Kern wanted to boost their reputation for precision scales in the education and science sectors. The challenge was to reach and engage this wide-spread global audience.
So we've been conducting the world's first mass-participation gravity experiment: one that reveals a little-known phenomenon: Gravity varies slightly wherever you go.
So in a scientific twist on the travelling gnome prank, a gnome is travelling the world with a set of scales. Scientists volunteer to weigh him then record the results on GnomeExperiment.com.
When he reached the South Pole, we told the press. Within two days, the story had reached 150 countries, with three people requesting to weigh the gnome every minute.
After two weeks, 16,000+ websites had linked to GnomeExperiment.com boosting Kern from page 12 to page 1 on Google.
We've held a TED talk all about his adventure. The experiment is even part of the national curriculum in several countries