Three scientists were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for “the invention of efficient blue light-emitting diodes, which has enabled bright and energy-saving white light sources.”

Light-emitting diodes (LED) lamps are one of humanity’s greatest accomplishments (yeah, I said it), and this award is proper recognition for a life-changing invention.

“As about one fourth of world electricity consumption is used for lighting purposes, the LEDs contribute to saving the Earth’s resources,” the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences wrote in the award’s press release. “Materials consumption is also diminished as LEDs last up to 100,000 hours, compared to 1,000 for incandescent bulbs and 10,000 hours for fluorescent lights. The LED lamp holds great promise for increasing the quality of life for over 1.5 billion people around the world who lack access to electricity grids: due to low power requirements it can be powered by cheap local solar power. The invention of the blue LED is just twenty years old, but it has already contributed to create white light in an entirely new manner to the benefit of us all.”

One environment that can benefit from the use of LED lambs is the sports venue, which has for years used traditional medal halide lights to illuminate a surface. However, some stadiums and arenas are looking at LEDs in order to save revenue and energy costs.

“These LED lights will outlast the rest of the building,” IAVM member Dave Olsen, executive vice president and general manager of PNC Arena (Raleigh, North Carolina), recently told The Washington Post. “We’ll get a solid 20-plus years of life without having to do any maintenance to them at all. That’s the real key, I don’t have to relamp every three to five years.”

Check out the rest of the Post‘s story to learn more about how other stadiums—such as NRG Stadium in Houston and University of Phoenix Stadium—are using LED lights to help the bottom light and to, ultimately, create a better fan experience.

(photo credit: tudedude via photopin cc)

Congratulations to the Anaheim Convention Center. The venue recently completed a 2.4-megawatt install solar panel system, covering 300,000 square feet on the rooftop of exhibit halls A, B, and C. The $5.7 million project features 7,908 solar panels, making it the largest city-owned, convention center, roof-mounted system in North America.

“The City of Anaheim has always sought to take the lead with projects that demonstrate government entrepreneurship and this partnership reflects the success of this effort,” said IAVM member Tom Morton, executive director of the City of Anaheim’s Convention, Sports & Entertainment Department. “We appreciate the partnership with our public utilities and welcomed this opportunity, which benefits not only our residents, but further enhances the convention center’s sustainability program.”

The system will generate an estimated 3.6 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, and the Anaheim Public Utilities is rolling the project into its renewable energy portfolio.

“Installing solar on the convention center furthers the city’s commitment to renewable energy initiatives,” said Dukku Lee, general manager of Anaheim Public Utilities. “The city was able to add a cost-effective renewable resource that utilizes the abundant sunlight we are fortunate to have in this region.”

Borrego Solar designed and installed the system.

“Throughout the contract and construction process, we witnessed firsthand the commitment and enthusiasm of the city, utility, and convention center leaders to ensure the success and quick development of this project,” said Mike Hall, CEO of Borrego Solar. “It’s communities like Anaheim that will enable California to meet its renewable energy mandates and continue leading the way on clean energy deployment.”

(Image: Borrego Solar)

It’s a common belief that leaders are born, not made. However, researchers at the University of Illinois don’t think so.

Professors Kari Keating, David Rosch, and Lisa Burgoon believe that leadership can be taught, and it follows a certain progression.

“In only 15 weeks in our introductory class, students reported significant gains in three important components of leadership: self-efficacy, or confidence in their ability to lead; skills; and motivation to lead,” said Keating, who teachers leadership courses in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences’ agricultural leadership education major.

Rosch suggests that science is involved in leadership training.

“It’s a three-legged stool: we call it being ready, willing, and able,” Rosch said. “Students first become ready to learn about being a leader; then they become willing to learn the skills necessary to practice leadership; and finally they’re able to lead because they have the skills and the motivation to do it. You can’t really move on to the other legs of the stool until you’ve achieved a certain amount of this readiness.”

Rosch compares the progression to math.

“You’re not ready to do calculus if you don’t know the basics of algebra,” he said. “This shows us we need to work on readiness so students can make the most of advanced leadership courses.”

Leadership development, though, is not a solitary endeavor.

“The definition we use in the course is that leadership is an individual influencing a group of people toward a common goal,” Rosch said. “So how do you influence people? You can lead through your interactions, your relationships, your communication, the way you express thanks, your ethics.”

The study highlights two implications.

“First, students who choose to enroll in elective leadership courses may not all be similar on incoming measures of confidence and motivation to lead,” the professors wrote in the study. “Leadership educators should therefore consider nuanced methods for providing individual students appropriate degrees of challenge and support for their leadership development. Early-semester assignments asking students to reflect on their own personal journey to become the leaders they are today allows both high-capacity and low-capacity students the chance to consciously focus on their incoming status and instructors to assess their class and plan accordingly. Second, practitioners should focus on the developmental sequencing of their programs and how they administer the ‘pipeline’ of students who progress through them.”

(Story quotes: Phyllis Picklesimer. Photo credit: HALDANE MARTIN via photopin cc)

I’d like to point you in the direction of a good article in the Seattle Times that focuses on one of IAVM’s member venues—the KeyArena at Seattle Center. The article discusses how the arena bounced back after the NBA’s Seattle Sonics vacated the venue.

“The Lower Queen Anne facility has gone from losing money in the Sonics’ final years to turning more than $1.2 million in profit for Seattle last year,” reporter Ashley Scoby wrote. “The facility’s economic buoyancy results largely from booking more musical performers. It also means that, despite the heartbreak of Sonics fans, the team’s departure wasn’t a disaster for the city’s pocketbook.”

A partnership with AEG Facilities has also helped the venue become profitable.

“We want to be in major markets that have a great passion for sports and entertainment,” IAVM member Bob Newman, president of AEG Facilities, told Scoby. “Seattle fits every part of that. The city’s history in sports, music, culture and entertainment is one of the top in the country, if not the world.

“There aren’t many major arenas that have performed as well as KeyArena after a major departure,” Newman continued later in the article. “I think it stands at the top of the list.”

Please visit the Seattle Times to read the full story on how the arena reinvented itself in order to increase its revenues and attendance.

(Cage the Elephant at the KeyArena—photo credit: laviddichterman via photopin cc)

Back in March, I wrote about Facebook’s purchase of Oculus VR and how virtual reality (VR) could affect your venue. Today, I received a press release from Next Galaxy Corp., a developer of VR technology, which said that Syracuse University basketball coach Jim Boeheim is opening up his personal gym in a partnership with the company in order to help produce revenue generating VR experiences.

“I believe that the development of virtual reality technology by Next Galaxy will soon change the way sports fans enjoy the game,” he said in the release. “We believe the sports fanatics, especially those that can’t get to the game, will agree to pay impressive amounts to experience team adventures in VR, dramatically increasing team revenue.”

In an article in the Syracuse Post-Standard, reporter Donna Ditota spoke with Barrett D. Ehrlich, a financial consultant for Next Galaxy, about the project.

“Ehrlich said Boeheim’s first production will take viewers into the coach’s gym and show them his trophy room,” Ditota reported. “In the future, Boeheim might provide immersive insights into the way he coaches his program. NCAA regulations and SU restrictions will not permit the SU coach to, say, project what it’s like to be in the middle of a practice huddle. The content he creates will be personal experiences, likely originating from his home. Boeheim’s DeWitt home includes an indoor basketball court (a half-court configuration).”

VR is an exciting technology that can offer everyday fans experiences such as watching a game from an owner’s box, riding in a race car next to the driver, or hanging out backstage at a concert. There’s also a chance to monetize these experiences.

“We believe once a team owner learns, for example, he can use VR on-court-on-field as a revenue generator—[he] will want to know more and more about it,” said Mary Spio, CEO of Next Galaxy. “It should become very clear to the owner that VR is offering significant value to even the average fan, especially the ones that are cheering on the sports idols that mean so much to them. Strategic business development discussions with other high-profile sports figures and teams are taking place. VR can turn into a huge revenue generator.”

While I don’t think technology can solely replicate a live, human-to-human experience, the following promotional video can help you get a better understanding of how VR can work in a venue as far as revenue goes.

(Image: U.S. Department of Defense)