Great Risk Equal Great Reward at theCO
“This is typical Berlin hot air. The product is worthless,” wrote Heinrich Dreser, head of Bayer’s Pharmacological Institute, rejecting an invention by German chemist Felix Hoffman: the aspirin.
“There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home,” scoffed Ken Olson, chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corp, in 1977.
“The concept is interesting and well-formed, but in order to earn better than a ‘C,’ the idea must be feasible,” a Yale professor responded to Fred Smith’s paper, which proposed reliable overnight delivery. Smith went on to found FedEx.
A #MadeattheCO Christmas
Our members have been busy in our makerspace getting ready for the holidays. Check out how you can support them by buying local this year!
Our Jackson Home: The Holiday Hostess
Our Jackson Home has the perfect selection of local goodies that make for unique gifts and even better entertaining ideas. Featuring Spare Room Stationery, La Petite Boutique, Andrew Clark Pottery, Yukon Outfitters, Tail Wagger'z, Printable Happies, and Duncan Christmas Tree Farm.
Made at theCO: How to Make a Giant Lite Brite
It didn’t start with a plan, but with a 55-inch TV hitting the ground.
About two years ago, Ben Ferguson, one of theCO’s CO:founders, helped his dad pick out a new television at Best Buy. They brought it to his house, set it up on the mantle, and were celebrating in the kitchen when they heard the sound of something heavy falling with a resounding smash.
The television had toppled over and shattered on the ground.
Best Buy couldn’t take the broken TV back, so Ferguson brought the monitor, which still glowed when turned on, to theCO.
A couple months ago, Lisa Garner, executive director, had the idea to turn the TV into a giant Lite Brite.
Dev Catalyst: Raspberry Pi Workshops
At the beginning of the school year, Molly Plyler’s five- and seven-year-old daughters were asking for a new computer. So she gave them a Raspberry Pi, keyboard, and monitor and told them that if they could figure out how to put it together, it would be their school computer. In less than fifteen minutes, the seven-year-old had her computer running.
“It’s kind of a skill that’s lost,” said Plyler, who runs Dev Catalyst, theCO’s student program that aims to improve technology education. “If you go back to the 80s, when you were working with a computer, there was some command-line code that you were kind of used to because that’s how the computer worked, and now we give kids an iPad, and there’s very little understanding of how it works or what it looks like on the inside.”
Raspberry Pis are mini-computers that are relatively inexpensive, costing about $35. Dev Catalyst is currently offering workshops for middle and high school students that teach how to use a Raspberry Pi.
CO.STARTERS Grad Spotlight: Visionary Media
CO.STARTERS graduate Karen Hester talks about her virtual tours and live streaming business, Visionary Media, as well as her experience in CO.STARTERS.
Meet our Best in the West Finalists: Pyyros, LLC.
While serving in the military, Adam Nichols experienced some of the worst conditions in nature, which taught him what elements are necessary to withstand a crisis: power, fire, and light. In his garage in New Mexico, he began constructing a flashlight designed for wilderness survival: Pyyros, an emergency tool and flashlight.
Meet our Best in the West Finalists: ApeGrip Training Products
Brad Royer wasn’t getting the most out of his workouts. Whenever he lifted weights, the white chalk on his palms slid onto his wrists in ashy rivers of sweat. He tried researching alternative products, but he couldn’t find anything that sufficiently kept his hands dry and grip strong. So he decided to invent a product himself: ApeGrip Xtreme Liquid Chalk.