Innovation rarely looks elegant at the start. Many of the ideas that quietly reshaped daily life began as punchlines, failed experiments, or odd little gadgets no one knew how to categorize. Friends ...

Hugo Gernsback was a pioneer in the world of science fiction during the first half of the 20th century—so much so that the Hugo Awards are named after him. But Gernback also edited serious tech ...

An invention to keep from splattering your clothes and hair with broth as you slurp your noodles. Also worthwhile if you want your friends to think you are a flower. Chindogu are Japanese inventions ...

There are two kinds of kitchens in the world. The first is a sleek, serious, stainless-steel affair where everything is optimized for peak performance. The second, and arguably more fun, kind of ...

Without inventions, we wouldn’t have many of the modern luxuries we have today. But not all inventions are major wins like cellphones, stoplights, or washing machines. Many more are in the category of ...

IN A PREVIOUS STORY, we brought you some of the most interesting and odd invention-related quotes in the article titled, "Everything that can be invented -- has already been invented." Now you'll see ...

Includes drawings of unusual inventions submitted to the patent office with clues to aid the reader in guessing the purpose of each invention. https://siris-libraries ...

IP.com in Amherst protects inventions by revealing them to the world. A survivor of the tech bubble, the dot-com charges companies to publish their know-how in its digital library. Its Web database at ...