Project Highlight - Scoping: Critical material extraction

Overview

This work served as an introduction to Scoping, a process of working backwards from a desired societal outcome to improve your understanding of the possible ways to achieve that outcome. It taught me the basics of scoping, how to characterize outcomes, decompose problems, and map the relevant technoscientific landscape. The project culminated in the generation of a long list of approaches ranked by their upside, neglect, and tractability for addressing a specific societal problem. My final deliverable was a presentation that effectively showcased the proposed approaches while providing a clear and convincing justification. Each approach clearly articulated its reasoning chain and explicitly explained how it connects to the high-level outcome and the quantified outcomes I identified.

The opportunity area that I chose to scope was Sustainable Critical Material Extraction.

Scoping process steps

1. Problem Deconstruction → Use first-principles thinking to:

‣ Analyze state-of-the-art technologies

‣ Interview industry/academic experts

‣ Evaluate market failures and value capture risks

2. Evidence-Based Scoping → Every outcome hypothesis is supported by:

‣ Peer-reviewed research

‣ Industry reports

‣ Expert validation

This creates an "invention Wikipedia" that tracks technical feasibility and commercial viability.

3. Constraint Mapping → The methodology explicitly identifies:

‣ Proven constraints: Validated technical/commercial barriers

‣ Hypothesized constraints: Potential blockers requiring further validation

Prioritize overcoming these constraints through novel combinations of existing knowledge.

4. Combinatorial Innovation → The Outcomes Graph reveals opportunities to:

‣ Merge solutions from unrelated fields (e.g., using semiconductor manufacturing techniques in carbon capture)

‣ Recruit founders with precise skill sets to bridge knowledge gaps

Skills used