PS: What prompted you to set up InventionDB?
Michael Rosenblatt: The idea for InventionDB started while I was in grad school at MIT. In my lab, there were hundreds of brilliant people doing thousands of great projects, but a lot of the contextual information was not getting documented. By contextual information, I mean all the little bits of information that goes into doing a project - the resources (parts, tools, online documentation) and the vendors where all the parts come from - very little of that was getting written down. But that's the info you really want because it's hugely useful to other people and their projects. We built an internal database for people to store some of this info - "hey, this is where I got the wheels for my robot" - that sort of thing.
After graduating, we thought, if a central project documentation website existed on the internet, and everybody used it, people would learn how to build things faster, cheaper, and would be exposed to ideas and resources the were previously unaware of. If InventionDB becomes a world standard, we as a people will go to Mars sooner, and cure cancer faster.
PS: What are the benefits of inventors sharing their ideas rather than holding them close to their chest?.
Michael Rosenblatt: There are benefits to both. Often people protect their ideas when their goal is profit. When this is the goal, the inventor should carefully consider the implication of public disclosure and probably consult a lawyer. Equally often though, inventors are more interested in sharing their creations to show off their great creations or because they feel they are contributing knowledge to a larger community. InventionDB just makes it easier for people to archive and share these creations. The lines are not always clear. Some inventions have been very open and very profitable at the same time. Linux is a great example of this.
PS: What are some sample projects on InventionDB?.
Michael Rosenblatt: There is a wide range. Some good examples of the diversity include David Merrill's Face Control for Electric Guitar, a computer vision system controlling a Midi box that tweaks guitar outputs based on your facial expressions, and Nicole Campbell's Ball on a String [song], a physics-inspired love song she wrote in an unsuccessful attempt to raise her high school physics class grade. The breadth captures what InventionDB is all about - a central human archive of projects - but at the same time, we're taking measures to better categorize the contents so people with specific interests can view more focused subsets.
PS: Is InventionDB open to everyone? (i.e. Can youth list their invention ideas there?)
Michael Rosenblatt: Definitely. There are in fact some youth already listing projects - many in the middle school age range. InventionDB is there for anyone creating things, even the 4 year old who builds a sandcastle they are proud of.
PS: What is the role of serendipity in invention, and how does InventionDB promote serendipity?
Michael Rosenblatt: Great question. Thomas Edison has a great quote "to invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk." I think there's a lot of truth to that. You see things and you make connections, first in your head, and then literally. InventionDB helps promote serendipity by increasing the number of things people see. You can search through the resources people have posted and when you click on any of them, it links to the projects they are used in. Within a few clicks, you've learned a lot. You have essentially increased your "pile of junk".
PS: Does an invention listed on inventiondb.com need to be totally original? (i.e. What is the threshhold of originality needed to list an invention on InventionDB?)
No, no in this sense, I think InventionDB is a bit of a misnomer. It's really for anyone doing a project they are proud of and want to document. So if kid wants to document a plaster hand imprint (perhaps for the 2 billionth time that's been done), that's equally fair game to the NASA engineer who built a robot in their garage to take out the trash. The burden is on us to organize the database in a way that people who come to the site searching for kid's craft projects aren't inundated by robots and vice versa.
PS: Can you list an invention on InventionDB before you've started building it?
Michael Rosenblatt: Actually, many people start their entries before they start the project. They create a page for the project and post updates throughout the process. Some people choose to use the "Authors Only" option while the project is in progress.
PS: In what ways can the process of invention be more incorporated into K-12 classrooms?
Michael Rosenblatt: Thoughtfully. :)
This is a big question. The two most important things are materials and contexts. By materials I mean you want resources at your fingertips that are powerful. A LEGO Mindstorms kit is powerful in a different way than say, a kit that only builds a line-following robot. You want materials that are not limiting, or at least are limiting in interesting ways. Good context means create a task kids will get excited about. Create open-ended challenges to interesting problems. Don't have them build bridges out of popsicle sticks, invent a video game controller that doesn't break when it's thrown. I think documentation and sharing is a big part of it too. If schools around the world can check in daily and see what other schools and kids are doing, teachers will get ideas of how to do more invention in their own classrooms. Plus, kids want to show their work off to their parents and friends. PS: Who are you favorite inventors in history and why?
Michael Rosenblatt: Thomas Edison because he was brilliant, but also because he represents a public misconception of invention. He is celebrated for inventing the light bulb, the phonograph, and so many other things. But he literally had an army of scientists and engineers working with him. History never captures the gritty details. Successful invention is hard work, but we often celebrate the lone hero. Also Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak for inventing the modern personal computer and founding Apple Computer. They set the vision, standard and direction for the most ubiquitous and most universal tool ever created. Their invention actually enables others to be inventors. PS: Do you have any favorite books you can recommend on the creative or inventive process?
Michael Rosenblatt:
Here are three:
Soak Wash Rinse Spin: Tolleson Design. by Steve Tolleson
This is a portfolio book from a San Francisco graphic design firm. It's great because it shows the iterative process of developing ideas, not just finished projects. Mobile Robots: Inspiration to Implementation (Paperback) by Joseph L. Jones, Anita M. Flynn, Bruce A. Seiger
A great tutorial to building two simple mobile robots. If you study it and do the projects, you'll know the basic building blocks for robotics. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
A wonderful story about a young architect's struggle to design and invent the way he believes is true and his struggle with society's pressure to normalize him. What it meant to me was "Don't compromise and you can build very tall buildings ... but it may take a while."
I also recommend reading biographies about people who made great ideas happen - the inventors, designers, and business leaders. In the end, it's all about process. There are a zillion good ideas out there, but the ideas that make history are the ones where the inventor persevered through a rigorous process and brilliantly executed their work. We can learn a lot from these stories.
Phil Shapiro
(Interview conducted via email in November, 2005.)