>> HI, I'M MATT LYNCH.
I WORK FOR PROCTER AND GAMBLE.
MY ROLE IN THE COMPANY
IS TO CURATE THE NEW
AND TRANSFORMATIVE PRODUCTS
THAT DON'T EXIST TODAY.
SO YOU THINK ABOUT SOME THINGS
YOU WOULD LIKE
TO HAVE A PRODUCT DO,
AND IN PART IT'S MY JOB
TO KINDA OF CREATE THAT PRODUCT.
WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH NASA
FOR THE BETTER PART
OF ABOUT TEN YEARS
UP AT NASA GLENN,
THE GREAT PEOPLE UP THERE.
AND REALLY WE'VE BEEN TRYING
TO SOLVE A TECHNICAL PROBLEM
THAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT
IN TERMS OF THIS
NEW PRODUCT DESIGN.
UM, IN PARTICULAR,
WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT
A NEW PRODUCT,
YOU PUT ACTIVES IN THE PRODUCT,
AND THOSE ACTIVES
HAVE THIS TENDENCY
TO WANT TO SEPARATE.
THEY MIGHT CREAM TO THE TOP,
THEY MIGHT SEDIMENT
TO THE BOTTOM OF THE PRODUCT.
AND THE REAL TRICK
IS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT
HOW TO KEEP ALL THOSE
PARTICLES SUSPENDED
AND DOING IT IN A WAY
THAT ALLOWS ME
TO DISPENSE THE PRODUCT.
AND SO IT SEEMS POTENTIALLY
ON THE SURFACE TO BE
A REALLY EASY THING TO DO,
BUT IT'S REALLY,
REALLY DIFFICULT.
THE PROBLEM IS IS THAT PHYSICS
IS PRETTY COMPLICATED.
UH, OVER TIME, UM,
THINGS LIKE THERMAL MOTIONS
TENDED TO RANDOMIZE
THE STRUCTURES THAT WE SET UP.
UM, AND WE CAN ENVISION THINGS
LIKE GRAVITY KIND OF PUSHING
AGAINST THEM CONSTANTLY,
KIND OF PRESSING THEM
AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
SO HOW DO WE DESCRIBE
THAT KIND OF COARSENING PHYSICS,
AND HOW DO WE UNDERSTAND
AND HARNESS THAT
FOR WHAT WE NEED IN OUR PRODUCTS
HAS REALLY BEEN THE FOCUS
OF WHAT WE'VE TRIED TO DO
OVER THE LAST NUMBER OF YEARS.
WHEN WE MAKE THE PRODUCTS,
WE MEASURE THE PRODUCTS.
AND MOST OF WHAT WE MEASURE
IS SOMETHING
THAT'S AN OBSERVABLE.
SO I WILL SEE, UM,
FOR EXAMPLE, A LAYER
ON THE BOTTOM OF THE--
OF WATER, FOR EXAMPLE,
AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PRODUCT
AND THE TOP OF THE PRODUCT.
THERE IS GETTING AT
THE MICROSTRUCTURE OF THAT.
IT'S JUST ALL REALLY KIND OF
FUN, LIKE, GUESSWORK.
UNLESS YOU HAVE DATA
TO GUIDE THAT.
THE GUESSWORK CAN BE GOOD,
BUT IT ALSO CAN BE TERRIBLE.
AND IT SENDS YOU OFTEN
TO WRONG DIRECTIONS.
WHAT WE GET OFF
OF THESE MEASUREMENTS
ARE A WAY OF REFINING
THOSE MICROSTRUCTURES
THAT GIVE RISE TO THOSE CHANGES,
AND IT GIVES US
MUCH BETTER MODELS
TO CREATE, UM, MORE ACCURATE
AND BETTER WAYS OF DEFINING
THESE KIND OF SEPARATION
TIME SCALES AND WHY THEY HAPPEN
AND HOW DO WE CONTROL THOSE.
YOU MIGHT ASK
A MORE GENERIC QUESTION.
WHAT IS-WHAT IS THE VALUE
IN BASIC SCIENCE,
THE VALUE IN UNDERSTANDING,
THE VALUE OF CREATING MODELS
TO A BUSINESS?
UM, TO-- IF YOU THINK
OF THE ALTERNATIVE,
THAT A LOT OF COMPANIES DO
IS SORT OF A WORLD OF MIXOLOGY.
IT IS, I'VE GOT A, B, C,
AND A MAKES THE HAIR FEEL GOOD,
AND B AND C HAVE TO BE THERE
FOR VARIOUS REASONS.
I PUT ALL THAT TOGETHER.
THERE IS NO
TRANSFORMATION TO THAT.
IT IS-IT IS SIMPLY A MATTER OF,
IF YOU'LL FORGIVE THE ANALOGY,
BEING A KID IN A KITCHEN
MIXING THINGS TOGETHER.
WHAT YOU COME UP WITH
IS WHAT YOU GET.
THE ALTERNATIVE IS
TO REALLY UNDERSTAND
THE FUNDAMENTALS, UM,
WHICH INCLUDES PHYSICS,
UM, THAT ALLOWS YOU
TO PUT THINGS TOGETHER
IN-IN NEW WAYS
AND WAYS THAT ARE TRANSFORMATIVE
AND THAT ARE GROUNDBREAKING.
THAT TAKES AWAY
IN A SENSE THE MIXOLOGY,
AND REPLACES IT WITH
A LOT OF DELIBERATE
AND INTERESTING DESIGNS,
UM, AND TO NEW--
VERY NEW SPACES.
THE COMPANY MAKES A HUGE,
HUGE INVESTMENT IN R&D,
AND IT'S TO CREATE THAT
DISCONTINUOUS NEW CURVE,
THE NEW-THE NEW WAY
OF DOING THINGS
THAT OTHER COMPANIES CAN'T DO.
YOU KNOW, THE BENEFIT OF THAT,
NOT ONLY FOR THE COMPANY
BUT THE BENEFIT FOR PEOPLE
IS THAT YOU GET NEW PRODUCTS
THAT DO REALLY INTERESTING
AND NEW THINGS,
GREAT THINGS FOR YOU,
AND YOU GET THOSE A LOT FASTER.
I WOULD ENVISION, UM,
THAT PUTTING PEOPLE IN A CAPSULE
FOR FOUR TO FIVE YEARS,
ALL THE RESOURCES HAVE TO BE
VERY, VERY CONSTRAINED, RIGHT?
IN OTHER WORDS,
YOU DON'T HAVE THE OPTION
OF-OF TURNING ON A FAUCET
AND PULLING MORE WATER
OFF THAT STATION.
EVERYTHING HAS TO BE CONTAINED.
AND TO THE EXTENT THAT
THAT'S REALLY WHERE
WE ENVISION CONSUMER PRODUCTS
GOING IN THE WORLD,
THERE'S A VERY NATURAL
COUPLING BETWEEN THE INTERESTS
THAT NASA HAS IN DOING THINGS
IN A VERY RESOURCE
CONSTRAINED ENVIRONMENT
AND REALLY, REALLY WHAT
THE WORLD'S KINDA COMING TO.
AND IT'S A BIG PUSH
IN THE COMPANY
TO WORK OUR WAY OVER TO THAT,
TO UNDERSTAND HOW
TO DESIGN FOR THAT.
UM, WATER IS A BIG ONE.
POWER WOULD BE ANOTHER ONE.
MANY GEOGRAPHIES
DON'T HAVE EITHER VERY WELL,
AND HOW DO YOU ACCESS
THOSE RESOURCES?
THAT'S A BIG SWATH OF PEOPLE,
UNDERSERVED PEOPLE
THAT WE'D LIKE TO GET TO.
AND THE LAST THING
I WOULD SAY TO THAT IS,
YOU KNOW, OUR BUSINESS
IS ALL ABOUT, UH--
IT'S A LOT OF LIVING,
LIVING WELL, LIVING BETTER,
IMPROVING LIVES.
THERE ARE ASTRONAUTS
THAT ARE GONNA LIVE
ON THIS SPACE FOR, YOU KNOW,
THREE, FOUR, FIVE YEARS,
WHATEVER THAT TIMEFRAME IS,
IT'S A LONG TIME.
AND I THINK, UM,
IMPROVING THE LIVES
OF THOSE ASTRONAUTS
IN THAT ENVIRONMENT
WOULD BE, UH, A VERY USEFUL
THING TO DO FOR THEM,
UM, AS WE DO FOR PEOPLE OUTSIDE.
SO-SO YOU KNOW, THE--
THE CONNECTION SEEMS
REALLY OBVIOUS
AT A NUMBER OF LEVELS.