Inventions
Why Does America Prize Creativity and Invention?
Our politics encourage it, there's a high tolerance of failure, and we idealize the lone inventor
The Young Inventor Who Is a "Minder" of a Business of Her Own
At age 11, Lilianna Zyszkowski designed a new life-saving device to help people track their medication. That was just the beginning
This Year's James Dyson Award Goes to a Circuit Board Printer
Four engineering students in Canada win the prestigious international award with their invention, which they hope will speed up electronics manufacturing
Happy Birthday Hedy Lamarr, Hollywood Star Turned Scientist
The beauty had brains—after all, she invented the tech behind Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS
This Extremely Slow Rube Goldberg Device Lasts More Than Six Weeks
The whimsical invention uses molasses, a tortoise, and sprouting grass to move a golf ball
How Contact Lenses Were Made in 1948
Would you put this on your eye?
Burn Calories Just By Wearing This New Sports Gear
Here's an idea: A New York University medical student is integrating resistance bands into clothing
New Software Makes Cyberbullies Think Twice
Teen programmer Trisha Prabhu created a program called ReThink to make cyberbullies reconsider before posting cruel messages
This Concrete Can Absorb a Flood
A UK company has developed a permeable pavement that can drink 1,000 liters of water per square meter in a minute
The Smithsonian’s Innovation Festival Demystifies the Invention Process
Inventors of a number of new technologies shared their stories at a two-day event at the National Museum of American History
Can You Guess the Invention Based on These Patent Illustrations?
Hint: They are all part of the National Museum of American History’s collection
The Smithsonian Spotlights American Invention at This Weekend’s Innovation Festival
Universities, federal agencies, companies and independent inventors will give visitors a glimpse of the future
The History of the Bar Code
Inventor Joe Woodland drew the first bar code in sand in Miami Beach, decades before technology could bring his vision to life
This Interactive Installation Rains a Poem Down on Viewers
Artists Camille Utterback and Romy Achituv wrote the software that drives an artwork, in which onlookers catch letters falling on a large screen
This Skateboard-Like Device Helps At-Risk Infants Learn to Crawl
An innovative physical therapy device boosts babies’ movement efforts and helps their brains make critical connections
Meet the 13-Year-Old Who Invented a Low-Cost Braille Printer
One California teen has a vision to make Braille materials more widely available—and more affordable
Using Kirigami, the Japanese Art of Paper Cutting, to Build Better Solar Panels
Researchers have used the art technique to make light panels that twist to follow the sun
This Exoskeleton Is Actually Controlled by the Wearer's Thoughts
Engineer Jose Contreras-Vidal's "brain-machine interface" uses electrical activity in a person's brain to move a robotic exoskeleton
17 Inventions That Could Make Going Back to School a Little Bit Easier
From an aromatic alarm clock to a school bus locator system, these patented products could help students and parents with the transition
A Mouthguard That Could Measure Concussions
Professional football, rugby, and other contact sports could benefit from it
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