ICSI & GCSI – Call for Submissions and Participation. Liverpool

The 10th International Conference on Systematic Innovation (ICSI) & Global Competition on Systematic Innovation (GCSI) CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS & PARTICIPATION

Date: July 08-11, 2019, Liverpool, UK

Web: http://www.i-sim.org/icsi2019

E-mail: icsi2019@i-sim.org

Co-Organizers:

• Read More

Best of The Month – AI Superpowers

Darrell Mann

One of the scariest findings from our ongoing innovation research is the amount of innovation (i.e. ‘successful step-change’) that is meaningless. Products or services that make our lives more convenient at the expense of stripping away the things … Read More

Mediocrity Rules

Darrell Mann

Does anyone remember Douglas Adams’ Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy story of the Golgafrinchans and ‘Ark B’? Just in case you’re not a British person growing up in the 1970s, the Golgafrinchans were a race that got sick … Read More

Short Thort

Darrell Mann

“The music is not in the notes, but in the silence between.” Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

“There are all kinds of silences and each of them means a different thing. There is the silence … Read More

Biology – Cat Tongue

Darrell Mann

Cats love to groom themselves almost as much as they love to sleep, spending up to one-quarter of their waking hours cleaning their fur.

The secret to their self-cleaning success? The spines on their tongues are curved and … Read More

Investments – Cheap Nanoparticles

Darrell Mann

An inexpensive way to make products incorporating nanoparticles – such as high-performance energy devices or sophisticated diagnostic tests – has been developed by researchers. The process could speed the commercial development of devices, materials and technologies that exploit … Read More

The Zero-Variation-Manufacture Contradiction

Darrell Mann

I spoke at a Robust Design conference last month. One of the other speakers was extolling the virtues of ‘zero-variation’ manufacture (Reference 1). The concept immediately struck me as one of those naïve, ill-conceived motivational posters the manufacture … Read More

Wow In Music – Horses

Darrell Mann

Pipping the Ramones’ first album to the post by five months, Horses is generally considered not just one of the most startling debuts in rock history but the spark that ignited the punk explosion.

Exactly forty-three years ago … Read More

Generational Cycles – Irony

Darrell Mann

I’m a sucker for Generation Cycles books. Part attempt to find evidence to (one day!) negate the Strauss & Howe model, part smug self-satisfaction. The most recent venture was Tiffanie Darke’s ‘Now We Are 40’ romp. A great … Read More

Patent of the Month – High Refractive Index Nanocomposite

Darrell Mann

A rare trip to Maryland for our patent of the month this month. US10,144,482 was granted to a trio of inventors at Pixelligent Technologies (pixelligent.com) on December 4. Here’s what they have to say about the problem addressed … Read More

Definitely Not Funny – The Iron Law Of Unintended Consequences

Darrell Mann

Not so long ago I proposed a new rule: No-one should be allowed to run for public office or work in a management position unless they’ve successfully passed a Complex Adaptive Systems 101 course.

If we don’t understand … Read More

Kano & Intangibles

Darrell Mann

I’m never sure whether the Kano Diagram (above) has fallen from favour and disappeared, or whether it has become so ubiquitous that no-one feels a need to talk about it anymore. If I had to … Read More

Best of The Month – The Genius Of Desperation/Inverting The Pyramid

Darrell Mann

Something of an either/or choice this month as far as reading recommendations go: football or football. American or Association. While the specifics might be different, the themes are both the same: an author with a steely determination to … Read More

Biology – Polka-dot Tree Frog

Darrell Mann

Under normal light, the South American polka dot tree frog (Hypsiboas punctatus) sports a muted palette of greens, yellows and reds. But dim the lights and switch on ultraviolet illumination, and this little amphibian gives off a bright … Read More

Patent of the Month – Atmospheric-Pressure Plasma

Darrell Mann

Our Patent of the Month this month takes us to Taiwan, and a quartet of inventors at the National Chiao Tung University. US 10,121,638 was granted on November 6. In a wonderfully succinct write-up (5 pages of narrative), … Read More

Short Thort

Darrell Mann

“What is the nature of the search? you ask. The search is what anyone would undertake if he were not sunk in the everydayness of his own life. To become aware of the search is to … Read More

Investments – Reforestation

Darrell Mann

Bruno Rutman Pagnoncelli grew up among the trees in Brazil’s Atlantic rainforest, learning how to kayak its whitewater rapids and soaring high above the treetops in paragliders. On one of these paragliding trips, Bruno looked down and saw, … Read More

Breakthrough Game Design

Darrell Mann

Since the launch of TRIZmeta last month, we’ve been embarked on a tour of the game industry. Main conclusion: there are a lot of games. And the industry is a lot like every other one in that most … Read More

Wow In Music – Here, My Dear / Let’s Get It On

Darrell Mann

I have another theory. One I’ve had for a long time, but have never had the chance to really explore. Mainly because, outside the world of art, music and literature I wouldn’t know where to go find the … Read More

Generational Cycles – Joy

Darrell Mann

Baby Boomer (Prophets)   -           The Joy Of Sex

Generation X (Nomads)     -           The Joy Of Sucks

Generation Y (Heroes)       -           The Joy Of Shots

Generation Z (Artists)         -           The … Read More