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"... Just what kinds of innovation are people looking for that they're not getting? ..." - Data storage: Ways for people, companies to store data for perpetui

"... Just what kinds of innovation are people looking for that they're not getting? ..." - Data storage: Ways for people, companies to store data for perpetuity - Power: cheap, pollution free way to generate personal power - Water: cheap, pollution free way to clean water for drinking The list can go on. "... And further, what innovations from decades ago are we still relying on today and not innovating through? ..." Lets see: operating systems (Linux, Max OSX, Windows), GUI's (Windows), keyboards and other input hardware. These are the tools we use each day and would be recognisable to people who programmed at the cutting edge in say '76, 77. Transportation is another. Inefficient engines that emit noxious gasses. Another practical example would be food storage around the world. In India for example where a percentage say 5-10% is wasted simply because it cannot be stored properly (a combination of cost & lack of expertise) and eaten by rats. "... But let's call it what it is, instead of predicting gloom and doom. ..." I'd agree with this. So many negative stories come from angry middle-age white-guys. Innovation comes in spurts which is never really acknowledged. From what I see coming up things are looking up wrt Power generation, water and recycling technologies.

froo 18y ago
I want to provide a counter point to your argument, Sometimes innovating for the sake of innovating can be an exercise in futility if current solutions are adequate. Let's take an old joke, which from what I understand is based on fiction, however it illustrates the point well enough. It goes something like NASA spent millions of dollars developing a pressurised pen that Astronauts can use to write in space. The Russians use a pencil Innovation can also blatantly pointless. Take the fashion industry, at some point the necktie was introduced into fashion for men, however it serves no actual purpose - yet it is one of the cornerstones of formal attire. EDIT - There was one last variation I guess I missed, sometimes people do innovate and at those times, sometimes ideas just don't stick for whatever reason. Take the old phrase: "Build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door" Well I've definitely seen better mousetraps, yet whenever I notice them at the supermarket, they always seem to be the old fashioned, crappy wood types - sometimes the Market is just happy with subpar equipment? coughMicrosoftcough
- randrews 18y ago
  I realize this is off-topic, but I hate that joke, and it bugs me every time I see it. Sharpening a pencil is inadvisable in microgravity. Little wood shavings go everywhere, they get inhaled, must be vacuumed up, et cetera. And mechanical pencils require gravity to feed the lead; a mechanical pencil that would work in micro-g is just as hard to develop as a ballpoint pen that will.
  - froo 18y ago
    Yeah, agreed - it's just not funny. I originally was writing about a triangular shaped wheel on a car prototype I saw about 15 years ago on an Aussie TV show called Beyond 2000. The premise of that show was essentially they showed off a lot of bleeding edge technologies (for it's time), prototypes and just plain new ideas - Fascinating stuff, especially for a 12 yr old kid. Essentially the "wheel" was triangular prism with a track that ran around the perimeter to provide motion. It was also able to walk up stairs/curbs by rotating the "wheel". I remember it was an odd sight to see a car trying to walk up a group of stairs. We still use good, old fashioned, round wheels though. So I opted for the pencil joke, as the other was too obscure a reference.
  - bootload 18y ago
    "... And mechanical pencils require gravity to feed the lead; a mechanical pencil that would work in micro-g is just as hard to develop as a ballpoint pen that will. ..." No, mechanical pencils with springs have no problems. All sorts of pencils/pens where used in the space program but the Fisher AG7 and patent # 3,285,228 ~ http://spacepen.com/about-us.aspx http://spacepen.com/about-us.aspx proved to be a good solution to the problems of FOD (foreign object damage), cost, availability, usability and fire. Fisher also invented the "Universal refill" for pens.
    - froo 18y ago
      I guess the real question is... Has fisher innovated the technology behind the universal refill and the spacepen even further, or has it stayed pretty much where it is? This is a serious question by the way, I'd be keen to know what the answer is.

froo 18y ago

I want to provide a counter point to your argument, Sometimes innovating for the sake of innovating can be an exercise in futility if current solutions are adequate. Let's take an old joke, which from what I understand is based on fiction, however it illustrates the point well enough. It goes something like NASA spent millions of dollars developing a pressurised pen that Astronauts can use to write in space. The Russians use a pencil Innovation can also blatantly pointless. Take the fashion industry, at some point the necktie was introduced into fashion for men, however it serves no actual purpose - yet it is one of the cornerstones of formal attire. EDIT - There was one last variation I guess I missed, sometimes people do innovate and at those times, sometimes ideas just don't stick for whatever reason. Take the old phrase: "Build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door" Well I've definitely seen better mousetraps, yet whenever I notice them at the supermarket, they always seem to be the old fashioned, crappy wood types - sometimes the Market is just happy with subpar equipment? coughMicrosoftcough

randrews 18y ago
I realize this is off-topic, but I hate that joke, and it bugs me every time I see it. Sharpening a pencil is inadvisable in microgravity. Little wood shavings go everywhere, they get inhaled, must be vacuumed up, et cetera. And mechanical pencils require gravity to feed the lead; a mechanical pencil that would work in micro-g is just as hard to develop as a ballpoint pen that will.
- froo 18y ago
  Yeah, agreed - it's just not funny. I originally was writing about a triangular shaped wheel on a car prototype I saw about 15 years ago on an Aussie TV show called Beyond 2000. The premise of that show was essentially they showed off a lot of bleeding edge technologies (for it's time), prototypes and just plain new ideas - Fascinating stuff, especially for a 12 yr old kid. Essentially the "wheel" was triangular prism with a track that ran around the perimeter to provide motion. It was also able to walk up stairs/curbs by rotating the "wheel". I remember it was an odd sight to see a car trying to walk up a group of stairs. We still use good, old fashioned, round wheels though. So I opted for the pencil joke, as the other was too obscure a reference.
- bootload 18y ago
  "... And mechanical pencils require gravity to feed the lead; a mechanical pencil that would work in micro-g is just as hard to develop as a ballpoint pen that will. ..." No, mechanical pencils with springs have no problems. All sorts of pencils/pens where used in the space program but the Fisher AG7 and patent # 3,285,228 ~ http://spacepen.com/about-us.aspx http://spacepen.com/about-us.aspx proved to be a good solution to the problems of FOD (foreign object damage), cost, availability, usability and fire. Fisher also invented the "Universal refill" for pens.
  - froo 18y ago
    I guess the real question is... Has fisher innovated the technology behind the universal refill and the spacepen even further, or has it stayed pretty much where it is? This is a serious question by the way, I'd be keen to know what the answer is.