Читать книгу Hacking Innovation - Josh Linkner - Страница 17

There are over 110 million landmines planted beneath the earth’s surface, killing 60,000 people per year and injuring many times more. This worldwide issue is a terrifying daily threat to people in the desert region around Kabul, Afghanistan.

Growing up just outside Kabul, Massoud Hassani witnessed some terrible tragedies as a result of these killing machines. As a young man, Massoud decided to make it his life’s work to put at least a small dent in this giant problem. He had no money, specialized training, or fancy credentials. So he had to hack the problem.

First, he was convinced that Every Barrier Can Be Penetrated. He knew there had to be a better way, and refused to accept the notion that fatalities were just to be expected. Next, he entertained a deep sense of curiosity and exploration, a willingness to choose Compasses Over Maps. He asked countless questions about conventional mine-clearing methods, challenged prevailing wisdom, and pursued the problem over a given solution.

As Massoud immersed himself in the world of landmine safety, he was struck by how little progress had been made. The traditional approach – more or less the same since the 1960s – is expensive, dangerous, and not all that effective. Yet major defense contractors, nation-states, and academic researchers remained entrenched in the old, static approach.

Hassani’s breakthrough innovation came from borrowing, a hacking tactic we’ll cover later in the book. As a young boy, he would frequently look into the distance and watch tumbleweed blowing gently across the desert sand. This inspiration led him to create the Mine Kafon, “mine exploder” in his native language of Dari. The Kafon looks like a giant ripened dandelion waiting to blow into the wind from its stem. The device is approximately six feet in diameter and contains a central core, approximately 50 bamboo rods emanating from the center, and clay disks affixed to the end of each rod. The invention is light enough to be wind-propelled, like the tumbleweeds Hassani watched blowing across the desert in his youth. But the Kafon is also heavy enough to detonate the land mines planted beneath the earth’s surface. Boom.

The UN estimates that for every 5,000 mines cleared, one clearing specialist is killed and two others are seriously injured. In contrast to these traditional approaches, the Mine Kafon is unmanned. This human toll is now eliminated. Further, the cost-per-landmine-cleared has been dramatically reduced. The Kafon is over 120 times less expensive than classic methods. The Mine Kafon is the most important advancement in mine-clearing technology in the last four decades, saving thousands of lives and millions of dollars. The design was so profound that it is now on permanent display at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

Having written about the Mine Kafon in my previous book, The Road to Reinvention, I’ve since had the privilege of getting to know Massoud Hassani. In preparation for a call in late 2015, I was expecting him to be basking in his glory. Here’s a kid from rural Afghanistan, with no resources or help, who has gone on to make a massive impact on the world. Additionally, he started a company and is now building a terrific business providing Mine Kafons throughout the world. But instead of ruminating in a celebratory glow, Massoud was fully immersed in the next challenge.

“Detonation is an important problem,” he told me. “But detection is an even bigger issue. There are often miles of open space with only one landmine lurking to cause harm. After the success of the Mine Kafon in detonation, I’ve shifted my efforts to find a more comprehensive solution. I’ve reinvented.”

Today, Massoud is using low-flying drones and is able to cover large swaths of land very quickly. He attaches a robotic arm with a high-powered magnet, flying over open areas to search for mines. In real time, he’s beaming back a video feed along with GPS coordinates, so that newly-detected land mines can be quickly located and conquered.

Massoud Hassani, a hacker of the highest order, achieved unparalleled success with his Mine Kafon. Understanding mindset #3, Nothing Is Static, he quickly used his initial success to tackle the next challenge. Essentially, he disrupted himself. He made the most important change in land mine clearing in over 40 years, and one year later he did it again. I expect that he will have done it again when I speak to him next. Rather than becoming complacent, Massoud continues to challenge himself to learn more, do more, hack more. Massoud Hassani continues to push the boundaries and will use each success as a stepping stone for the next.