Dr. Steve Duffin Wins the Inaugural Big Idea Challenge for his simple device ‘NoDK’ which Eliminates Tooth Decay
Winners of the First Big Idea Canvas Challenge were announced yesterday with the first prize awarded to NoDK (pronounced No Decay), a simple device to eliminate tooth decay. Tooth decay, or caries, is a leading health concern throughout the world with millions of children and adults having little or no access to dental care. NoDK is a pen-like device that can easily be dispensed in a cavity, stopping pain and bacterial decay with over 95% effectiveness.
Dr. Steve Duffin is a dentist and a microbiologist who has devoted his career to working in public health settings. For years, Dr. Duffin has been researching methods to stop tooth decay using a device that applies a medicine rather than shots and fillings. Dr. Duffin has now achieved a major breakthrough and has patented technology that is based on the application of silver nitrate, used over one hundred years ago, combined with a modern fluoride varnish.
Together when applied in a specific manner, tooth decay is arrested and new decay is greatly diminished.
With the NoDK system, there is no need for shots or drills. This simple and painfree system removes the fear that patients feel when going to see the dentist.
Image credit: NoDK
Millions of children go to school each day with tooth pain. Untreated caries is the most prevalent malady of humans globally,” said Dr. Duffin. He has invented a simple, safe, and effective method to treat people outside of a dental office, even without electricity. Working with his son, Marcus, Dr. Duffin designed a medical device to facilitate this process anywhere on earth.
Image credit: NoDK
The device is named NoDK, and proof of concept pilot programs are being conducted in Ecuador and Ghana with remarkable results. “The NoDK idea is a significant breakthrough that addresses the global epidemic of dental disease,” said Paul Ahlstrom, Founder of the Big Idea Challenge. He added, “We are delighted that the Big Idea Challenge has been able to provide a spotlight to this important breakthrough.” Dr. Duffin noted, “We hope very soon the NoDK will be globally available, and we look forward to checking the caries problem off the list of global epidemics.”
The second Prize goes to Anasofia Monteblano for her online education platform ‘CodeKnack’. She is passionate about education and preparing the children to be creators of technology, not just consumers. Anasofia is planning to build an online education platform ‘CodeKnack’ which teaches coding and computer science to elementary school children. The platform will use artificial intelligence to cater to each child’s interests and machine learning and eye-tracking to keep students engaged.
She has over 20 years of successful sales experience, selling technical solutions for firms like Oracle, NetIQ, Web Trends, and Kyocera. She was born in Lima, Peru and moved to the United States when she was eight years old. She attended Lewis and Clark College, receiving a Bachelors’s Degree in Business Administration. She participated in an Executive Program on exponential technologies at Singularity University in Silicon Valley in 2015.
Third prize winner is Mr. Jason Smith for his big idea, IntelAgent, which is a crowdsourcing software platform designed to enable businesses to clean and enrich data at speeds and quality that rival existing solutions at a more affordable price. Jason has over 15 years of experience in market research and data analytics.
He’s currently Senior Manager of Customer Insights & Analytics with HD Supply Facilities Maintenance, a leading nationwide supplier of maintenance, repair, and operations products. At HD Supply, Jason is responsible for translating analytical insights into business actions, representing the customer viewpoint in light of proposed business decisions, and measuring the success of company marketing campaigns and website enhancements.
He earned his bachelor’s degree in Psychology with Honors from San Francisco State University and also achieved the 2011 President’s Excellence Award and 2012 Bullet Train Award, Runner, Up.
The winners were announced yesterday at the Pacific Alliance Venture Capital Conference in Lima, Peru to a packed house. The Canvas, now available online (www.bigideacanvas.com), has had over 5,000 downloads and is free to all those that want to access it. (Source: Big Idea Canvas)
