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The Longitude Prize
Great Britain's effort to solve the problem of determining longitude at sea. Called for submissions, with potential for financial reward. -
Canned Food
The French offered a cash prize in 1795 to be awarded for the development of a cheaper and less expensive method of preserving food. Nicolas Appert rose to the occasion with the invention of the canning process. -
Oxford English Dictionary
Work on building the OED commenced as an effort to document lost or obscure words of the English language. As time progressed, it evolved into the documentation of word usage in English texts. Contributions made were from volunteers. -
Margarine
France, unable to produce enough butter to meet demand, sought a substitute. Hippolyte Mège-Mouriès' invention was selected to serve demand for the lower socio-economic classes and the military. -
Toyota Logo
Today's Toyota logo is a modification of an image chosen from over 25,000 entries in a 1936 competition offered by the company. -
Mass Observation
Anthropologic effort dedicated to documenting the daily lives and attitudes of people in Great Britain. Volunteer observers and investigators submitted reports and diaries of observations of daily life. Proved influential to public policy in the 1940's and lasted nearly three decaeds before it ended. Less than twenty years later, in 1981, the value of its resource for policy makers, marketers, etc. found it new life. -
Mathematical Tables Project
A division of Roosevelt's WPA project in the New Deal, employed the efforts of 450 out of work clerks to tabulate know mathematical functions. -
Sydney Opera House
Jørn Utzon submitted the winning design for the Australian Government's competition to design a new opera house. More than 230 submissions were received. -
Zagat Survey
Created as an effort between friends to rate area restaurants, the Zagat survey has expanded and inspired efforts of online travel & living sites as well as ecommerce organizations. -
Internet Archive
Developed as an archive of websites recorded over time, it came to include digitized media and opened to the public for contribution and access in 2001. -
Wikipedia
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American Idol
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YouTube
