This design case describes the development of the Invention Coach, an intelligent exploratory learning environment (ELE) for the constructivist activity of Invention. The Invention Coach scaffolds students as they invent mathematical formulas to describe contrasting cases. In this paper, we detail our process and rationale for three key design decisions made with the goal of providing optimal g...

Most people see technology as the know-how and the creativity to use tools, resources, and systems to solve problems and to enhance control over natural and man-made environments to improve the human condition. Three major implications follow from this view: technology is “good” and all kinds of technological development are desirable; anything that facilitates technological advancement should ...

The invention of the transistor almost 50 years ago was one of the most important technical developments of this century. It has had profound impact on the way we live and the way we work. The first part of this paper covers the events that led to the discovery of the transistor effect and the invention of the point contact transistor in December of 1947. It continues with the development of th...

An inevitable consequence of the growth of the “knowledge” or “information” economy is the increased importance of instruments designed to protect the property rights associated with these intangibles. Chief among the formal means of such protection is the patent, defined as the legal right of an inventor to exclude others from making or using a particular invention. This right is customarily l...

Patents differ from other forms of intellectual property in that independent invention is not a defence to infringement. We argue that the patent rule is inferior in any industry where the cost of independently inventing a product is not too much less than (no less than half) the inventor’s cost. First, the threat of entry by independent invention would induce patent holders to license the tech...

Abstract—The paper is dedicated to the 65 anniversary of the invention of the revolutionary electronic component that actually changed our way of life—the transistor. It recounts the key historical moments leading up to the invention of the first semiconductor active component in 1947. The meaning of the blend “transistor” is explained using the memorandum issued by Bell Telephone Laboratories....

In this modern era, every passing day reveals a new invention to the world. Every invention gives us new school of thought and with every invention challenges also increase. We can observe and control the system by using the invention of remote control. To control a system automatically, monitoring is mandatory for efficient control. According to changing setup, control is possible by remote mo...

The creative outcome of a design process hinges on whether or not designers are able to find important aspects of a given problem and thereby invent design issues or requirements during the process. How do they do this? What becomes the impetus for the invention of important issues or requirements? Socalled "unexpected discoveries", the acts of attending to visuo-spatial features in sketches wh...