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Innovation / Technology

This is how you build the world's first solar bike path.

A Bike Path Near Amsterdam Is Now Generating Solar Power

As cyclists ride above, solar panels embedded in the pathway pump energy into the power grid

One third of an airline's operating costs go to fuel.

Holy Smokes! Tobacco May Fuel Planes in the Future

The seeds from a new type of tobacco plant grown in South Africa release an oil that can be made into biofuel

The nonprofit SkyTruth enlisted more than 200 volunteers to scan aerial imagery and pinpoint the locations of fracking wastewater ponds in Pennsylvania.

Tracking Frackers From the Sky

Citizen scientists eyeing Pennsylvania’s natural gas drillers in aerial images may help determine if there is a link between fracking and certain illnesses

Microbes were used in the cleanup of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

New Understanding of Toxin-Loving Organisms May Help Tackle Pollution

A breakthrough in the understanding of how bacteria break down toxins using vitamin B12 could lead to improved cleanup methods

Slipped into the handle of an officer's firearm, this sensor keeps commanders aware of on-duty activity.

A Sensor In Guns Tells Dispatch When Police Officers Need Backup

By monitoring the position and status of firearms, commanders can see exactly what’s happening in the field

Using the Automatic Link and License+ app, parents can coach their teens to have safer driving habits.

Parents, Give Your Teens Driving Lessons Without Even Being in the Car

A six-month training program gives parents of new drivers a training tool—and a little extra peace of mind

Rub the label to see if the food inside is still good to eat.

A Label You Rub To See If Food Has Expired and Other Finalists for the Dyson Award

There’s also a pen that lets you know when you should reapply your sunscreen and a device called Luke Stairwalker

This past weekend an innovation festival at the National Air and Space Museum celebrated inventions from across the United States.

The Innovative Spirit - OLD

Here’s What You Missed at the Smithsonian Innovation Festival

Inventors and museum staff alike inspired the crowd to see the world through the prism of innovation

The bedside S+ frees sleep trackers from uncomfortable watches and chest monitors.

Tech Watch

This Device Tracks Your Sleep Without Ever Touching You

The ResMed S+ monitors your Zzzs from the comfortable distance of your nightstand and offers tips for getting a better rest

Google's newest Street View collection takes users to Gombe Stream National Park, where Jane Goodall pioneered her chimpanzee behavioral research. "Don't forget to look up," a Google project manager says.

Exclusive: The Chimpanzees of Gombe National Park Make Their Street View Debut

For its latest collection, Google traveled to the African rainforest where Jane Goodall pioneered her groundbreaking chimp research

2014 Ingenuity Awards

The 2014 Smithsonian American Ingenuity Award Winners

These 10 innovators in science, history, society and the arts are a testament to the imagination and hard work that define the nation’s spirit

2014 Ingenuity Awards

How Palmer Luckey Created Oculus Rift

The young visionary dreamed up a homemade headset that may transform everything from gaming to medical treatment to engineering—and beyond

Is This the Future of Robotic Legs?

Hugh Herr’s bionic limbs have already revolutionized life for amputees (including himself). Now he’s envisioning new capabilities for everyone else

The U.S. Navy expects to have swarm boats in operation as soon as next year.

Who Needs a Driver? These Navy Boats Are Programmed to Swarm Like Bees

Using algorithms based on the swarming behavior of ants and bees, the U.S. Navy is turning to driverless boats to protect its ships

A robot skims along a ship's hull, using ultrasound to identify hollow spots where goods might be smuggled.

This Stealthy Robot Could Boost Security at Our Ports

MIT researchers have developed a craft to spot pockets of contraband inside ships’ hulls

International Space Station astronauts captured this photograph of Earth's atmospheric layers. The troposphere is the orange-red layer. The gray, just above that, is the stratosphere. Then, the blue is the mesosphere.

10 Weird Things Humans Have Sent Into the Stratosphere

Tied to high-altitude balloons, bacon and LEGO figures have reached heights nearing 100,000 feet

DUBS Acoustic Filters have a fit and finish that help them resemble high-end earphones more than conventional earplugs.

Tech Watch

Building a Better Earplug

Using a series of acoustic filters, DUBS lower the intensity of sounds without muddying them

More and more people are dealing with routine health ailments through video calls.

Need a Quick Diagnosis? A Prescription for What Ails You? The Doctor Will Video Chat With You Now

One of the hottest trends in health care is telemedicine networks of doctors who diagnose ailments over the phone

There are more than 400 species of mantis shrimp, including some with claws that can strike with the speed of a bullet and crack glass. But it’s the animal's vision, sensitive to polarized light, that is helping scientists build a compact camera that can see cancer.

A Mantis Shrimp Inspires a New Camera for Detecting Cancer

The mantis shrimp’s eyes, which can see differences in polarized light, are informing researchers building a tiny, easy-to-use camera that can spot cancer

A team at the University of Arizona is developing seven state of the art mirrors for the Giant Magellan Telescope, currently under construction in Chile.

Making Super-Telescopes Requires Some Creative Engineering

The Giant Magellan Telescope, under construction in Chile, could help scientists answer big questions about the universe

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