The element of surprise is one SUPER IMPORTANT element that you unfortunately can't find on the Periodic Table of Elements (...perhaps I should create a "Life Version" of the Periodic Table of Elements).

It's not surprise that people love surprises! 

I signed up for Paul Jarvis' Sunday Dispatch newsletter today, and got a pleasant surprise when I was redirected to the confirmation page. Most newsletters give you a boring screen with a standard line that says "You've signed up for newsletter XXX." Paul's confirmation page says much much more.

In fact, you get a shower of confetti. 

I see brands as people. And your brand should have a personality.

The tone of voice is very important in telling the world what your brand is like.

I stumbled upon Clockwork, a cool Singaporean startup that provides co-working spaces, which has absolutely nailed its tone of voice. It's young, hip, witty - and a little snarky and sarcastic.

Spot on for the millennials that they are targeting.

Astro Teller, the head of X (formerly Google X) shares about the unexpected and unconventional approach they have at the moonshot factory:

• Breaking things, instead of building things 
• Proving you're wrong, instead of proving you're right
• Doing the hardest part of the problem first, instead of doing the easiest
• Thinking about how to kill your project, instead of how to keep your project alive
• Making failure safe, instead of dangerous
• Rewarding failure, instead of successes
• Crazy ideas, instead of sensible ideas

At X, people try their best to fail. They receive applause, hugs, high fives, promotions and bonuses whenever they kill a project.

It may seem counter-intuitive but perhaps we should ask ourselves - how do we succeed at failing?

An organisation that aims to transform sound experience in hospitals.

They have several projects, including:

• My Last Sound: create a "sound will" for dying patients, to play them the last sound that they wish to hear at the end of their life
• Tranquility Room: create an immersive relaxation space, filled with soothing ambient sound, dim light and aromatherapy

The Small Act of Goodness website each morning sends an e-mail to subscribers, giving them a small, fun task to implement, which will make people smile.

Conductive threads developed by Google that combine metallic alloys with natural and synthetic yarns to create connected, touch-sensitive textiles that transform everyday objects like clothes and furniture into interactive surfaces.

Wholesome Wave

US non-profit organisation Wholesome Wave empowers under-served consumers to make healthier food choices by increasing affordable access to fresh, local food. 

Under their Produce Prescription program, doctors and nutritionists provide $1/day produce prescriptions, which can be redeemed for fresh fruits and vegetables at participating markets and grocery stores.

Nude lipsticks for women of colour.

How might we improve education and expand learning opportunities for refugees around the world?

Solutions should:

• Draw upon technology (e.g. social platforms, TV, wearables, sensor networks, AR/VR and other technologies)
• Embrace tradition (preserve cultural traditions and draw upon end user's heritage while staying current)
• Inspire action (move beyond motivation to impact; can be quickly tested and proven on a small scale)
• Highlight the hidden (unearth less obvious triggers or motivators we don't know much about that could be game-changers)
• Are visual and fun
• Are inclusive (can be applied across multicultural and socioeconomic groups, across the world, and across ages and physical abilities)

How might urban slum communities become more resilient to the effects of climate change?

Let's develop solutions that support communities as they adapt and transform to meet the challenges of climate change - from mounting pressures, like population growth and rising sea levels, to unexpected events like severe storms and heat waves.

How might we reimagine the cost of college in the U.S. and how it's paid for?

Introduce us to new ways that students, schools, institutions and governments could help pay for college – and tell us your story about affording your own education.

Solutions should be:

• Affordable 
• Nontraditional (can look to international examples)
• Inspire action (get students actively involved beyond mere awareness)
• Lead to graduating
• Consider scale (transferable to large number of students)
• Are human-centered (empathy)

How might we use market-based approaches to expand water and sanitation solutions among low income households in India?

The vast majority of the Indian population lives on less than US$5 a day. Think of this as a design constraint when designing water and sanitation solutions. We believe we can think beyond charity and better leverage the funds of households and capacities of markets to innovate and offer low-cost effective solutions. Solutions that involve financial tools such as micro loans, installment payments, vendor financing, loan guarantees and other base of pyramid approaches are ones we see with high potential for impact.

Solutions should:

• Operate in India (cater to India's unique culture, beliefs, delivery systems, infrastructure, etc)
• Reach critical mass (potential in the medium-term to have a sizeable impact)
• Address drinking water or sanitation (specifically address drinking water or sanitation)
• Have a market-based approach (does not rely on charity)
• Be cost-effective
• Be sustainable
• Consider scale (can reach millions of households)
• Involve non-financial organisations (solutions should not be based on financial organisations like banks or microfinancing)

How might we combat health threats like Zika, SARS, Ebola and Malaria in bold, imaginative ways?

Our goal is to develop solutions that tackle a number of critical issues related to preventing, detecting and responding to the spread of Zika and future health threats.

Solutions should focus on:

• Personal, Household and Community Protection (Common techniques, like mosquito repellent, require frequent reapplication and emit unpleasant odors. Many homes also lack screens. Urban communities have challenges eliminating (or covering) standing water. An even bigger challenge with the mosquitoes that transmit Zika is that they can live in urban environments and are active during the daytime. How might we better repel mosquitoes, prevent their spread and keep them out of our homes, schools and workplaces?)

• Surveillance (Identifying and tracking the spread of Zika is critical to tackling the outbreak, but we currently lack user-friendly or accurate tools to quickly estimate mosquito populations or detect the occurrence of disease in mosquito vectors. The ability to share data rapidly also is essential to containing the outbreak and preventing it from becoming an epidemic. How might we create user-friendly field tools to quickly and accurately uncover and quantify the presence of mosquito vectors, particularly those that are infected, as well as better understand disease transmission?)
• Community Engagement (The beliefs and behaviors of communities can strongly affect our ability to respond to outbreaks. When communities are recognized, mobilized and incentivized the right way, they are more likely to participate in surveillance activities, assist with the deployment of vector control tools (ex. protective clothing, repellents, screens, etc.) and focus on effective personal and household protection. On the other hand, a lack of meaningful community engagement might lead to misinformation, distrust of the health system, and an unwillingness to adopt behaviors that might prevent further spread of disease. How might we engage communities in powerful ways to take an active role in protecting themselves, their families and their communities from Zika?)

• Prevention (Vector-borne diseases, like Zika, Malaria, and West Nile, pose increasing challenges as these insects become more resistant to insecticides and standard vector control approaches. The potential spillover of diseases from animals to humans creates additional risk of diseases that we have never seen before emerging. How might we make novel, sustainable and environmentally neutral tools to prevent the spillover and spread of vector-borne diseases like the Zika virus?)

• Vector control (Help find novel, sustainable and environment-neutral approaches for reducing or eliminating populations of disease vectors)
• Personal, Household and Community Protection (Help uncover how might we design new tools and approaches to help individuals, households and communities reduce their indoor and outdoor exposure – especially solutions that are rapidly deployable, affordable, scalable and socially acceptable.)
• Healthcare Worker Safety (How might we protect healthcare workers to address the shortcomings of today’s standard equipment with practical solutions – and by filling gaps where solutions do not yet exist with bold, imaginative, forward-thinking new ideas?)

• Detection (Few easy-to-use, field-based tools for rapid, early and accurate identification of disease vectors and infection exist. Potential disease threats often go undetected until an outbreak erupts. In addition, many clinics and laboratories lack the basic systems needed to ensure the provision of quality care or to adequately transport samples, and quality laboratory testing and existing diagnostics for infectious diseases are highly specialized rendering them unsustainable over time. How might we develop practical, appropriate tools and approaches that help detect threats early and ensure they are reported quickly?)

• Surveillance (Help us uncover how might we make it easier to detect threats early – especially those that start with animals and insects – with tools and approaches that ensure they’re not only reported quickly, but that also facilitate analysis and better data-driven decision-making?)

• Clinic & Laboratory Systems (We are seeking solutions to better understand how we might better equip clinics and labs to provide quality care – both on a routine and emergency basis – and ensure they are well-prepared to respond in times of crisis.)
• Diagnostics (There is a large need for cutting-edge, low-cost diagnostic platforms and technologies that can lead to better detection and surveillance. Diagnostic tools for infectious disease are often highly specialized, rely on electricity or a temperature-controlled supply chain, are not designed to operate in many settings where they are needed most, and are difficult to interpret by healthcare staff who are often untrained to use them. We are seeking solutions to better understand how might we improve these tools to more rapidly, accurately and easily identify emerging infectious diseases like Zika in patients.)
• Sample Transport (How might we improve transport, tracking and storage of samples to ensure more efficient and accurate surveillance and diagnosis of infectious diseases?)

• Response (On the frontlines of a disease outbreak, healthcare workers must be swift and precise to save lives and prevent further spread of disease. Yet in environments where electricity is intermittent, infrastructure is weak, essential medicines are in short supply, and both human and financial resources are often scarce, even performing routine care can be challenging. How might we help equip healthcare workers with the necessary tools to more effectively respond to outbreaks in resource constrained communities? In addition, community actions can make or break a disease outbreak response. When effectively recognized, mobilized and incentivized, communities can and will participate eagerly in activities around surveillance as well as personal, household and community protection. How might we develop out-of-the-box approaches that inform, empower, and motivate communities to prevent disease outbreaks and to identify, report, and control outbreaks when they occur?)

• Community Engagement (How might we better inform, empower and motivate communities to prevent outbreaks, identify, report and control outbreaks when they occur, and support the health system response to outbreaks – including the speedy dissemination of critical information)

• Healthcare Worker Tools (Help us find how we might design new tools and approaches that tackle these system-wide problems and enable healthcare workers to do their jobs better, faster, and cheaper.)

Solutions should be:

• Innovative
• Low-cost and appropriate for various developing country settings, particularly those lacking a consistent supply of electricity and facing frequent power outages  
• Environmentally-friendly with minimal generation of excess waste material
• Able to be scaled rapidly  
• Likely to achieve a substantial impact  

How might we create financial services that support the dreams and obligations of those 50 and older?

We’ll be focusing on financial products and services for those 50 and older, coupled with the impact that successful financial management has on our communities. As this age group works toward financial security, we’re interested to see and hear how improving the financial health of those over 50 may also benefit our communities as a whole. For this Challenge, we see credit unions with their member centric missions as a key lever in our search for solutions. Credit unions are member-owned and exist to serve their members and be a safe place for saving and borrowing. They’re focused on community and often linked to local organizations. We believe there’s huge potential in starting here as we design financial services for longevity. Let’s create solutions that provide security and joy to those who are older and their families.

Solutions should:

• Be designed for 50+ (drastically improve the lives of those 50 and older?)
• Be innovative 
• Stay simple 
• Consider scale (transferable to a larger geographic region beyond local setting)
• Be human-centered (empathy)

How might we address urgent global challenges at the intersections of peace, prosperity, and planet in radically new ways?

Solutions should:

• Work at the intersection (bridge across peace, prosperity, and planet and address the complex global challenges at the intersection of these issue areas in radical new ways)
• Collaborate across divides (born from or encourage collaboration?)
• Focus on Process and Infrastructure (focus on processes instead of resources)

How might we enable older adults to live their best possible life by preventing falls?

Solutions should focus on:

• Health and wellbeing (How can your solution improve or maintain quality of life for caregivers and their loved ones?)
• Affordability (How can your solution be accessible for everyone?)
• Natural integration (seamlessly fit into lifestyles; re-engineer current solutions/behaviors/tech) 
• Scale (transferable to a larger geographic region beyond local setting)

How might we apply new technologies to make agriculture and water systems more resilient in the face of climate threats?

Participants are encouraged to identify and understand the variables that affect water quality while developing innovative solutions to monitor, analyze and manage these complex systems.

End of Life Challenge

How might we reimagine the end-of-life experience for ourselves and our loved ones? 

Solutions should:

• Reimagine dying (meaningful end of life experience)
• Go beyond tradition (ideas beyond the fearful or stifling images often associated with death; ways to preserve and honor cultural traditions while being modern and fresh; seek inspiration from outside our own backyards)
• Be uplifting and unique (retain lightheartedness and humour despite the serious issue; give users a smile on their face at the end of their life)
• Consider partnerships 
• Be human-centered (empathy)

How might we reduce stigma and increase opportunities for people with disabilities? 

Solutions should focus on:

• Accessible Social Services (critical services like health services, education systems, the public spaces and transportation systems, and beyond)
• Economic Inclusion (support persons with a physical, psychosocial, and cognitive disabilities to find decent work, get hired, and thrive in the workforce with equal pay)
• Access to Context-Appropriate Products (accessible, affordable, usable, durable and maintainable physical/digital products to help persons with disabilities live independently)