After visiting 3M, I found out so much more about 3M, and some of the concepts behind 'innovation'. 3M felt different from other plants for R&D was a very highly emphasized portion in the company as seen from the plant tour.
Which are the 2 3M products that interest you most and why? What is the science/math behind?
The first product firstly would still be the post-it notes that 3M has produced. In my opinion, post-it notes appear to be such humble looking stationery, but they actually have a lot of impact in our daily lives. Post-it notes has subconciously improved our lives by making us more efficient through the reminders that the post-it notes has given to the users.
The science principle behind post-it notes is pressure sensitive adhesives. When pressure is applied by the user, the adhesives forms a partial bond with the object (e.g paper) which holds the post-it notes onto the object that is adhered onto. The bond strength is strong enough to withstand the weight of the notes , but is weak enough for the post-it notes to remove when the user peels it off.
What this allows is the temporary usage of post-it notes. They can be sticked onto an object just for reminder sakes without dropping off, but can be removed when the user no longer needs it. This particular property is especially useful when people wants to mark or bookmark certain portion of the book without destroying the book.
Another product that caught my attention was the pocket projector The reason why it caught my attention was the unusual tininess of this particular projector. Projectors as we usually see are rather big, and often are bulky, hence making them difficult to carry around. However, for this particular pocket projector, it functions just a normal projector, just that the actual size is much smaller, and is able to fit into your pockets. Handy indeed!
What is interesting to take note is that it can possibly be used as a tool for businessmen to do presentation everywhere due to its mobility. I feel that it is capable of increasing efficiency of businessmen as they can be used anywhere. This is especially important if the businessmen would like to show something to the client on the spot.
What are the innovations you have experienced with since childhood?
Perhaps one of the most impactful innovation would be the proliferation of mobile phones and the advancement in mobile networks.With the advancement of mobile phones technology, we are now able to communicate with anyone miles away with just a few taps.
What are some interesting project ideas / areas of research or even hands-on experiments that you think can be explored in future learning of sciences & math in the school?
I feel that physics and chemistry is mainly what is focused in 3M's R&D. Some project ideas could be how post-it notes can be reused without them losing their 'stickiness'
Which are the 2 3M products that interest you most and why? What is the science/math behind?
The first product firstly would still be the post-it notes that 3M has produced. In my opinion, post-it notes appear to be such humble looking stationery, but they actually have a lot of impact in our daily lives. Post-it notes has subconciously improved our lives by making us more efficient through the reminders that the post-it notes has given to the users.
The science principle behind post-it notes is pressure sensitive adhesives. When pressure is applied by the user, the adhesives forms a partial bond with the object (e.g paper) which holds the post-it notes onto the object that is adhered onto. The bond strength is strong enough to withstand the weight of the notes , but is weak enough for the post-it notes to remove when the user peels it off.
What this allows is the temporary usage of post-it notes. They can be sticked onto an object just for reminder sakes without dropping off, but can be removed when the user no longer needs it. This particular property is especially useful when people wants to mark or bookmark certain portion of the book without destroying the book.
Another product that caught my attention was the pocket projector
The reason why it caught my attention was the unusual tininess of this particular projector. Projectors as we usually see are rather big, and often are bulky, hence making them difficult to carry around. However, for this particular pocket projector, it functions just a normal projector, just that the actual size is much smaller, and is able to fit into your pockets. Handy indeed!
What is interesting to take note is that it can possibly be used as a tool for businessmen to do presentation everywhere due to its mobility. I feel that it is capable of increasing efficiency of businessmen as they can be used anywhere. This is especially important if the businessmen would like to show something to the client on the spot.
http://solutions.3m.com.sg/wps/portal/3M/en_SG/Pocket/Projector/
http://solutions.3m.com.sg/wps/portal/3M/en_SG/Pocket/Projector/Main/Uses/SeeItInAction/?PC_7_RJH9U5230GE200IACD88IO00S7000000_univid=1273666561999
What are the innovations you have experienced with since childhood?
Perhaps one of the most impactful innovation would be the proliferation of mobile phones and the advancement in mobile networks.With the advancement of mobile phones technology, we are now able to communicate with anyone miles away with just a few taps.What are some interesting project ideas / areas of research or even hands-on experiments that you think can be explored in future learning of sciences & math in the school?
I feel that physics and chemistry is mainly what is focused in 3M's R&D. Some project ideas could be how post-it notes can be reused without them losing their 'stickiness'