WorldWide Drilling Resource

19 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® MAY 2014 The Un-Comfort Zone II by Robert Evans Wilson, Jr. I Wonder What Will Happen if I... Necessity is the mother of inven- tion, but curiosity is its fun cousin. Tom’s board spun out from under his feet as he attempted to surf the large wave. As he plunged backward into the roiling surf, he was frustrated once again by the lack of stability from his tradi- tional Hawaiian-style surfboard. A few days later as he was walking along the beach, he came across a wrecked and abandoned speedboat lying upside down. His eyes were drawn to the small metal keel on the bottom. He knew keels were placed on boats to stabilize them during hard turns. He wondered what would happen if he put one on his surfboard. So, he pried the 12 by 4 inch keel off the boat, took it home, and attached it to his board. As he paddled out to the waves, he noticed his board didn’t move around as much. When he caught his first wave, he was amazed, not only by the increased stability, but also by an increased maneu- verability. Before long, other surfers no- ticed his ability to stay up longer on the larger waves, and copied his idea. It was 1935, and Tom Blake’s fin revolutionized surfing. In 1946, Dr. Percy Spencer was run- ning some experiments with a magnetron radar system for Raytheon Corporation when he noticed the microwaves had melted a candy bar in his pocket. Curious, he placed some popcorn kernels near the tube and cranked it up. The kernels exploded into perfect popcorn that went flying about the room. Next, he placed an egg in front of the tube. Seconds later, it exploded too, and the egg was completely cooked. He turned his new discovery over to company engineers, who over the next two years, developed the world’s first microwave oven. They called it the Radarange. Curiosity is key to creativity and inno- vation. For me, curiosity emerges when I’m cooking or writing. A favorite indul- gence of mine is to spread peanut butter on toasted whole grain bread. One day while preparing this treat, I spotted a jar of sliced jalapenos, and thought, “Hmmm, I wonder what that would taste like?” So, I pressed several slices into the peanut butter on top of my toast. It was delicious, and now it’s the only way I’ll eat a peanut butter sandwich. My curiosity is most active when I’m writing fiction. As mentioned in a previous column, I usually begin with a “What if?” question. It’s here where I allow my unbridled curiosity to run free. Children are naturally curious, which is why they ask so many questions. They want to explore the world around them and learn how everything works. Beating a wooden spoon on pots and pans to create new sounds, making mud pies, building snowmen, and catching fireflies are all activities which nurture curiosity. Exploration and discovery are pleasur- able pursuits that stimulate a child’s mind and encourage creativity. Unfortunately, curiosity wanes over time - in part because children acquire knowledge and put it to practical use, but more so because it is socialized out of them. In school they are taught to conform. I would like to see a looser struc- ture in schools that empowers children to research things that fascinate them. Then encourage them to see how it con- nects with the core subjects of reading, writing, arithmetic, and history. As adults, we don’t have to leave our curiosity abandoned. It can always be reawakened. Let it run free: turn down a road you’ve never been on just to see where it goes; toss some unusual sea- soning or fruit into your next omelet; pick two items off your desk and imagine how you might combine them into a new prod- uct. Go ahead, be curious - have fun! And, while you're at it, maybe you'll come up with the next great idea. Robert Robert is an author, humorist, and innovation consultant. He works with companies that want to be more com- petitive and with people who want to think like innovators. For more information on Robert, visit www.jumpstartyourmeeting.com or contact him via e-mail at admin@ worldwidedrillingresource.com /*% 3*-- :45&.4 /$ !& "3& %&%*$"5&% 50 5)& 8"5&3 8&-- */%6453: "354 -0$"5&% "/% 41"3&4 1307*%&% '03 &9*45*/( &26*1.&/5 > 305"3: 5"#-&4 /08 130%6$&% 8*5) -"3(& 3*/( (&"3 "/% 1*/*0/ &&% &1"*34 05"3: 5"#-&4 < 6% 16.14 < "+03 $0.10/&/54 0/?5 '03(&5 3%&3 :063 $01: 0' = 3"/4'&3 0' &$)/0-0(:> 83*55&/ #: 0)/ ? 410*3 "3,&5 /*% )0/& < "9 888 &/*%%3*-- $0. ; 9$*5*/( $)"/(&4; DON’T MISS AN OPPORTUNITY The deadlines for our July issue are: Space Reservation May 23 rd Ad Copy - Display & Classified June 2 nd Bonus distribution at Energy Expo 2014!