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X Prize To Offer Millions For Gulf Oil Cleanup Solution

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the just-pull-the-drain-plug-and-refill dept.

Jamie noted that X Prize is offering prizes for a solution to the Gulf Coast oil clean up. This is in addition to categories for mapping genomes, making an incredibly fuel efficient car, and exploring the moon's surface with a robotic vehicle.

6 of 171 comments (clear)

  1. Prevention is better than cure by FriendlyLurker · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Can't see how we can repair untold environmental damage, merely cover up some of the more obvious scars - but we sure can prevent it from happening again. Prosecute AND JAIL top executives... then keep going right up into the political appointee's whose job it is to police them. Then maybe we might have a chance of not seeing them happen again in 50 years or so.

    1. Re:Prevention is better than cure by maxume · · Score: 2, Interesting

      http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/25/AR2010072502620_pf.html

      So we find out next spring how things are going. I'll bet you a fiver that things are going fairly well.

      --
      Nerd rage is the funniest rage.
    2. Re:Prevention is better than cure by jellomizer · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Yes Executives Must Pay with Jail TIme. Because they Micromanage Everything to such a detail level that they know about Everything that is going on at all times. Usually at the Executive Level for Large Corporations they are just looking at the final set of numbers... Unit Produced Revenue earned... The Real people responsible are the Middle Managers who are trying to fight their way up to the top cut safety just to get the impressive numbers to make the CEO happy. That isn't to say the CEO isn't responsible at all... He should have demanded safety as a measurable priority, but these accidents will happen again and again because there will be some weasel in middle management who knows how to manipulate the numbers to make him look good.

      Secondly there is a fact that Mistakes do happen. Looking back you may have prevented it, but I don't know anyone who can predict all possible outcomes, to prevent disasters. If that was the case everyone will be paralyzed in fear. Having solutions to fix such disasters and clean up the mess is just as important as prevention. As it is easier to predict the final outcome of a disaster then the cause to prevent for each disaster.

      Third the guy who really messed up is probably the best guy to make sure it doesn't happen again. Firing the person who made the mistake is often the stupidest thing you can do, as they are often the one who now has the most experience in dealing with it. Otherwise you will replace him with a person who never experience the pain and may become lax to the rules as there is no emotional memory of the mistake.

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      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
  2. Really long sheets... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I have no idea what they're doing now to clean it up, so chances are my idea sucks (ha!), but here it is:

    Get a lot of that hydrocarbon-attracting fabric or whatever it is... maybe a few yards wide, but really really long (and loop it back to itself so it's like a belt)... have rollers send the stuff down into the water (how deep, I don't know... this would probably only work on somewhat shallow levels)... it'll bring up oil with it, which you squeeze off with rollers... I'm sure it'd also get some water, but it'll be somewhat filtered before it even gets onto the boat...

  3. Does the winner... by Peet42 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    ...get to keep all the oil they collect?

  4. The Dutch by Thelasko · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Apparently, the Dutch have developed the technology to clean up the oil spill long ago. Unfortunately, for various reasons, they aren't allowed to use it.

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