Your challenge... if you chose to accept it.

How many connections can you make?  How many new ideas do you have?

Last week, I was awarded a "You Get It" award by Jason Alba of JibberJobber for having so much fun writing this blog. 

This is great because Jason's letting me give away 6 months of his premium JibberJobber service to a commentator on this blog.

So, what's this prize about?

JibberJobber is a tool that you can use for your personal career management. Experts tell you to do all kinds of stuff, and it's hard to keep track of it all.

 

will help you:

• Manage and keep track of network relationships. It is your personal relationship manager for your career.
• Organize and keep tabs of target companies that you apply to, or want to apply to.
  
• Track jobs you apply to - when did you interview, did you send a thank you letter, etc.?
• Prepare for interviews. Put in elevator pitches. Put in responses to questions.
  
• Store important documents like resumes, cover letters, reference letters, etc. Track where you use these and who you send them to.

Jibberjobber is also great for keeping your job-search material organized and available anytime.

How can you win it?

Simple, all you have to do is give me one idea. I'll even tell you how to get it!

Your challenge, if you choose to accept it, is to use a Random Word to come up with "fresh ways to improve cars".

It takes only three quick steps to be entered to win...

1. Get a Random Word.

Use the generator below.  The word should be completely unrelated to cars. You have to use one of the words that comes up.

2. What is the first thing that comes to mind about that word?

Don't worry if it doesn't feel related to the problem!  That's the idea!

3. How could that turn into "a way to improve a car"?

Any idea is great, especially if it's wacky.  I want fresh ideas beyond faster and more powerful.  Let your random word bring you somewhere completely different.

Just write it in the comments (with the random word that got you there) and you're done!

Now, get started!  Your Random Word is:   

   

       

(And, trust me, all the words are hard.  Just go with the first one you get.)

If you need some help starting your thinking, go to Do You Have Trouble Being Creative? for examples about using this technique.

UPDATE: The contest is all over, and the winner has been crowned.

If you'd like to see the fantastic ideas people entered in this contest, they're here:

Ways to Improve Cars - Ideas from the Random Word Contest (Part 1)

Ways to Improve Cars - Ideas from the Random Word Contest (Part 2)

Many thanks to everyone who participated!

(Random word generator comes from Paul McFedries)

Comments

[Srihari]

I got needle.

I thought of sharp.

A good way to improve cars would be to ensure that there are no sharp edges after a car has been in an accident, so that if you are stuck in it and people try to pull you out, you are not getting bruised all over.

It is already used in "safety glass" the material they use to make windshields and windows out of...the glass breaks with no sharp corners so that people can get out safe.

Hope this makese sense! Thanks for stimulating my brain!

[WrightHandBlogger]

The first word I thought of was "Homunculus"

"The homunculus is ... commonly used to describe the distorted human figure drawn to reflect the relative space our body parts occupy on the somatosensory cortex (sensory homunculus) and the motor cortex (motor homunculus). The lips, hands, feet and sex organs have more sensory neurons than other parts of the body, so the homunculus has correspondingly distortedly large lips, hands, feet, and genitals. Well known in the field of neurology, this is also commonly called 'the little man inside the brain.'"

The homunculus is "a way to improve cars" because designing cars to map our dominate sensory foci should help cars be more natural, more intimate. (Not *THAT* kind of intimate!:-))

For example, a way to improve cars using the homunculus is to make cars even more tactile-oriented. Design cars to not just grip a steering wheel but to actual help our hands relax - could affect the dreaded "road rage".

The lips and eyes seem to be the next most obvious areas.

Of course, we don't want to eat our cars but, rather, make cars that are more conducive to our natural desire to talk. Make it easy to communicate without having to endanger ourselves and our passengers by forcing us to take our eyes off the road as it is with most current car, phone, human interactions.

I imagine that's enough for now. But, check out that 2 links below for more information about the homunculus:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homunculus
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Sensory_and_motor_homunculi.jpg

Thanks!
7.30.2007

[Bill Austin]

My random word was trapeze and I came up with all kinds of circus and carnival references and thoughts - You know the kind - lots of clowns crowding into a tiny little car, etc.

Then I went to wikipedia anddiscovered this:

"The flying trapeze was invented in the late 19th Century in France by Jules Léotard. He did his moves from one swinging trapeze to another that had been released by his father who was standing on a platform. He is also said to have invented the full length skin tight costume that now bears his name."

So, how about - an entirely new set of colors for cars. No more blue, red, black, brown, silver, etc.

How about painting cars the kind of colors that they make Léotards in?

Something like this, perhaps?
http://www.schenz.com/fm_chartwm.html

or this:

Which gives us such colors as:

http://www.tutu.com/dwear_colors_ds_popup.html

Red Cardinal Orange Bright Gold
Scarlet Pulsar Hibiscus Coral Reef Bikini
Petal Pink Ballet Pink Classic Pink Theatrical Pink Pointe
Mahogany Claret Burgundy Dk Maroon
Dark Grape Violet Dark Purple Regal
Grape Purple Ultra Violet Cupcake Lavender
Nocturne Dark Navy Navy Light Navy Blueberry
Cloud Blue River Blue Royal Cobalt Classic Blue
Azure Colonial Blue Shadow Ethereal China Blue
Ocean Teal Caribbean Seafoam
Evergreen Emerald Hunter Green Kelly Green
Mocha Suntan Toast Light Toast Classic Light Toast
Flesh Nude
Black Black Heather Stone Concrete White

[Edgar Valdmanis]

I got Mosquito which seems easy to me.
You could supply a mosquito net with the car for use when picknicking, or camping out.
Another idea is to come up with some 'non-stick'-substance so that dead mosquitos and other insects don't have to be washed off because they didn't get stuck in the first place.

OR - best of all. Offer a 'Mosquito-account', meaning you agree to pay a premium of 10 cents per gallon of gas. The 10c go towards a charity that supplies medicines against diseases transmitted by mosquitoes/other insects in poorer countries than ours. That way more children could grow up. If we contributed to such a charity every time we fill up our cars we would probably think about other important things as well and hopefully leave these kids a better planet to live on.
Best regards,
Edgar Valdmanis,
Oslo, Norway

[RennyBA]

My random word was 'bubble' and then I suggest you install a soap bobble blower on your car with a fluid injection remote control. Don't you think it would be fun for the kids to see colorful bubbles flying from your car while cruising around in the streets:-)
RennyBA, also Oslo, Norway!

[Annie Hall]

The word I got was Alarm Clock. I immediately got tired, but thought of "waking up."

As a mother, and "taxi driver" of two boys who are in multiple activities, I think that adding an alarm clock function to the clock that is already installed in cars would be a great idea. So many times, I'd be outside in the parking lot waiting on the kids to be finished with whatever they are doing -- often times with each child in a separate location with different pick up times. I'll have to admit that I often fall asleep (what? a little quiet time alone and I sleep???) while I'm waiting on them. Oh yes, I've thought of setting the alarm on my cell phone, but it typically isn't loud enough to wake me up. Then I'm awakened by the phone call from kid #1 wondering where I am and telling me to hurry up.

This would also be great on long trips, where you pull in to one of those roadside rest areas and want to wake up at a certain time to start driving again. Just think of the use for long-haul truckers!

Oh, and please don't forget the snooze button and how about a choice of "wake up" sounds while your at it so we can fully customize the experience. Everyone's tired of the common buzzer.

One other thing:
I'm currently in a job search and since I always arrive early for an interview, I spend some time in the car reviewing my notes, practicing the elevator speech, etc. The alarm clock would be great for saying "settle down and get in there on time for that interview!"

[Marilyn Wulfekuhler]

My word was "nose". Ah, car air fresheners can certainly use some work, can't they? How about a timed release of different scents every 30 minutes or so. The scents can be pre-programmed on a schedule. They need to be subtle in the confined space though! I love the ones in my house that switch back and forth, because, as the ads say, you don't notice them otherwise. When I catch a whiff at home I still go "ahhhh..."So let's get them into the cars!

Think of the possibilities: program a whiff of a simmering spaghetti sauce followed by a whiff of cinnamon roll when it's time to stop and eat, a whiff of freshly mown grass or brewing coffee to keep you alert, a whiff of jasmine, geranium, or lilac just to make you happy :-)

[Faisca]

My word was mint.

First thing that came to mind was... breath mints.

It would be great to install a breath mint despenser in a car. I know that I always try to keep mints or gum in my car. You never know when you're gonna need to freshen up your breath, and especially if you're out away from your toothbrush or a CVS, it'd be good to have a mint ready for you right there in your car.

How many times have people gone on a first date and said "holy crap, my breath smells like feet"? Now they don't have to worry about such smelly breath, because they have a mint despenser in their car.

[Mary Stewart McGovern]

My word is... beer. lol

Beer isn't usually something I think of when the topic of conversation is cars. However, today it made me thinking of ways to combat drunk driving.

Why not take the technology used for the alcohol monitoring bracelets and use it to recreate the steering wheel? These bracelets can detect when alcohol is in the wearer's body via ethanol that is emitted from the wearer's skin. So, why not make steering wheels out of this material? The monitoring system could block the ignition from starting using the same technology developed for the "breathalizer" ignition block currently being used for repeat DUI offenders.

Just my $0.02...

[Utkarsh]

i'v got ravioli ^^ :)

I am already hungry guys.. how about having a microwave in the car! m sure there are a lot of foodies around who'd wanna grab a quick bite of a steaming ravioli while on ride.

Give it a thought!!

[Katie Konrath]

Lots of very fun ideas! I'm thrilled to see them!

~Katie

[Carolynn]

I got beer. And I thought of bath.

Beer baths. The latest in revolutionizing the way we wash our cars...?

[Michael Meyers-Jouan]

My random word was "tree".

OK, when I was in high school, we took an old car and planted a tree in it (we were protesting the removal of trees for a new wing on the high school).

It provides shade, so you don't need air conditioning.

It also personalizes your car -- if you use a rare species of tree, you can spot your car ANYWHERE in the parking lot.

If your car stalls in high water (we get a lot of flooded roads in New Jersey), you can climb the tree to stay above the water.

If you choose a species that bears fruits or edible nuts, your car can supplement your food supply.

If you take good care of the tree, your car's value goes up instead of down as it gets older (have you checked the prices for large trees at a nursery lately?).

[Scot Herrick]

My random word was "onion."

The most common phrase with an onion is peeling away layers to reveal the core.

The way I thought of improving a car was to build in layers of crash protection into the structure of the passenger car by designing how the car would break apart while still protecting the occupants.

If any of you have seen Indy-type races, you'll notice how hitting the wall at very high speeds or other types of collisions means the car breaks apart in particular ways.

I've seen huge accidents on TV where nothing was left other than than the core of the car -- the person -- and that person walked from the accident because of the design.

So, peel away to soften the blow of an accident and protect the core.

[Nora]

whistle

clean as a whistle....first thing that comes to mind. How clean can improve the car concept? I can imagine an automatic way of removing debris (food peels, old coffeee cups, peanut shells, food paper bags, etc) from car....kind of a sweeping breath of wind cleaning all the food debris. Perhaps in the future there is a porous material used for the car sides, which allows a special "air wind" to go through, push all the food debris to one corner, and compact it in a small disposable trash ball. This special cleaning up would be called "whistling" because of the sound produced...very high pitch and short! lo and behold, no food debris whatsoever in your car!

[Kes Sampanthar]

The word I got was ‘Sail’

SAIL + CAR

Sails allow you to harness the power of the wind. There is a lot of research into using renewable energy to power cars and reduce our dependency on gas. Designing cars with sails is an interesting way of using another renewable energy, the wind.

There are also solar sails; this was an idea I read about from Eric Drexler (Nanotechnology inventor) where he worked on using solar sails for powering spacecrafts. This could create ‘sails’ for cars with a dual power source, both capturing wind and/or sun. Now rainy days is always going to be the challenge!

Taking a slightly different angle and using ‘sail’ as a verb, you get the picture of smooth sailing. Cars could be put into a ‘sail mode’ where they use less fuel and move at a constant speed. This makes me think of work into creating lanes where cars go into auto-pilot and are guided by a rail. This uses far less fuel and stops a lot of traffic congestion. Less stressful and saves the environment.

The idea I propose is the combination wind and solar sail for cars that combined with some of the current fuel cell technology could create some pretty eco-friendly cars. Free sail lanes, where cars equipped with this technology could use these special lanes free of charge, and everyone else with less eco-friendly cars have to pay a toll. Brings a new meaning to the phrase I sailed through traffic today.

Kes Sampanthar
Inventor of ThinkCube
www.metamemes.com

[Kent Blumberg]

I got shoelace and thought of shoestring (as in "running a business on a shoestring"). But then I was back to the original word, shoelace, and thinking about the other ways to close shoes and hold them on our feet. I love the velcro closures on my walking shoes, for example. How about safety restraint devices that rely on velcro rather than metal buckles?

Better yet, though, are my loafers. Just slip them on and they stay on. Easy to get them off in security lines at airports, easy to get them back on.

So my idea is car seats that wrap around you comfortably when you sit in them, restraining you in the event of mishap, but requiring no effort to get into or out of.

Cool contest by the way! I've already got the premium membership on JibberJobber (great stuff!), so if I win, please give the prize to #2.

[Chris Johnston]

I got onion.
Why don't they make layers of paint like layers of an onion. They could use those car wraps. You could peel them off every few months and have new paint color.

[Chuck]

I got "giraffe" and, of course, thought "neck."

This isn't wild or overly creative, but it's a good idea and an obvious one.

The worst thing about trying to sleep on car trips is that there's no convenient way to stabilize your neck without becoming unsafe.

So what we need is a button in the car that makes your neck disappear so that you can place your head securely between your feet on the floor and then sleep in comfort.

Why hasn't this already been done? ; )

[JibberJobber Guy]

surfboard.

That's too hard. I quit. J/K - I can't quit or else "someone" will blog about me quitting, and not being creative :p

Two thoughts on surfboards... one is storage. I used to have a Toyota Avalon and LOVED the trunk space, especially compared to my Acura Integra. You can hardly fit anything in the Integra trunk. Of course you aren't going to put a surfboard in a trunk, but how about figuring out more creative ways to allow us to use a trunk? My biggest problem is the size of the opening, followed by the total volume space. Perhaps a double hinge system on the Acura, or maybe have the part with the tail lights lower like when you drop the back on a pickup truck. That would have been awesome.

The other idea has to do with either hydroplaning OR going through deeper water. I'll leave that gem for someone passionately creative about cars, surfboards and water ;)

Jason Alba
CEO - JibberJobber.com
:: self-serve career management ::

[Vicki]

I got vacuum and as a mother of 3 young boys, I think it would be a giNOURMOUS improvement to have an in-floor industrial strength vacuum to suck up all the bits of crushed orange goldfish, crayon tips, and mystery crud that settles to the bottom of the floor boards.

[Stephanie]

I got "concert"...the obvious thought is something to do with music (the concert package includes tickets or recordings of every concert from a particular artist). But then I started thinking about the origin of the word: plan/act together (thanks dictionary.com).

Wouldn't it be awesome if all cars and drivers acted in concert -- none of those jerks who pass on the right, change lines like their hair is on fire, sneak up the exit lane and then cut back in...you get the picture. But what would make these cars truly fun is that they would be equipped to deal with those cars/drivers who play "off key." They come with something like a paint gun with universally recognized colors (yellow -- driver thinks he's in the Tour de France; red -- major &*(&!!!@#; blue -- cuts in traffic) to "mark" the bad cars.

Fun contest!

[Carl - Restaurant Jobs]

OK, this is very anti-climactic for me. A great contest, a bunch of creative stuff form all kinds of people who went before me... and I get 'mermaid'.... yuck.

OK, that made me think of water (it would you wouldn't it?) and then I had two ideas, neither very good.

1) Idea one is a in-car, filtered cool water dispenser. Has a reservoir that you fill up periodically and a 'mini' cooling cell that runs off the engine. You get thirsty, no pulling over, just open the tap.

2) Idea two, what else could it be other than the Bond like submarine car that every man my age wished for after seeing The Spy Who Loved Me.

Good luck to the other posters.

[Misa]

I got lace. I started thinking of things that can be laced. Then I moved to thinking about "lacing" things with other things (ala "laced" with drugs). Then, I thought, well, that adds impurities. Then I thought... well, wouldn't it be cool if cars filtered the air inside them? I've often had problems with stale air/air being sucked in from outside in cars because I have pretty strong environmental allergies. It'd be nice if the air was filtered a bit better, so what about a heater/air-conditioner that doubled as an air filter?

[SparkBugg]

* ** *** ****ideasparking*...*** *** ** *

"CAROUSEL" was the first word I was given, and it was tonight.

PROBLEM: Incidentally, earlier today I was cleaning out my car, including the glove compartment, and was annoyed with having to root around for my junk, with things getting lost towards the back of the compartment.

SOLUTION (i.e. a FRESH WAY TO IMPROVE CARS): Have the left half of the glove compartment be a compartment carousel: 6-inch high vertical pie-shaped sections, containing elastic bands and pockets to hold all of your necessities, all on a lazy-susan.

BENEFITS: So at arm's length, access your pen, paper, and registration. SPIN the carousel to access other sections, containing such things as: sunglasses, clean wipes, gum, a flashlight, lotion, lighter, chapstick, tissue, napkins, vivarin, pocket-maps, stamps, a change-dispenser, a mini-trashcan, an ashtray, powerbars, tiregauge, mini-duct tape roll, swiss-army knife, first aid kit, pills, mini-revolver, and of course, your gloves.

BONUS IDEA: Have a larger, but flatter carousel in the unused space under the front seats, for larger items like an umbrella, armorall wipes, window scraper, flares, emergency supplies, etc.

THANKS: to Katie and GetFreshMinds.com for inspiring.

-SparkBugg www.sparkbugg.com

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