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Inventions

Google hosts its fourth-annual science fair. Shown here, the 2013 winners.

Google Thinks These 18 Teenagers Will Change the World

The global finalists of this year’s Google Science Fair take on cyberbullying countermeasures, tar sands cleanup and wearable tech

Trending Today

The FBI’s Next Worry: Self-Driving Car Bombs

That’s ok. It’s their job to worry

Clay tokens that Assyrians used for a simple bookkeeping system.

New Research

Some Ancient Assyrians Ignored the Advent of Writing for Thousands of Years

It took thousands of years for Assyrians to finally give up primitive record-keeping methods

A pre-war daguerrotype of James R. McClintock. Inventor, likely crook, possible spy.

The Amazing (If True) Story of the Submarine Mechanic Who Blew Himself Up Then Surfaced as a Secret Agent for Queen Victoria

The leading mechanic of the famed H.L. Hunley led quite the life, if we can believe any of it

Army uniforms could get even more high tech

Cool Finds

The Army Is Testing a Belt That Can Guide Soldiers Through the Dark

The belt could have applications beyond the military from helping blind persons to tourism

Cool Finds

The Science of Cooking a Perfect Hard-Boiled Egg

It’s all about temperature and timing

Michael Jackson: Singer, Songwriter, American Inventor

The King of Pop invented more than just amazing dance moves

Cool Finds

When Your Coffee Maker Is Also a Spectrometer

London-based designer Alex Duffner creates dual-purpose lab/kitchen gadgets

New Research

A New Device Can Use The Motion of a Beating Heart to Produce Electricity

Piezoelectric generators turn motion into electricity

Cool Finds

The Short History of the Invention of Writing

Writing was invented, but by whom?

None

Cool Finds

These Non-Gear Shaped Gears Work Better Than You’d Expect

These are the manic pixie dream gears you’ve been waiting for

This Orb-Shaped Solar Power Device Works On The Cloudiest Days

The use of a clear “ball lens” to concentrate light into a beam of energy may improve solar power efficiency by up to 50 percent

A memorial to the Irish famine in Dublin.

160 Years Later, Scientists Grow a GM Potato That Could Have Prevented the Irish Potato Famine

Genetically modified potatoes resistant to potato blight were designed in Ireland

Using Nothing But Sound, These Scientists Are Making Things Float

Using nothing but high frequency ultrasound, these researchers can make anything float

Futurists Once Dreamed of Submarine Helicopters And Spaceships Powered by Swans

The ships that we’ve dreamed up tell us a lot about just how badly humans have wanted to travel beyond our own world

Batteries

The Latest Technology in Cheap Energy Storage Is Manufactured with Pasta Makers

A startup based in Manhattan called Urban Electric Power is taking a stab at the energy storage problem.

In 1949, a Physicist Proposed Using Skyscapers And a Roof to Control NYC’s Climate

No scorching summers, no freezing winters…just a nice pleasant time, all year round

The Gift Card Was Invented by Blockbuster in 1994

So the next time you buy a little piece of plastic with money on it for someone, you can thank Blockbuster

Can You Make Medical Devices Out of LEGOs?

Using ribbons, buttons, LEGOs and 3D printing, this scientist is trying to make it easier and cheaper for doctors and nurses to create medical devices

A Game Designer Thinks He Can Improve on Chess’ 1,500-Year-Old Rules

A young MIT-grad and game designer named David Sirlin says he’s come up with something better than the timeless board game

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