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Inventions

This six-shooter, in the collection of the National Museum of American History, is not the very first Colt six-shooter, but an updated, slightly lighter version Colt produced between 1848 and 1861.

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On This Day in 1847, a Texas Ranger Walked Into Samuel Colt’s Shop and Said, Make Me a Six-Shooter

Samuel Colt was a clever marketer as well as a talented inventor

Caedmon’s lofty slogan was “A third dimension for the printed page.”

The Christmas Tale Spoken Record That Launched the Audiobook

Narrated by Dylan Thomas, the album would go on to sell 400,000 copies

The record for lights at a home, lawn included, is 601,736 bulbs.

Untangling the History of Christmas Lights

This bright idea was ahead of its time

An Evaptainer is a lightweight storage unit that uses evaporative cooling to cut down on food spoilage.

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Could This Cooler Help Combat Global Hunger?

The Evaptainer keeps perishable food fresh for up to two weeks–no electricity required

The EcoHelmet is a foldable, recyclable helmet constructed of paper with a water-resistant coating.

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This Folded Paper Fans Out Into a Full-Size Bike Helmet

The EcoHelmet, this year’s James Dyson Award winner, could be used by bike shares across the world

Author Steven Johnson looks at many of history's "artifacts of the future" that hinted at huge technological, scientific and cultural breakthroughs to come in his new book, Wonderland: How Play Made the Modern World.

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If Necessity Is the Mother of Invention, Then Play Is Its Father

In a new book, Steven Johnson argues that many inventions, considered mindless amusements in their time, wind up leading to serious innovations later

An original Western Union stock ticker from the Oakland Museum of California.

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The Physical Stock Ticker Is a Relic, But Its Influence Reverberates Loudly Today

On this day 149 years ago, the first digital transmitter debuted

Payam Pourtaheri and Ameer Shakeel enjoy casual conversation with Radia Perlman, 2016 National Inventors Hall of Fame Inductee during the Meet the Experts session at 2016’s Collegiate Inventors Competition.

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Could These College Inventors Tackle the Global Pesticide Problem?

Developed by a team of University of Virgnia students, AgroSpheres break down pesticide residues on crops hours after they are applied

University of California, Irvine chemist Shane Ardo is working to develop special plastic membranes and dyes that would enable a container to desalinate seawater.

Future of Energy

A Mission To Invent a Bottle That Takes the Salt Out of Saltwater

Scientists are exploring the potential of creating plastic containers that, with a little sun power, could desalinate seawater

With some seed money from her grandparents, Alina Morse started her very own business.

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Meet the 11-Year-Old Who Invented a Healthy Lollipop

Made with plant-derived sugar alternatives, Alina Morse’s Zollipops help reduce the risk of cavities

Maanasa Mendu, of Mason, Ohio, presents HARVEST, her prototype renewable energy-gathering device, at the 2016 Young Scientist Challenge.

Future of Energy

The Answer to India’s Energy Crisis Could Be Blowing in the Wind

The 2016 Young Scientist Challenge winner modeled her energy harvester after a tree

This golden goodness relies on a mathematical concept known as the silver ratio.

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Using Math to Build the Ultimate Taffy Machine

A mathematician dives into taffy-pulling patents to achieve optimum confection creation

Bloom's mobile harvester collects algae biomass from waste streams in the United States and Asia.

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This Startup Is Harvesting Wild Algae to Make Your Next Pair of Sneakers

Co-founder Rob Falken found a way to turn algae into a foam that can be used in sneaker soles and on surfboards

MythBusters’ Adam Savage and a team of makers from Baltimore made these letters, which lit up every time someone posted to social media using the hashtag #sxsl.

Here’s What You Missed At the White House’s First-Ever South By South Lawn Festival

On Monday, artists, musicians, tech enthusiasts and other innovators gathered in the president’s backyard to celebrate a bright future

The prototype solar vapor generator

Future of Energy

How a Sponge, Bubble Wrap and Sunlight Can Lead to Clean Water

With simple materials, MIT researchers have developed a cheap, easy-to-build device to desalinate water and treat wastewater

Gas or charcoal? It's the perpetual debate. And despite many grilling advances, many still prefer good old fashioned charcoal.

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The Story of the Weber Grill Begins With a Buoy

When metalworker George Stephen, Sr. put two halves of a buoy together, he didn’t know he was making a charcoal grill that would stand the test of time

Winners at last year's Google Science Fair

Google Thinks These 20 Teenagers Could Change Our World for the Better

These kids from around the globe have created innovative new technologies, from malaria-testing apps to water-saving agriculture systems

David Amster-Olszewski, founder of SunShare, at one of the "solar gardens" his company built in Colorado

Future of Energy

Meet Eight Young Energy Innovators With Ingenious Ideas

From community “solar gardens” to energy pellets made from coffee grounds to a phone-charging device that you plug into soil

The Brain-Freezing Science of the Slurpee

More than 60 years ago, a broken soda fountain led to this cool invention

The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History holds this patent model for a Gorrie ice machine, the first mechanical refrigeration or ice-making machine the U.S. Patent Office patented.

Six of History’s Smartest, Weirdest and Most Interesting Inventions for Beating the Heat

From a bicycle mister to ice energy, here are a few innovative ways for cooling down

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