February 1, 2010

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Scientific American launches "World Changing Ideas" video contest

By Philip Yam

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This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American

Got an idea for a better tomorrow? Enter it into our video contest. Continuing the theme of Scientific American's December 2009 cover story, “World Changing Ideas,” which highlighted the power of science and technology to improve the world around us, we are encouraging readers to submit video entries about innovative ways to build cleaner, healthier, smarter ways of life.

 

“A world changing idea is one that pushes the frontiers in areas that are critical to improving modern life,” editor in chief Mariette DiChristina said in a statement. "We are excited to see what creative ideas our readers have.” Ideas from last year's story included no-money-down solar-panel installation; marine zoning to preserve fisheries; pocket-size language translators; and bus versions of subway lines for rapid mass transit.

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The contest, which begins today and runs through June 14, is being run in partnership with SciVee, which will host the videos.

 

Scientific American editors and board of advisors will screen and judge the video-contest entries on overall impact, scientific content, concept/originality, entertainment value and production quality. There will be one winner and two runners up in each of the five categories: energy, transportation, environment, electronics and robotics, and healthcare and medicine. In addition, there will be a viewers' choice vote in each category. All winners will be announced in August.

 

”Video is becoming a major factor in scientific communication and advancement. SciVee is excited to partner with Scientific American to make the World Changing Ideas even more visible across the web,” Marc Friedmann, CEO of SciVee, said in a statement.

 

The video submissions are limited to two to five minutes in length. Complete contest rules and upload instructions are at SciVee.

Image from iStockphoto/narvikk

Philip Yam is the managing editor of ScientificAmerican.com, responsible for the overall news content online. He began working at the magazine in 1989, first as a copyeditor and then as a features editor specializing in physics. He is the author of The Pathological Protein: Mad Cow, Chronic Wasting and Other Prion Diseases.

More by Philip Yam

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