You've got a world-changing idea. And gobs of passion. Great! So, how do you attract investment? From concept to company Ann Arbor SPARK's boot camp is school for start-ups. Concentrate's Jon Zemke follows a pair of entrepreneurs as they learn to hone their pitch, strategize their growth and listen to those who have been there and done that.
Ann Arbor’s Toyota engineering facility is starting to design cars from start to finish. Excerpt: The Toyota Venza, which will arrive in dealer showrooms in December, represents a milestone for its design team and more than 300 engineers in Ann Arbor Township who worked on the vehicle and is likely to lead to more high-profile work for Toyota's Michigan employees. The Venza -- a car that Toyota says is not a crossover or a station wagon, but resembles both -- is the first vehicle designed and engineered from the concept to the final production stage at Toyota's Calty Design Research studios in Ann Arbor Township and Newport Beach, Calif. It was engineered at the Toyota Technical Center in Ann Arbor Township. Read the rest of the story here.
From self-proclaimed dilettante to transformational director, over the last 20 years Ken Fischer has cemented the University Musical Society's reputation as a world class arts organization. Collaborating with everyone from Martha Graham to the Royal Shakespeare Company, UMS has introduced Ann Arbor to performing artists from every corner of the globe.
Welcome to TV Dinner 2.0! Ann Arbor’s Domino’s Pizza has found a way for people to order food through their TiVo.Excerpt:Alviso, Calif.-based TiVo Inc. and Ann Arbor's Domino's Pizza Inc. announced a partnership to give broadband connected TiVo subscribers the ability to order pizza for delivery or pick-up, and track delivery timing, right from their TV sets using the TiVo service.TiVo subscribers can order pizza through several advertising entry points on the TiVo user interface including Gold Star Sponsorship, Program Placement, Interactive Tags in live TV spots, and through Music, Photos, Products, & More by clicking on "Order Your Dominos Pizza Now."Read the rest of the story here.
The University of Michigan’s long-time Division of Kinesiology just became the School of Kinesiology. Excerpt: Kinesiology recently received a new home on the University of Michigan campus. Now it's getting a more prestigious name. The academic unit's name is changing from the Division of Kinesiology to the School of Kinesiology, effective Dec. 1. The U-M Board of Regents approved the change at its regular monthly meeting Thursday. Kinesiology involves the study of movement and was established in 1990 from its precursor, the department of physical education. With an undergraduate enrollment of 800 students, it now has the fourth highest number of undergraduates among the 12 schools and colleges with undergraduate programs on campus. Read the rest of the story here.
When you've got 20,000 engineering students within 100 miles of your community, it's easy to make the case that Ann Arbor is the place for engineering firms to set up shop. And that just what U-M's Business Engagement Center did when it attracted Aernnova to The Deuce.
The University of Michigan is trying to make its computers as green as their motherboards with an environmental mission that is expected to save the university hundreds of thousands of dollars.Excerpt:Spurred into action by a phone call from Google cofounder Larry Page, the University of Michigan is on its way to becoming a leader in green computing, hoping to save money and the environment.The campus-wide volunteer effort, which officially kicked off in March, involves a number of initiatives designed to save hundreds of thousands of dollars in energy used to power the school's 80,000 desktop computers, half a dozen data centers and more than 100 server rooms.Teams of more than 90 U-M students, faculty and staff members are working to purchase more energy-efficient computers and other technological devices, reduce the number of server rooms on campus and get everyone to turn off computers and printers when they are not using them and print only necessary documents.One group set up a program that allows people to use computer equipment that others no longer want. Another is looking at switching to systems that allow one computer to do the job of multiple ones. And one plan involves certifying university departments that meet energy efficiency standards."There is such a groundswell of support," said Bill Wrobleski, the director of U-M's technical infrastructure operations who is leading the effort. "A lot of little things make a big thing."Read the rest of the story here and how U-M is highlighting its green efforts here.
The University of Michigan is pulling in accolades again. This time one of its students has been named a Rhodes Scholar.Excerpt:Abdul El-Sayed has traveled to various parts of the world turning educational opportunities into chances to help people. The 24-year-old University of Michigan student has led a medical mission to Peru and conducted health studies in Guatemala.His efforts in the classroom and in the field have El-Sayed lining up for yet another trip abroad. Next year, he will study at England's Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar. Read the rest of the story here.
Tree Town becomes Chicken City as it joins Missoula, Montana; South Portland, Maine; and Ft. Collins, Colorado on the list of grass roots urban poultry organizing.Excerpt:"As it turns out, Mackin is hardly an anomaly, in New York or any other urban center. Over the past few years, urban dwellers driven by the local-food movement, in cities from Seattle to Albuquerque, have flocked to the idea of small-scale backyard chicken farming—mostly for eggs, not meat—as a way of taking part in home-grown agriculture. This past year alone, grass-roots organizations in Missoula, Mont.; South Portland, Maine; Ann Arbor, Mich.; and Ft. Collins, Colo., have successfully lobbied to overturn city ordinances outlawing backyard poultry farming, defined in these cities as egg farming, not slaughter. Ann Arbor now allows residents to own up to four chickens (with neighbors' consent), while the other three cities have six-chicken limits, subject to various spacing and nuisance regulations."Read the rest of the article here.
The Ann Arbor building landscape is becoming more and more eco-savvy as green building takes root in Tree Town.Excerpt:Green building continues to gain momentum locally, as area professionals organize new initiatives to bring attention to the field and an established construction firm opens an Ann Arbor office focused on environmentally conscious project development and execution.Ryan Stoianowski of Willis Building Co. in Saline is co-chair of the Emerging Green Builders Committee of the Detroit regional chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council. In May, Stoianowski was the only active member, but it has since grown to include chapters at the University of Michigan and the University of Detroit Mercy.He said the goal is networking and education."We want to reach out to teach sustainability to young professionals and college students," Stoianowski said. "We're trying to get mentorship opportunities off the ground."A local network of people interested in green building and development could help stop the "brain drain" of younger people to places like Chicago and San Francisco, Stoianowski said.Read the rest of the story here.
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