The fun of being a researcher

September 11, 2023  |  My Take

Scientists are often hesitant to speculate (publicly, at least) about future innovations that could impact our industry when the ability to accomplish that is little more than a fantasy. They are more than willing, however, to share information on known-but-very-new technologies or materials that co…
Read More
Everybody is a consumer

August 28, 2023  |  My Take

Price counts, but it isn’t the only thing. Quality, in the long run, is often more economical, even if it costs more upfront. Can I get what I want when I need to get it? What if something isn’t right? Will the vendor make it right? How long will that take? How will this impact my use of it? Sur…
Read More
Provocative books

August 14, 2023  |  My Take

My sister, who is an author, ran across a book that she thought would interest me. That turned out to be quite an understatement. The Fabric of Civilization: How Textiles Made the World by Virginia Postrel may sound a bit bombastic, but Postrel has done such thorough research, and she lays out her…
Read More
Tennies and the footwear revolution

July 31, 2023  |  My Take

The world calls them “sneakers,” but Minnesotans (at least older folks) call them “tennies.” This is the shortened version of tennis shoes—so called, I assume, because of their original purpose.
Read More
Timing a great idea

June 26, 2023  |  My Take

I have a confession to make. My editorial calendar is prepared at least six months before it kicks in, and it sometimes happens that I have a great idea for a feature, but before we hit the month designated for articles covering this great idea, it’s apparent that I’ve already covered it. My exp…
Read More
Idea generating

May 22, 2023  |  My Take

My son asked me recently how I thought of all the ideas for stories in this publication. He thought it would be hard to keep coming up with something new to say. (After all, I’ve been doing this for quite a few years.) Well Joe, it would, if I had to come up with all the ideas.
Read More
Ubiquitous polyester

April 24, 2023  |  My Take

I was recently looking for some clothing items made of cotton. That used to be easy. Everything was made out of cotton, or another natural fiber such as wool or silk. I’m giving my age away here, because I know this transition away from “natural” fibers has been ongoing for a long time. But fl…
Read More
A game changer?

March 27, 2023  |  My Take

There was a time—and it was not that long ago—when I had never even heard the word “nanotechnology.” I have since learned that nanotechnology is science, engineering, and technology conducted at the nanoscale, which is about 1 to 100 nanometers. I didn’t know what a nanometer was, eithe…
Read More
Early adopters

February 27, 2023  |  My Take

With any new technology, innovation, product or idea, there are certain people, market segments and enterprises that are most likely to be willing to try it. Many, in fact, look forward to trying out something new just because it’s new. The husband of a friend of mine was always the first one to g…
Read More
Predictive thoughts

January 23, 2023  |  My Take

In the first feature of 2023, addressing “where we’ve been and where we’re going,” our writer Marie O’Mahony pointed to supply chain issues, the increased use of automation and robotics in manufacturing, the growth of 3D printing technologies, and biotechnology advances. For our next featu…
Read More