Open source software has come a long way since the Linux revolution. Back in 90s, it was such a unorthodox and powerful concept to make software free challenging the big proprietary software firms. Today, RedHat a company specialising in open source IT products today is a classic example of how
Category: Inspiration
Source of stories
Citizen Utility Boards inspired by university model
In several countries today, utilities (electricity, gas,water, telco) are still government controlled or either managed as a monopoly or duopoly. Customers in such cases are always at the receiving end as they don’t have any forums to present their views. Most of the customer forums set up by government are
Comics make boring legal contracts interesting
William Edwards Deming, the famous quality guru once said,”in God we trust, rest bring data”. Though most would agree with him there in one topic where I am happy to challenge him and make a claim without data to back up- ‘More than 98% of people never read the terms
Sherlock inspired studies and innovation
Sherlock Holmes was a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. A brilliant London-based “consulting detective”, Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his forensic science skills to solve difficult cases. Holmes, who first appeared in
Dial before you dig
Dial before you dig (DBYD) is mostly free public service provided by many utilities or consortium of utilities (power, water, gas, telcos) to provide clear advice on the assets that might be impacted when someone wants to dig. This service helps lot of contractors, home owners, service providers to assess
Soccer robot inspired conveyor belt
German company, Celluveyor has invented a conveying system with an omnidirectional drive technology for complex material handling tasks. Essentially, it is a conveyor belt with hexagon wheels which moves the materials in many directions and allows quick assembly. It removes the classic lean waste related to transportation and waiting time.
F45 training: Innovative fitness program design
Do you know a Australian owned fitness center is one of the fastest growing franchisee and its growth is compared to the likes of McDonalds and Subway. Yes, that is F45 training. F45 Training is a global fitness training community specializing in innovative, high intensity group workouts which are fast,
Chilean second currency model to tackle inflation
Chile is one of the country credited with inventing a second currency as a means to tackle their growing inflation. The Unidad de Fomento (UF) is a Unit of account that is used in Chile. The exchange rate between the UF and the Chilean peso is now (today) constantly adjusted
Cardiac catheterization inspired by horse and literature
Heart patients worldwide owe a lot to Dr. Werner Forssmann. In the late 1920s, the medical community knew little about how to treat heart ailments. Instead, most of what we knew about hearts came from studying cadavers. Forssmann was inspired by a textbook that featured a tube entering the heart
Collaborating to better manage critical assets
From 2011 to 2016 international water research organisations, Australian water utilities and three Australian universities came together to undertake fundamental research in how critical water pipes fail and the conditions leading to failure. It was a interesting project to address problems which mattered to many, managing critical assets in this