Idea Lab Definition:
A multidisciplinary collaboration between graduate students on campus working on developing a common application, product, or service. A few characteristics of such a group are:
Focused – the point is to avoid assembling a group around a topic that is too broad.
Purpose - the graduate students involved should believe that they can improve their own research activity by staying involved. This is different from a forum purely for education on a topic.
Breath - an Idealab is best suited for a concept/ application that draws 1 or 2 students from individual labs across campus, but not an entire lab group
Size - control size and attendees in order to control the discussion. Make sure everyone invited could contribute to the discussion
Leadership - there must be a single organizer who provides the necessary structure for the group and is responsible for inviting members, managing an email list, coordinating the schedule, and moderating during the meetings
Contest Details
The competition will cover the costs associated with organizing the community, such as meals. The competition will also cover the costs of building and maintaining a shared web infrastructure for sharing presentations, literature, etc.
Entries should describe:
- The focus and goals of the Idea Lab
- The names of students (at least 3-5) that have agreed to participate, and a list of other research groups that the Idea Lab might draw from
- The way in which in which this Idea Lab will operate
- How this Idea Lab may be different or similar to similar groups on campus
- A short budget of no more than $1,000 - $2,000.
Deadline
All submissions are due 5:00 p.m. April 14, 2008, but we will award funds on a rolling basis, so early submission is encouraged. All entries should be submitted electronically to calidealabs@gmail.com.
Length
Submissions should be no more than 3-5 pages.
Prizes
A total of $10,000 in cash prizes is available. Prizes will only be awarded if there are high-quality submissions.
Eligibility
Teams must include at least 3-5 UC Berkeley graduate students, but the team may include participants that are not UC Berkeley students if this helps to meet the goals of the Idea Lab.
Decisions of the Judges
Decisions of the judges are final and not subject to appeal.
Required Information
The following information must be required (which does not count against the 5 page limit)
Names and brief bios of team members, including major and student status (e.g. undergrad, grad)
Contact information for the leader of the proposed Idea Lab.
Whether or not you consent to public, online dissemination of your white paper.
1-2 paragraphs on what your team would do with the money.