EIP attended an independently organised TED conference showcasing local leaders in the fields of sustainability, innovation and creativity. The event was held at Bristol’s newly-opened Mshed on 8 September.
The theme for the event was the World Around Us. A particular strength of Bristol enterprise is the ability to work both at a global and local level.
- Wendy Stephenson, a renewable energy engineer, described how The Converging World helped a small Somerset village, Chew Magna, build wind turbines in India to offset their carbon emissions.
- Tony Bury, a philanthropist and serial entrepreneur, explained the difference a mentor can make. His charity, The Mowgli Foundation, matches mentors with entrepreneurs in South West UK, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.
The Innovation session saw talks from, amongst others, Bloodhound SCC, the Nanoscience & Quantum Information (NSQI) Centre at the University of Bristol and inventor Tom Lawton.
- Richard Noble of Bloodhound SCC explained how they found themselves inspiring the next generation of engineers as part of their efforts to obtain a Eurofighter jet engine. Their journey to build a 1000mph car is now gathering pace, with tests due to begin in just over a year. They are aptly based just behind the SS Great Britain in Bristol Docklands.
- Professor Mervyn Miles presented some of the Centre’s current research including work on a holoassembler. This device uses optical traps of focused near infra-red radiation, positioned in space via a dynamic hologram, to assemble microscopic, and even nanoscopic, structures.
- Tom’s talk provided a fascinating insight into the ups and downs of a private inventor. Over the last ten years Tom has worked on a 360-degree camera for capturing immersive images (a ‘BubbleScope’). Tom explained his journey from his initial inspiration while travelling to his current iPhone pre-production accessory.
The event also featured performances that built upon another of the West Country’s strengths: an ability to combine technology and the arts.
- nu desine, a young start-up from Bristol, showed off their AlphaSphere musical instrument.
- David Glowacki, a theoretical chemist at the University of Bristol, demonstrated his Danceroom Spectroscopy project. This fuses theoretical Feynmann-Hibbs molecular dynamics simulations with a 3D imaging camera to allow the motion of dancers to warp the external forcefields felt by the simulated particles. View it ">here.
- Tom Mitchell and Imogen Heap ended the day with a demonstration of Tom’s musical gloves. These gloves allow wearers to manipulate music using just hand gestures. You can watch the performance " target="_blank">here.