for your big ideas to improve health, arts & culture, neighborhoods, education, food & shelter, and the planet. The contest is called the "Pepsi Refresh Project."

Once ideas are submitted, people may vote for up to 10 ideas each day. Each month, Pepsi will provide up to 10 grants at the $5K, $25K, $50K levels and up to two $250K grants to the winning ideas.

I love the idea of Pepsi getting their customers to participate in selecting their corporate philanthropy projects. I'll be thinking of the ideas we have to submit!

For more information and to submit ideas, click here.

Innovation Engineering Leadership Institutes

This Wednesday will mark the beginning of our first Innovation Engineering Leadership Institute for Maine business executives to learn how to lead innovation in their companies. The institutes will be taught by Doug Hall, author, radio show host, and founder of Eureka! Ranch, which works with major corporations to develop new products and services.

The program is in many ways a condensed version of the Innovation Engineering minor we offer at the University of Maine that Doug has helped us to develop. Participants will learn systems for creating, communicating and commercializing ideas for profitable growth.

When Doug was teaching at UMaine this fall, we traveled the state as he spoke at various business functions, and we encountered businesspeople who believe that they can't do innovation. They don't have the confidence that they can lead it, their people can do it, or that their customers want it. The fact is, innovation - new products, services, customers and markets - is the only good way to profitable growth. And, with a systematic approach that drives out risk, companies can do it.

After the January session, we will host sessions in February and March. The February session has just a handful of spots left, and the March session is sold out, even after we expanded the number of slots available. Let us know if you are interested, so that we can look to holding an additional session in the coming months.

For more information, click here.

Happy New Year!

I hope to do more regular postings this year to pass along the great articles that I have read, to introduce the innovative people I have met, and to share important events in the world of innovation and entrepreneurship.

New Year's resolutions are tricky, but I've learned that taking small steps rather than making impossible goals is the key to success. So, I'm not committing to daily blogging, but I will share at least weekly, and probably more often, the interesting innovation stuff I see.

Social Enterprise Competition

Unite for Sight is hosting its seventh annual conference GH/Innovate 2010, Global Health and Innovation Conference, this April at Yale University. As part of the conference, students may apply for the opportunity to pitch their social enterprise concept to the attendees of the meeting, which CNN has called a "meeting of the minds."

The projects may be country-focused or more global. Categories for submission are:

• Global Health


• Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship


• International Development


• International Education


• NGOs and Community-Based Programs

Instructions for applying can be found here.