MITx 3.

086x Innovation and Commercialization Fall 2013

Introduction
Welcome to 3.086x, Innovation and Commercialization. We are glad that you have decided to join us. We are excited to begin our discussion of innovation and the process that makes it all happen. But first, we would like to get some of the logistics out of the way. Please take some time to review the material in this Syllabus.

Prerequisites
This course is open to anybody with an interest in innovation.

Outline
The course will be spread over 13 weeks. A breakdown of course topics is shown below: An Introduction to Innovation Technology Market Application Implementation The Generic Nature of Innovation Reducing Uncertainty & Iteration Incremental and Fundamental Innovation Apple, Google, Facebook Fundamental Innovation: X-Ray Fundamental Innovation: Printing Fundamental Innovation: Strained Silicon Intellectual Property Teams and Organization & the Modern American Innovation System

Textbook
The textbook for this course is Inside Real Innovation: How the Right Approach Can Move Ideas from R&D to Market - And Get the Economy Moving, written by our instructors Eugene Fitzgerald and Andreas Wankerl, along with Carl Schramm. The publisher, World Scientific Publishing, has generously agreed to make an online-only version of the book available to the 3.086x students for the duration of the course. You can access it in the online-reader by clicking on TEXTBOOK in the navigation bar across the top of the course page. If you prefer to purchase a copy as either hardcover or ebook version, World Scientific Publishing offers 3.086x students a 25% discount when you purchase Inside Real Innovation through their online store. To receive the discount, you need to enter WSEDX25 as the promotion code as the last step before your finial purchase confirmation.

Discussion Forum
The Discussion Forums will give you an opportunity to communicate and discuss ideas both with the course staff and with your fellow students. We highly encourage you to participate in the Discussion Forums. Please read the Discussion Forum Guidelines and make sure you have reviewed the Statement of Public Disclosure found in Week 0 before posting on the Forums.

Certificates
In order to pass 3.086x, you will require a minimum grade of 80%. You can track your progress throughout the course with the Progress tab in the navigation bar on top of the course page. Students who achieve a passing grade in 3.086x will receive a certificate of mastery. This certificate will not include your final grade, but it will indicate that you have passed the course. Certificates will be issued through edX under the name MITx. These honor code certificates are currently free for all students who pass the course.

Grading
The course is organized by weeks. Every Monday at 13:00 UTC (Coordianted Universal Time), weekly course material will be released with a one week buffer that allows you to work ahead. All exercises and assignments are also due on Mondays at 13:00 UTC, according to the weekly schedule outlined below. Please look up the conversion between UTC and your time zone, keeping in mind that a clock change due to "daylight savings time" will occur some time around the middle of our course if you live in a location that observes "daylight savings time". Please also note that "daylight saving time" clock adjustments occur on different days in different parts of the world. There are three fundamental types of graded exercises and assignments in 3.086x: Exercises, Short Assignments and Assignments: Exercises will count for a maximum total of 32% of your grade. Short Assignments will count for a maximum of 18% of your grade, and Assignments will count for a maximum of 50% of your grade. You can find a detailed breakdown of these problem types in the Certification, Grading and Due Dates section of Week 0.

Course Calendar
Due dates for 3.086x are given below: Date September 23 Tasks Due Read Statement About Public Disclosure Motivation for Innovation Exercise Definition of Innovation Exercise Three Basic Elements Exercise Technology Exercise #1 Technology Exercise #2 Technology Exercise #3 Short Assignment #1 Review of Short Assignment #1 Market Exercise #1 Market Exercise #2 Short Assignment #2

September 30

October 7

October 14

Review Short Assignment #2 Implementation Exercise #1 Implementation Exercise #2 Short Assignment #3 Review Short Assignment #3 Generic Nature Exercise #1 Generic Nature Exercise #2 Assignment #1: MIT Universes Review of Assignment #1: MIT Universes Assignment #2: Iteration Review of Assignment #2: Iteration

October 21

October 28 November 4 November 11 November 18 November 25 December 2 December 9 December 16

Assignment #3: X-Ray Review of Assignment #3: X-Ray Assignment #4: Printing Review of Assignment #4: Printing Assignment #5: Patents Review of Assignment #5: Patents