In June, Burke fired assistants Keith Acton and Tim Hunter, a longtime Wilson ally, and replaced them with Greg Cronin and Scott Gordon, who held past head coaching experience with the New York Islanders.

WSJ: Maple Leafs Fire Coach Ron Wilson

One particularly exciting ISN project is a collaboration between MIT chemist Tim Swager and mechanical engineer Ian Hunter .

FORBES: Nanotech On The Front Lines

Thus far, over 1, 200 athletes have become involved with VFN, including Tim Lincecum, Barry Zito, Matt Cain and Hunter Pence, all members of the World Series-bound San Francisco Giants.

FORBES: Social Sports "Fan Card" Service Snags Tim Lincecum, Brett Favre And Over 1,200 Other Athletes