To the moon

Offering prizes for technological achievements is an old trick. It has been used to encourage everything from measuring longitude to flying non-stop across the Atlantic. Now Google has offered up to $30m to the first team that can send an unmanned vehicle to the moon. Like the company’s itself, the offer is quirky and inspirational. It’s also cheap way for Google to burnish its image. Prizes are better incentives than, say, patents when there is no obvious end market. And winners don’t have to ...