Inventions

It’s time to get together for the sake of inventing! Inventionland is gearing up to host WQED’s Invention Convention 2013 – a day filled with invention challenges, advice from engineers and inventors and even an appearance by the cast of WGBH’s “Design Squad Nation.” And, that’s not all. Students in grades 5-8 (and their families) …

Most people think that every device in use today is the brainchild of one or more brilliant inventors who had a great idea and worked diligently to turn that idea into a marketable product. Most of the time, that narrative is true. But, occasionally, a fabulous new product is created by accident. Maybe an unknown …

Inventionland helps to inspire lots of creative young minds who tour the 61,000 square foot wonderland every year. Unfortunately, there’s only one Inventionland, and it’s located in Pittsburgh, PA, which means that not every aspiring inventor will be able to visit. For those youths who can’t make it to Inventionland, there are a growing number …

Today, we’re heating things up and taking you back to the long, sunny days of summer when we first introduced a few Davison-designed cat toys. At the time, Hugs Pet Products, who licensed the innovative line that promises to keep cats occupied for hours, was preparing to showcase the toys at one of the pet …

Have you ever wondered how your favorite foods were invented? Sure, a lot of the foods we eat are pretty obvious; steak comes from cattle, pork from pigs, chicken from, well, chickens. You don’t need to be Einstein to figure that out.  And, the fruits and veggies we eat are pretty obvious as well; you …

Why is it that when someone says the word “inventor,” we immediately think of a man?  Go ahead, think “inventor” and see who pops into your head.  I’ll bet its Thomas Edison or Alexander Graham Bell or even Ron Popeil, the guy who does all of those infomercials.  But, I’ll bet none of you thought …

What if we told you that there once was this amazing man who had many talents: comedian, ventriloquist, voice actor, inventor, and humanitarian – would you believe us? OK, you’d say – that could happen. But what if we said that he was also the host of a prime-time television show, the host of a …

Every year the Consumer’s Electronic Show (CES), the massive trade show produced by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), is held in Las Vegas to highlight the latest and greatest in consumer electronics. Since the CEA is the pre-eminent trade association promoting growth in the $195 billion U.S. consumer electronics industry, you would expect a monster …

It’s always fun to reflect on all of the wonderful inventions that came out recently to advance our quality of life. Things like a re-circulating shower that feeds back filtered water as you shower to conserve water, a modular cast that accelerates bone healing and can be removed piece by piece, and even holographic mapping.  …

If the title of this article were Best Inventions of 1912, it would be full of names of inventors who were at the time, and still are today, household words. We used to have rock-star inventors and visionaries that people looked up to and admired; Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, Henry Ford, the Wright brothers, Alexander …