We've all heard of Kickstarter and its revolutionary crowdfunding technique where individuals can support small business startups, artistic endeavors or fundraise for good causes. With its success, other crowdfunding models have emerged, too, like Indiegogo or education-focused Donors Choose.
The latest addition to the crowdfunding world is one that's unique to the U.P. It's called Superior Ideas and was launched by
Michigan Technological University to help fund worthy research projects that otherwise may not get the traditional funding they need.
The site has kicked off with nine Tech-based research projects, inspired by the crowdfunding success of environmental science professor John Vucetich, who recently raised more than $10,000 for the Isle Royale wolf-moose predator-prey study that has been ongoing for many years.
"This is a way to leverage interesting ideas," says David Reed, VP of research at Tech. "It can help people get started, do a discrete piece of research or collect data that will enable them to get more funding."
Current projects looking for funding include a sleep apnea study, a Great Lakes sturgeon survey, research into safer heart bypass grafts and a smartphone super-lens.
To support any of these or other research projects, you can check out Superior Ideas
online here.
Writer: Sam Eggleston
Source: David Reed, Michigan Technological University
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