USC Students to Exhibit Imagination

October 2, 2007

What do an autonomous underwater vehicle, a collaboratively written online Kutchi language dictionary and a massive multiplayer game played via cell phone all have in common?

For one thing, they have the potential to dramatically change the way we live, work and play. For another, they are just some of the cutting-edge ideas USC students will present during the First Annual USC Student Innovator Showcase and Competition, to be held Thursday, Oct. 11 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Trousdale Parkway outside Bovard, during Trojan Parents Weekend 2007.

Presented by the USC Stevens Institute for Innovation, the university-wide event will give parents and students a highly interactive glimpse into the imaginations of USC student innovators and a sneak peak at tomorrow's world.

"Rather than simply developing individual ideas, USC can affect great societal impact through the development of an entire generation of graduates that understand how to deliberately innovate," said Krisztina Holly, vice provost and executive director of USC Stevens, who will act as one of the judges of the competition. "USC believes in nurturing the innovative spirit across all disciplines, setting up our students for a lifetime of innovation."

Some of the student presentations at the event will include a motorcycle helmet with a smog-filtering air purifier; a visual, self-organizing, relational map of human knowledge , taking Wikipedia to the next level; a community-based digital music collective and record label; and a three-dimensional LED display.

In all, there will be nearly 40 exhibits presented at the student competition this year, with approximately 100 USC students participating. The showcase attracted more than 200 student applicants from all corners of the university, including Viterbi, Annenberg, Marshall, Gould, Rossier, Pharmacy, Thornton and the College.

The Student Innovator Showcase and Competition will be judged by a panel of experts in a variety of fields, including:

" Victor Friedberg, director of WIRED magazine's NextFest;
" Nathalie Gosset, manager of marketing and business development at the Alfred E. Mann Institute at USC;
" Jonathan Taplin, adjunct professor at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and executive producer of notable productions such as Cadillac Desert and To Die For; and
" Gerard Tellis, director of the Center for Global Innovation; holder of the Jerry and Nancy Neely Chair in American Enterprise and professor of marketing at the USC Marshall School of Business.

Judges will be looking for the most innovative ideas based on potential for tangible societal impact, along with other criteria such as novelty, quality of research, demonstrated risk-taking, enthusiasm and commitment of students, diversity across disciplines and approaches, understanding of the marketplace and next steps, and sustainability.

The winning teams will split $1,500 in prizes. Winners also will receive custom, limited-edition USC Stevens skateboards, manufactured by Unlimited Fix Designs, a startup founded by USC Viterbi student Daniel Singleton.

Added Holly, "Innovation and imagination go hand in hand. We are most excited that the breadth of teams participating in this year's showcase and competition exemplify the innovative and imaginative spirit of USC students across all disciplines and schools."