History
Founded 1968
Think Lab Industries was established in 1968 as a small private laboratory devoted to applied research and instrument-making. The founding staff numbered fewer than a dozen; the original workshop occupied a single floor.
The laboratory has remained independent since its founding. It accepts no commercial contracts and maintains no product line. This arrangement is unusual, and the laboratory regards it as a condition of doing careful work: investigations are pursued for as long as they merit pursuit, and results are released when review is complete rather than when a schedule demands.
In 1974 the laboratory formalized its Education Office, beginning a program of school partnerships and public instruction that continues to the present day. The Education Office remains the laboratory's principal point of contact with the public.
- Office of the Director — administration and review
- Director of Research — oversight of all active investigations
- Applied Physics Division
- Materials & Fabrication Division
- Instrumentation Group
- Computation Group
- Field Studies Unit
- Education Office — public instruction and outreach
- Documentation Group — publications and archives
Operating Principles
Measure Twice
Findings are reported only after they have been reproduced. The laboratory would rather be late than wrong.
Build It Here
Where practical, instruments are designed and fabricated in the laboratory's own shops. Understanding a tool begins with making it.
Teach What Is Known
Research carries an obligation to teach. What the laboratory can explain plainly, it makes available to schools and families without charge.
Discretion in Progress
Work in progress is not discussed publicly. Premature announcement serves neither the work nor the public.
Administration
Leadership
The laboratory is administered by the Office of the Director. Scientific work across all divisions is coordinated by the Director of Research, who chairs the internal review board and approves all public releases.
In keeping with laboratory practice, staff are not identified by name in public materials. Correspondence intended for a particular office should be addressed through the Office of Public Inquiry, which will route it appropriately.
The laboratory does not offer interviews or facility tours outside of scheduled educational visits.