Invention

... The competition is in two phases; the first phase is now until September 11, 2009. But, early registration is definitely wise. It saves you money and it also gives you more exposure to the judges.

The Upside Down Tomato Garden is an invention that's about time in coming. After years of trying to grow tomatoes in the ground and humanely keeping the gophers and rabbits from destroying them, I'm flipping for this gadget.

Using wind and solar energy, SolarBotanic's plan for individual homes and energy grids may end up costing users 50 percent less than current solar systems. And, as SolarBotanic is quick to point out, its plan is far better looking than photovoltaic panels or wind turbines.

How do small farmers and home growers know when their fruits and vegetables are perfect for picking? Mettler Toledo, a company that has helped big growers, canners, and bottlers determine this answer for many years, has now created a portable measuring gadget for us small guys: the Quick-Brix™.

The ultimate gadget has arrived! Or has it...? Welcome to the incredible Pomegranate Phone advertising campaign.

The Grand Prize went to eleven-year-old Tucker Haas from Charlotte, NC. His winning entry, entitled "My Personal Swing Thing," was inspired by his younger sister Lexi, who has Kernicterus, a physical disorder similar to cerebral palsy.

BioPower Systems is an Australian company that creates technologies to convert ocean power into a renewable source of energy for other applications. Its assumption is that oceans must have the best possible technology within them for marine life to have evolved in them for 3.8 billion years.

Duke University bioengineers have created the first "brain helmet" capable of detecting a stroke in a matter of minutes, compared to the four hours it takes to detect from a traditional MRI or CT study. Particularly for the most common types of strokes, the brain helmet's rapid diagnosis could make the difference between recovery and disability, or even life and death.

Vacuuming the home is definitely a mundane chore, but one necessary to live in a clean environment. Do we really get all the germs when doing this though? Oreck doesn't think so, introducing this week the world's first upright vacuum which uses ultraviolet light to kill all that nasty stuff on your floor.

Historically the Internet has been around since the 1960s. Since 1994, the digerati of users has grown from approximately 13 million to more than 300 million globally. Shortly it will incorporate holographic technology. Looking beyond, it will become ubiquitous and as elusive as air, as it morphs into our biological make-up!

A handheld wind turbine might be the last thing you would think of to charge your MP3, cell phone, or digital camera. How about a handheld wind turbine with mini solar panels too?

DSC technology still has a way to go to catch up with nature. You see, DSC technology is based on the process whereby plants convert light into energy and store it. Plants that use photosynthesis operate 24/7, even though the sun does not.

Within two years, we could all be paying 75 percent less for home lighting than we are now, with $3 light bulbs that last 60 years and could reduce emission of carbon dioxide by 5 million tons a year! And they're bright!

The World Wildlife Federation (WWF) has launched the 4th International Smart Gear Competition, this year inviting submissions of designs for fishing devices that reduce bycatch. Bycatch, generally captured by fisheries and fishermen, is the unintended capture of species other than the target species, as well as undesirable young members of the target species.

Justin Letlow's story of his Multi-Use Ear Mirror is that while at work in his furniture making shop, he felt something in his ear. The part of his story that must have been left out is where he picks and scratches like the devil, but what was there didn't go away. Anyway, eventually the frustration of not being able to see what was in his ear led him to create the Ear Mirror. See how invention happens?

The PermaFlow sure saves the environment from the toxic liquid drain cleaners being poured into it. And it's likely to save you a few bucks in plumber's bills.

IBM is pairing with UPS and the Eaton Corporation to make hybrid shipping trucks.

Coffee lovers are feeling the need to be single... at least at their coffee machines. And there's one company in particular that's driving the the single-cup lifestyle. This company makes an automatic single-cup coffee maker (the "razor") and a patented package for the coffee it brews (the "razor blades").

Ultrasound machines can cost $20,000 or more and weigh 30 pounds, but not George K. Lewis's ultrasound device. Lewis's portable therapeutic ultrasound machine cost him about $150 to make -- 80 percent of which was spent on the battery -- it fits in the palm of his hand, and it can help treat cancer and relieve arthritis... among other things.

Bed sores come secondary to any injury, illness, or disease that keeps us immobile. But don't let the word "secondary" fool you; they can be fatal.