This year’s can’t-miss event for science writers in the Pacific Northwest happened on Jan. 5 in Bellevue at one of the world’s biggest, most eclectic invention factories, Intellectual Ventures’ Global Good and Research Laboratory.

As members and guests mingled, they checked out the lab’s giant Van de Graaff generator, particle accelerator, and rocket engine. The evening also included fun demonstrations of a Tesla coil, a mechanical computer designed by Charles Babbage, and a scale model of a supersonic Apatosaurus tail.

Tour participants learned how IV’s metamaterials inventions are transforming drones, security scanners, and self-driving cars, and also saw a “photonic fence” target mosquitos with precision laser blasts to shoot them down midflight.

All evening, attendees snapped photos with fun science props, perused books by peers at the authors’ table, and enjoyed a buffet.

Intellectual Ventures is in the business of invention. Its mission is “to energize and streamline the invention economy while producing a financial return for our investors.” And IV collaborates with Bill Gates to operate a Global Good Laboratory that conducts advanced research to address some of humanity’s toughest problems.

A photo album of the event will be posted to our Facebook page soon.

Thanks for attending!


Thanks to the following sponsors for supporting the event:

GOLD

Premiere Sponsornswa-sponsor-iv

SILVER

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BRONZE

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