December 2007 Archives

Toward the end of September, Heng and I spent nearly two weeks with Elderhostel in Peru. Our focus was on little-known civilizations on South America's Pacific coast which followed, by several millenniums, the rise of Middle Eastern civilizations and the construction of pyramids in that part of the world. The better-known of the local cultures was the Inca. But they were not alone. Their accomplishments built upon the knowledge, expertise, and skills of other contemporaneous cultures that they conquered.

While the Inca are renowned for their impressive stone structures, other civilizations living in deserts in the north constructed their own pyramids not of stone but of another locally available resource: dirt. These were as long as half a mile long and 170 ft high. An illustrated description of part of what we saw and learned during this trip follows. I have also included a description on some of the techniques used by the Inca to accomplish their feats of cutting, dressing, transporting, and raising and setting in place precisely tailored stones, some weighing more than 100 tons. But some mysteries still remain to be solved.

Note that in the following presentation, left clicking on small photos will almost always lead you to larger, clearer photos and, occasionally, additional information. You can then return to the main body of the text by clicking the "go back" arrow in the upper left of your browser.

It stands for Preliminary Innovation Evaluation System.

The PIES format is a comprehensive, structured evaluation system consisting of 45 criteria that are used to evaluate the commercial potential of your idea or invention and to provide you with a risk profile of your project. These criteria are based on over 35 years of research and new product experience, and will provide you with insights into the risks you face and the strategy you will need to employ to reach the marketplace.

A month or so ago I submitted my attachable pour spout to the Innovation Assessment Program, where they would go over my product with a fine toothed comb, and find results as to it's commercial feasibility. Earlier this week, I received the results of the PIES analyses. It's based on a rating from 0-50. As you can see in below,

not that many products get the green light. The number in the rightmost column signifies the percentage of products given those ratings in 2005-6. As a result of the six week evaluation, my product got a 39. The lack of a functioning prototype brought the score down some, but I'm currently in the process of actually creating a fully functional prototype, which will boost that score up, as well as do significant product testing with neighbors and friends.

In addition to this, I've become a part of the Big Idea Group (http://www.bigideagroup.net/.)I've submitted my product for evaluation for an infomercial. Unfortunately, I won't find out about the results of that until early next year. Keep in touch everyone, I'll be sure and let you know what happens in the next stage of the process!