New Atlas

Electronics

Google offers up US$1 million prize to shrink size of power inverters

Colin Jeffrey July 28, 2014

Google and the IEEE have launched the Little Box Challenge, offering a US$1 million first prize for an innovative electronic design to shrink power inverters down from their current bigger-than-a-bread-box size to something less than the size of a small laptop.

Google and the IEEE are offering a US$1 million prize in their Little Box challenge

Remarkable People

1927 Nobel Prize in chemistry medal up for auction

David Szondy April 30, 2015

If you've ever wanted a Nobel Prize and don't have the time to come up with a major intellectual contribution, you can just buy one… the medal, that is. Not the prize itself. At Nate D Sanders Auctions, the 1927 Nobel Prize in Chemistry is on the block today.

The 1927 Nobel Prize for Chemistry went to German biochemist Dr Heinrich Otto Wieland

Good Thinking

British public to vote on 21st century Longitude Prize

David Szondy May 19, 2014

Longitude Prize 2014 is a new competition with a £10 million prize aimed at solving one of today’s great technological challenges, with the British public voting for which issue the prize will be given to.

Longitude 2014 commemorates 300 years since the Longitude Act 1714 and seeks to solve one of ...

Marine

XPrize announces Ocean Health competition

David Szondy October 22, 2013

On Monday, XPrizen announced the launch of three new competitions by 2020 as part of its XPrize Ocean Initiative, which is aimed at improving the health and understanding of the world’s oceans.

The Wendy Schmidt Ocean Health XPrize aims at combating ocean acidification (Image: NOAA)

Science

2013 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine won by researchers at Yale, Berkeley, and Stanford

Brian Dodson October 7, 2013

The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for 2013 was awarded jointly today to James E. Rothman, Randy W. Schekman and Thomas C. Südhof "for their discoveries of machinery regulating vesicle traffic, a major transport system in our cells."

The Nobel Prize medal is awarded to honor the highest contributions to the sciences (Photo: Jonathunder)

Telecommunications

US Federal Trade Commission offers US$50K prize for blocking robocalls

Brian Dodson November 7, 2012

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission, in response to the massive proliferation of illegal robocalls, has announced a US$50K prize for a solution to the problem of blocking robocalls.

The U.S. FTC is offering a US$50K prize for a solution to the problem of blocking ...

Holiday Destinations

The first plus-energy hotel in the Swiss Alps

Bridget Borgobello December 21, 2011

The Romantik Hotel Muottas Muragl located in Switzerland has recently been awarded the highly-coveted Swiss Solar Award 2011.

The Romantik Hotel has been awarded the PlusEnergieBau Solar Award 2011, the only prize in the ...

Robotics

Fleet-of-foot robots could win $200,000

Darren Quick May 27, 2010

The “W” Prize is offering US$200,000 for the first robot that can successfully complete a 10km (6.2 miles) obstacle course within 10,000 seconds.

Honda's stair climbing ASIMO could be a contender for the US$200,000 'W' Prize

Automotive

X Prize competition moves to next phase with 43 teams remaining

Jeff Salton November 15, 2009

From more than 100 entrants, 43 teams (and 53 vehicles) have advanced to the performance and safety testing stage of the $10 million Progressive Insurance Automotive X-Prize, a competition to create viable and super fuel-efficient vehicles.

Team OptaMotive members (clockwise from top right: Mark Demers, Mike Nispel, Murat Ozkan and Michael Worry) ...