1567
Prize for: Developing a method of finding longitude at sea
Offered by: Spain's King Philip II
Amount: 6,000 gold ducats, plus an annual pension of 2,000
ducats for life
Winner: Marine chronometer, by James Harrison, in 1773
1795
Prize for: Preserving food for an army on the move
Offered by: Napoleon
Amount: 12,000 francs
Winner: Canning, by Nicolas Appert, in 1809
1869
Prize for: Butter substitute
Offered by: Napoleon III
Amount: A patent grant in Britain, France, and the United States
Winner: Margarine, by Hippolyte Mège-Mouriés, in 1869
1919
Prize for: The first nonstop flight between New York and Paris
Offered by: Raymond Orteig
Amount: $25,000
Winner: The Spirit of St. Louis, by Charles Lindbergh, in 1927
1959
Prize for: Human-powered flying machine
Offered by: Industrialist Henry Kremer
Amount: 50,000 British pounds
Winner: Gossamer Condor, by Dr. Paul MacCready, in 1977
1996
Prize for: Commercial space flight
Offered by: X Prize Foundation
Amount: $10 million
Winner: SpaceShipOne, by Burt Rutan, in 2004
2005
Prize for: The first robotic vehicle to complete a course from California to Nevada in under 10 hours
Offered by: The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)
Amount: $2 million
Winner: "Stanley," by the Stanford Racing Team, in 2005
2007
Prize for: Progress in hydrogen-powered cars
Offered by: U.S. Department of Energy
Amount: $50 million
Winners: To be announced between 2008 and 2017
Related Stories: | Topics:Innovation, Technology, Military Research Groups, Science and Technology, Technology, Military Technology, James Harrison |
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Recent Comments | 7 Total
August 20, 2009 at 11:18pm by Maria Montana
I tend to see things going this way as well. I'm certain this won't stop at drug use and party behavior (which is actually a ridiculous qualifier as some of the best employees I've seen partied hard on the weekends). What happens when you're denied a job because of some political or religious views you espouse on blog that the HR person doesn't agree with? You know, the kind of information they aren't allowed to ask you in an interview setting. If it can't be asked in an interview they shouldn't be allowed to go looking for that info online. But, I guess you can always make your profiles private so only people you want to see them can.
October 1, 2009 at 1:42pm by Pat Jewett
It is nice to see that these prizes are being reintroduced into society. We need prizes for other things too, like reducing household carbon footprints, solving the Medical insurance debate, faster modes of transportation, etc. A little incentive could go a long way.
November 4, 2009 at 10:59am by andrew zverev
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