Posted on 03/03/2004 9:16:38 PM PST by anymouse
Overview and Goals for Centennial Challenges
. What Is Centennial Challenges?
- Program of contests in which NASA will establish prize purses to stimulate innovation and competition in technical areas of interest to space exploration and ongoing NASA priorities.
. Program Goals for Centennial Challenges
- Stimulate innovation in ways that standard federal procurements cannot
- Enrich NASA research by reaching new communities
- Help address technology pitfalls
- Achieve returns that outweigh program investment
- Educate, inspire and motivate the public
"Prehistory" of Centennial Challenges
. Long History of Prizes for Technological Innovation
- 18th Century: British Longitude Prize
- 20th Century: Aviation prizes including Orteig Prize (Lindberg)
- Ongoing: X- Prize and DARPA Grand Challenge
. 1999 National Academy of Engineering Workshop
- "Concerning Federally Sponsored Inducement Prizes in Engineering and Science," 1999
- Blue ribbon committee recommended that "Congress encourage federal agencies to experiment more extensively with inducement prize contests in science and technology"
. 2003 NASA Space Architect Study
- X- Prize Foundation assisted
- Interviews at field centers and headquarters generated list of 129 candidate challenges
- Winnowed to 15 candidate challenges based on enterprise interests and other considerations
- Estimated purse sizes and expected time to completion
- Formed basis for Centennial Challenges program formulation
Program Assumptions for Centennial Challenges
. Challenges Will Address NASA Vision With Emphasis on Exploration
- To Improve Life Here
- To Extend Life to There
- To Find Life Beyond
- Lean program with low overhead to preserve funding for challenges
. Program Plan and Individual Challenges To Be Finalized After External Inputs
- Spring workshop to solicit external challenge ideas and refine best candidates
- Website, including listserv and form for submitting challenge ideas
- Press announcement on workshop and website expected shortly
. Challenges Will Be Initiated on Annual Cycles
- FY 2004 cycle limited to existing authority ($ 250K or less purses)
- FY 2005 and later cycles to include larger purses (2005 NASA authorization bill)
- Repeat workshops annually and solicit external ideas Exploration Emphasis
Centennial Challenges Frequently Asked Questions
. What Kinds of Challenges?
- Revolutionary advances in fundamental technologies
- Breakthrough robotic capabilities
- Very low cost space missions
- Final challenges subject to external inputs and internal review and decisions
. Who Can Participate?
- U. S. citizens who are not federal employees (including FFRDCs) unless otherwise specified in challenge rules
- Industry, academia, non- profits, students, individuals
- Contestants will be required to register
. How Can I Help?
- Word of Mouth: Challenges improve with number and quality ofcontestants
- Expertise: Help with rules formulation and judging
(Excerpt) Read more at nasa.gov ...
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