A couple of weeks ago, I posted on the first half of an excellent list of inventions that Time published. Just based on the names of the inventions - Dandelion Rubber, Wooden Bones, the Edible Racing Car - Round Two promises to be another venture into the Mind of the Inventor.
The Robo-Penguin, flying under water, is beautiful to look at. But it doesn't appear, as yet, to have any function following its form. The company intends to adapt it for automated production systems. 'Til then...swim on, oh robo-penguin. Frankly, I would much rather watch you swim aimlessly than have to sit through The March of the Penguins for the second time. (Life, it is so cruel. We march. We march some more. We march some more. And then we die.)
Until I saw this list, I hadn't realized that rubber trees are being wiped out by a fungus. So it's a good thing that someone's come up with Dandelion Rubber. Just think. All those years my father spent digging out every dandelion that dared assault his front lawn. We could have been living on a rubber plantation. Who knew?
Wooden Bones brings to mind George Washington's wooden teeth, but, because they're organic, they acclimate to your body better than metal bones do. I will keep this in mind if and when (probably when) I'll need a hip or knee replacement. Wonder if you can special order? I would like cherry. Or birch, which is nice and bendable.
The School of One - individualized learning that incorporates interactive games - is probably the wave of the future, as there will be pressure on teachers to come up with bespoke lesson plans that take into account each child's learning style and needs. The other way of achieving the School of One is to put Sister Paulina in front of one-hundred 7th and 8th students, doubled up two-to-a-desk when Sister Florence takes ill. So what if it took a couple of months to replace Sister Flo? Sister Paulina could create that School of One by sheer force of will, the fear factor, and the snip-snap of her clicker. Individualized learning plans? Fuggedaboutit.
Shut up, open your books, and let the learning begin.
An enterprising Spanish inventor, Pep Torres, has come up with The Human-Powered Vending Machine , by which those who want a snack have to pedal on a stationary bicycle in order to earn their goodie. He's hoping to install this in schools and subway stations. What happens if your train comes in when you're half-way to a bag of M&M's? And how does the vendor get paid? Ergs? Or do you have to pedal and put in cash. This idea might be more applicable for use in the home. If I had to pedal every time I wanted a Skinny Cow fudge bar, that could only be a good thing. But mostly I suspect it's a non-starter.
With Meat Farms, we'll be growing chicken breasts and leg of lamb in petri dishes. On the upside, we won't have to worry so much about animals ingesting crap (their own and that of others), salmonella, e coli, animal torture, and all the other worrisome things that accompany the non-vegan life. On the downside.... shudder, shudder.
When I read the name The Levitating Mouse, my first thought was computer peripheral, and I was starting to imagine the benefits of having one that levitates. Alas, it's a literal way to suspend a mouse in mid-air, using magnets, as part of space research. With a levitating mouse, can the levitating mousetrap be far behind?
The Edible Race Car is not really edible, it's just eco-friendlier than a gas-guzzling Escalade. It's a Formula 3 rac car that:
...has carrot fibers in its steering wheel, potato starch in its side mirrors and cashew-nut shells in its brake pads. The whole thing runs on a biodiesel mix of chocolate and vegetable oil.
As someone who's had rat infestation under the hood, I would not recommend that anyone park this buggy in an urban area. If rats like wires, what would they make of cashew-shell brake pads?
Someone's figured out how to make silk out of spider webs. Unfortunately, the business model's not quite there yet. It took 4 years, half a million bucks, and 1 million spiders (give or take) to spin up an 11 foot long piece of cloth. (Spiderweb Silk) Sounds like it's time to figure out how to dramatically increase the size of a spider - and I don't want to be around when that happens. (Eek!)
Since I singularly lack the inventor's imagination, I find that it's always fun to read about the feats of those who invent. Even if half the time wondering, what were they thinking?
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