Inventions

LONDON (AFP) - A grenade that puts out fires, a self-pouring teapot, periscope spectacles, a peach peeler and a moustache protector are among oddball inventions on show at the British Library.The Weird and Wonderful Inventions display, which opened Thursday and runs until November 10 at the national library in central London, is showing off a wealth of eccentric contraptions and ingenious gadgets.The eye-catching devices are from the collection of Maurice Collins, a man with a passion for crazy inventions dating from 1851 to 1951."I'v ...

TORONTO, July 8 /CNW/ - Microbix Biosystems Inc. (TSX:MBX - News) announced today that it has submitted new provisional patents for inventions relating to its Semen Sexing Technology(TM) (SST(TM)).SST(TM) allows commercial breeders to pre-determine the sex of livestock offspring resulting from artificial insemination. For example, dairy farmers will use SST(TM) to breed primarily female animals for their milking herds. Likewise, the technology will assist beef producers in producing primarily male animals required for meat production. ...

Winning Teams Envisioned Innovative Solutions to Environmental Problems, Breakthroughs in Medicine, and Childhood ObesityWASHINGTON - The Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision Awards Program, one of the world's largest K-12 science and technology competitions, today announced that it will honor this year's national award-winning students at a special Science Showcase on Friday, June 6th at the National Press Club. Illustrating the importance that today's students place on environmental issues, three out of this year's four First Place winning te ...

A new nanomaterial and detector could squeeze even more data onto hard drive platters.Magnetic data storage mediums have progressed quite nicely in the past few years. Hard drive sizes have grown while prices have plummeted. While the improvements have been impressive, two inventions by Rensselaer Polytechnic student Paul Morrow show that there's still some room for improvement.Morrow's first invention is a brand new magnetic nanomaterial. Current hard drive technology uses a two-dimensional magnetic film for data storage. Morrow's na ...

The 360 Mirror is hailed today as a hot new invention and it could become the must-have beauty gadget of tomorrow.The mirror, which gives you a 360 degree view of your head, has just been launched.The gadget is made up of seven mirrored panels which wrap around the body, giving a perfect view of the way you look from every angle.One main mirror is fixed to the wall and the others are attached to two extendable arms, which fold away after use. The 360 Mirror lights up and can be screwed to the wall.Already available online, it is distr ...

Future scientist and engineers showed off their ingenuity Friday at this year's Invention Fair at Northside Elementary.Over 100 students participated in the contest. Each student was asked to create a new invention that can help people in everyday life.Teachers at the school say it's a great way for the kids to stretch their creative muscle. One of a kind inventions included a doormat switch and a mailbox drawers.But the first place award went to Austin Foreman who invented the bath tub alarm."my invention is the bathtub alarm and wha ...

There's a huge event going on this weekend in the Bay Area called the Maker Faire. It's sort of a cross between Burning Man, and a do-it-yourself workshop that's gone out of control. The Maker Faire is all about making things, like a better mousetrap, or at least a life size version of the legendary 'Mousetrap' board game, complete with bathtub and crazy stairs."The only difference with our game is that we have taken the trap that comes down and lands on the mouse and replaced with a two ton bank safe that we crush things with. We cru ...

Xerox's research arm has showcased its latest innovations, including erasable paper and tools that make documents "smart" by adding a deeper meaning to words and images.Since its establishment in 1970, the Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), funded by Xerox, has created numerous technologies available on PCs today, including Ethernet, the graphical user interface (GUI) and the computer mouse. The laboratory, with other Xerox research facilities, is now trying to help its parent company and other start-ups by focusing on printing and oth ...

Qazvin-GenevaThe Azad University of Qazvin won 12 medals at the 2008 Geneva International Exhibition of Inventions.Announcing this on Saturday, the vice chancellor of the university for research affairs noted that the Iranian team presented 12 plans which won 12 medals including five gold, four silver and three bronze medals.Pouya Roozban, Ali Naderi, Mostafa Hosseini, Hossein Shirmohamadi, Amirhoussein Shekari and Ali Yazdipour were among the winners of gold medals while Mahnaz Fasihi, Sina Shaban Zadeh, Houra Kazeminejad and Reza Sh ...

MOSCOW, April 23 (RIA Novosti) - Russian inventors account for only 1.7% of all international patents, severely lagging behind developed countries, a Russian forum said on Wednesday.A draft document from the Intellectual Property of Russia-2008 forum currently running in Moscow until April 26 said it is impossible to introduce innovation and new technology to the economy unless intellectual property rights are reserved and protected by law."In Russia only 20% of state contracts contain legal norms to strengthen rights for the results ...

Here are some of the influential technologies and inventions which have each in their own way revolutionised the retail banking business in the last 1000 years. Money, guarantees and loans have been around for the millennium. I looked for something new, and didn't really see any change between the Crusades and and the 19th century. The first entry could also be argued to have existed then too.1. 1830's Credit Bureaus - Lewis Tappan1937 before broad adoption, Credit-scoring invented in 1956 by Bill Fair andEarl Isaac2. 1918 Electronic ...

LINDENHURST -- A long, unforgiving winter appears to have affected us all, including young inventors at B.J. Hooper School.Some of the standout projects developed by fourth-graders and showcased Wednesday evening at the school's annual Invention Convention were designed to ease the ravages of cold weather.Alyssa Gunn of Lindenhurst used a hair dryer and several pieces of PVC piping to develop a pastel pink stand that dries wet gloves, mittens and boots."My stuff was always wet from playing in the snow," Gunn said at the convention Wed ...

His name often is forgotten when those who made a difference in the game of basketball are listed.It's not recognizable like Michael Jordan. He wasn't a great coach like his good friend, Tex Winter.He didn't lead Kansas State University to a memorable win during his presence at a Final Four game like his friend and former NBA star Bill Walton, who did so for the UCLA in the 1970s.But mention his name in his hometown of Dorrance, population 200, or to the greats like Jordan, Winter, Walton and others, and Ken Mahoney is a legend in his ...

Nearly 400 students show off creationsGov. Chet Culver, like many lawmakers, has called for ways to prevent and address childhood obesity.Kole Kampen and Nate Kollmorgen, both 10 years old from Humboldt, might have an answer.The pair of fourth-graders created the "Video Motivator," a setup where you sit in a padded seat and pedal as if on a bicycle to power a Nintendo Game Boy Advance."They wouldn't know it, but they'd be exercising to play video games," Kollmorgen said. The pair was just two of the 357 students showing off their crea ...

The fair, which brings inventors and investors together, features 1,000 new creations including artificial nose hair and a self-making bed .From artificial nose hair to a bed that makes itself, the wacky products on show at this year's International Exhibition of Inventions offer all sorts of impractical solutions to problems you may not know you have.More than 700 creative minds have set up stands at the word's largest inventions fair to show off products ranging from heavy-duty engineering feats to wacky little gadgets like emoticon ...

Charlie Beaton, owner of Big Dipper Ice Cream, is one happy guy.He loves making ice cream because he sees the joy it brings his customers. So it's no surprise that Charlie's mission has always been in the service of others.A husband and father of two young sons, Charlie has arranged his business life in a way that allows him to spend quality time with his family and devote considerable energy to serving his community as a board member for several charitable organizations. Born and raised in Helena, Charlie chose to attend the Universi ...

Exhibition of Inventions 2008 takes place in Switzerland. The largest event of its kind in the world, with enterprises and research institutes exhibiting to potential investors, producers and distributors, and individuals showcasing their bright ideas.Some of the inventions include a "runaway" alarm clock that forces you to wake up, a bed that makes itself, a pipe without smoke for nicotine addicts on airplanes and a barbeque that cooks but does not grill meat. Fluorescent food for dogs to avoid stepping on their excrements in the eve ...

If you are allergic to pollen, too lazy to make your bed or annoyed to learn that the pretty woman in the Web chat is really a man, a solution might be at hand from the world's largest inventions fair.More than 700 of the world's most creative minds have set up stands at the International Exhibition of Inventions to show off brainchildren ranging from heavy-duty engineering feats to wacky little gadgets like the running alarm clock that will make sure you get out of bed in the morning.The fair, which runs until Sunday, features 1,000 ...

While the best in college basketball used their athletic skills to advance in the NCAA tournament this weekend, college students gathered in Dallas used their brains for the entrepreneurial inventions they displayed Friday.The teams showcased their ideas at the Nasher Sculpture Center in conjunction with the 12th annual meeting of the National Collegiate Inventors & Innovators Alliance.Dubbed "March Madness for the Mind," the event brought students from universities across the country to exhibit business ventures that included using p ...

BYU's technology transfer office works with professors to bring inventions to market, and the deals can be lucrative for both the university and the professors.Last fall, BYU announced it had licensed a professor's carbonated yogurt product to General Mills, maker of the popular brand Go-Gurt. The company used professor Lynn Ogden's sparkling yogurt to create a new brand of fizzy Go-Gurt it sells under the name Fizzix.Fizzix has sold more than 1 million cases in about nine months, said Mike Alder, director of BYU's technology transfer ...

Kathleen Meisinger's CakeVase is the kind of thing that makes you say, "I wish I would have thought of that."The St. Charles High School graduate made her debut at the International Home and Housewares Show last weekend, demonstrating how anyone can turn a homemade cake into a work of art using her invention.Meisinger, who now lives in Milwaukee, has been decorating with sugar flowers for 10 years at her full-time business, Kathleen's Cakes, but each flower takes a lot of time to create. She began thinking of a simpler way to decorate ...

Florida Atlantic University received a second round of funding from the Florida Atlantic Research & Development Authority (Authority) in the amount of $50,000 to continue to help fill the "gap" between basic research and the stage at which commercial development can begin. FAU received initial funding of $50,000 in late 2006 from the Authority, the operating agency for the FAU Research Parks in Boca Raton and Deerfield Beach, Florida. The gap funds are intended to translate university research into viable products or services for the ...

These inventions are currently available for licensing or sale to manufacturers or marketers.From tan-enhancing colors to healthy hair tips and eye-popping eye shadows, people choose from a variety of different beauty regimens. Some people even opt to try their hand at inventing their own lotions and elixirs. Featured below are some health and beauty-related inventions. The inventors of the following items are attempting to submit their ideas to industry.PUBLIC DEFENDER AMC-4857Accessory invented to minimize risk of disease transmissi ...

For the average, healthy person, mobility is something that's easy to take for granted.But for Dr. William Torch, creating a solution that would help bring back mobility to those who have lost it is a passion that has been moving him for more than a decade.Torch, a neurologist and sleep specialist, was taking care of a paralyzed man at Saint Mary's Regional Medical Center in 1994 when he first thought of the idea of using eye movement to control devices such as wheelchairs. Torch then formed Eye-Com Corp. in 1998 and has been designin ...

Surgeons are uniquely positioned to recognize areas for improvement in patient care and to develop innovative solutions to meet those needs. However, even the most productive surgical researchers may lack the know-how to develop their insights into successful commercial products. A special symposium in the February issue of SURGERY (Volume 143, Number 2, February 2008) provides surgeons with expert insights into the process of developing their ideas into commercially viable products that will benefit large numbers of patients - while ...

Surgical discoveries can lead to profits while advancing patient careSurgeons are uniquely positioned to recognize areas for improvement in patient care and to develop innovative solutions to meet those needs. However, even the most productive surgical researchers may lack the know-how to develop their insights into successful commercial products. A special symposium in the February issue of SURGERY (Volume 143, Number 2, February 2008) provides surgeons with expert insights into the process of developing their ideas into commercially ...

These inventions are currently available for licensing or sale to manufacturers or marketers.Imagine a world without technology. Integrated into nearly every consumer product, electronics help to simplify our lives. Everyday tasks such as shopping, banking and communicating are made easier because of these innovations. Clients of InventHelp have created electronic inventions designed to enhance the quality of life.GET IN THE GAME DCO-3198Adjustable home video-game accessory invented to help gamers sit more comfortably while playing ce ...

There are many reasons why I did not become a great inventor. There's not really that much glory in it, for one thing, unless you also have a knack for self-promotion (see: Thomas Edison, Ron Popeil). German engineer Konrad Zuse may have invented the computer, but he did not have the foresight to name it after himself, or I'd be typing this on a LapZuse right now.I'm also pretty lousy at math, science, problem-solving, focusing for long periods of time, thinking outside the box -- or even coming up with an alternative way to say "thin ...

A group of students is making the most out of this year's long winter, by coming up with some new ways to play in the snow.About forty people, mostly high school and college students, participated in a winter sport technology challenge. They displayed their finished projects at the University Mall Saturday.Participants were asked to invent new products to try to improve winter sports, or they could come up with new ways to play outdoors in the winter. Some of the inventions ranged from snow kayaks to a bike on skis. "This is the 12th ...

In 1903 Josie Baldwin of Tremont patented an idea benignly labeled the "Chest-Bandage" that was, in practice, a boned corset for lactating women that squeezed so tight it collected milk as fast as the new mother produced it. The corset had holes for a pair of dangling rubber bags.Its purpose: simultaneously doing away with the need for a breast pump while "a healthful bodily condition of the wearer is maintained."The look on the hand-drawn model's face in the patent appears somewhere between neutral and amused.It's perhaps no mystery ...

These inventions are currently available for licensing or sale to manufacturers or marketers.It gave Frankenstein's monster life and made Ben Franklin an inventor. But these two giants of literature and history have nothing on do-it-yourself enthusiasts who trek to the hardware store every Saturday for the right stuff to rewire the house. Some of these intrepid folk even try their hand at inventing. Below is a list of electrical and lighting-related inventions. The inventors of the following items are attempting to submit their ideas ...

To win fame and fortune, write a 500-word essay about a Black invention. The grand prize winner will receive a plaque and $100, second place winners will receive a plaque and $50, and third place winners will receive a plaque and $25.Contest winners will be invited to read their essays to the community during an awards banquet held at the Bayview Public Library on March 12.Contest RulesResearch a Black invention and the person who invented it. Then write a 500-word essay about what you learned. Put the following parts in your essay:1. ...

These inventions are currently available for licensing or sale to manufacturers or marketers Searching for that perfect accessory or the garment to beat all garments? Glamour is in, but not all the latest fashions come from Milan. Everyday people sometimes take matters into their own hands, designing accessories and apparel that conform to their own needs. Featured below are some apparel and accessory-related inventions. The inventors of the following items are attempting to submit their ideas to industry.SAFETY UMBRELLA KSC-214Access ...

BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) - A nonprofit Virginia Tech affiliate that helps patent, protect and market faculty and student inventions is boosting its staffing -- and officials hope that will increase the number of licensed inventions and generate more revenue.Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties has been in existence for 22 years.But largely because of an employee shortage and heavy paperwork, its licensing associates have had a hard time looking for a Virginia Tech researcher's next potential moneymaker or finding companies willing to com ...

By Ross BonanderAmerican innovation has hatched some big inventions, thanks in part to a culture and an economic system that, at least nominally, encourages the individual to try and build a better mousetrap. After all, this is the land that produced such groundbreaking inventions as cotton gin, the light bulb, the telephone, and the internet.But those inventions don't embody the American spirit the way others do. Some inventions are so identifiably American that they've become synonymous with, and emblematic of, the character of the ...

Nancy GohringSan Francisco (IDGNS) - Flying bikes, cell phone robots, smart walking sticks, and audio speakers that defy logic are inventions all on display Tuesday at Microsoft's Redmond, Washington, headquarters.On the second day of the Microsoft Research Faculty Summit, Microsoft researchers and their academic partners showed off some of their projects. They ranged from the wacky to the relatively staid.The Flying Bike is a project that would let users ride a stationary bike that is integrated into a video game. In the demonstratio ...

Many adults in the United States believe political violence is more menacing than climate change, according to a poll by Opinion Dynamics released by Fox News. 52 per cent of respondents think global terrorism poses a more serious threat to the world than global warming.Afghanistan has been the main battleground in the war on terrorism. The conflict began in October 2001, after the Taliban regime refused to hand over Osama bin Laden, prime suspect in the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington. Al-Qaeda operatives hijacked a ...

By JAY LINDSAYCAMBRIDGE - The pain Henry Evans felt in his head was so severe, he dropped to his knees and had to crawl to the car that would take him to the doctor.Evans was suffering a stroke that day five years ago. It robbed him of his ability to walk and speak. But a device developed by a team of high school students now allows Evans, of Los Altos Hills, Calif., to use a laser pointer to do basic tasks with a turn of his head.The "Laser Finger" was one of several student inventions on display from around the country Wednesday at ...

A.S. BermanIn the early 1900s, magician Howard Thurston wowed American audiences with the show-stopping illusion of a reclining woman floating eerily across the stage. The trick was engineered by inventor Herman DeVry, founder of the institution that ultimately became DeVry University.Before their graduation, seniors at that university's Phoenix campus turned out to present their own technological and business feats for the campus' annual Senior Project Fair.The 17 projects ranged from vital-sign monitoring devices to animatronic toys ...

FOR Scottish inventors with patented products, China is the land of opportunity, according to Glasgow-based Product Scout. The company specialises in sourcing new products for manufacturers and distributors in Asia and says UK designs are of particular interest."We're looking for manufacture transfer deals for increased production to supply the Pacific Rim with UK and Europe-based design," explains Product Scout's Kenny McCaffrey. "We're selling patented product ideas to Hong Kong, Chinese and Taiwan-based companies who then fund the ...