Our Future

Ok, just looking at random things and found this on Popular Mechanics.com and thought this was the coolest thing. I am also not a big fan of copy and pasting, so I will help it out with my 3 1/2 cents.

The Technology Hunters at Inventables, a Chicago-based firm, collect and sift through thousands of unique materials, products and gizmos every year. Then they pick the winners and drop details about the materials that have the right mixture of utility and uniqueness into an enormous electronic database, along with suggestions for how they could be incorporated into new products. Here are 16 of the best, brightest and quirkiest from Inventables.

By Emily Anthes Published on: January 29, 2009

	This ink, developed by New Jersey company LDP LLC, writes and dries normally but contains particles of iron, making it responsive to magnets and able to conduct electricity. The ink could be used to print circuits on paper.
	WTF. Need I say more? Do we really need our electronics to get any smaller. Like Leo Getz(aka Joe Pesci) says in Lethal Weapon 4, "They fuck you with cell phones. That's what it is. They're fuckin' you with the cell phone." That is exactly what is going to happen. Everything is going to get so small that we will lose them and have to buy theirs.
	Zircar Zirconia, Inc., a New York manufacturer of thermal products, created this cloth knit from ceramic fibers, which will insulate against extreme temperatures.
	I guess this is for the Middle East or Arizona. Ok, firefighters might need it too. I guess being from Pittsburgh means you don't think of heat alot.
	Flavor-changing additives, developed by New Jersey–based Salvona Technologies, contain nanospheres encapsulated in larger microspheres. When the microspheres burst, one flavor is released. The rupture of the nanospheres, some time later, releases another flavor, creating a taste experience that changes over time.
	I like this. I am all about food tasting better. They need to master it first though, some combinations would be terrible. I wonder if they took the idea from Willie Wonka with his three course meal chewing gum. Yeah, I brought up qhite a movie there. Childhood nightmares from them aweful little blue Oompa-Loompa's and that freaky song.
	Electronic paper, a thin, flexible display technology that reveals digital images in full color, was invented by Israeli company Magink. Inventables imagines that the material could be used to create a portable “origami DVD player,” which would unfold to reveal a big screen.
	This would be cool. I mean think about it. If you use the paper circuitboards from above, you have digital schoolbooks. You can view what you are supposed to be reading. Kids will be coming to school with all kinds of crazy shit in their books.
	This Velcro, manufactured by Aplix in North Carolina, conducts electricity, completing a circuit when the hook side comes into contact with the loop side. It could be used to create a soft switch in clothes, backpacks and other consumer products.
	I think this is ideal for the military with their ridiculous Velcro on the uniforms. It wears out so fast it is stupid. We could have light-up patches on our Blues! Ok, that is dumb, but you know some commander will want to be the first.
	A Hungarian architect invented these translucent concrete tiles that contain optical fibers, allowing light to pass through. They are now sold through his company Litracon Bt.
	I don't really know what use this is yet. Maybe a window shade? Who knows. Maybe a shower shade?
	Glass tiles that change color in response to temperature were created by California-based Moving Color. They have already used the tiles to create a shower with walls that change color as the water hits them.
	This will revolutionize the ghost hunting now. You see them use heat sensing devices, like on Paranormal State. They had a ghost handprint on the wall. They can just set up this glass and go to town.
	This antigraffiti film, a clear adhesive with a Teflon surface, is manufactured by Integument Technologies, in New York. Paint and ink applied to the film won’t stick and can be easily wiped off.
	I think this will eliminate alot of downtown community service for lawbreakers. Gang member's artwork would rinse off the walls pretty easy then.
	“Stone” paper, sold by Design & Source Productions, is made of calcium carbonate, making it more eco-friendly than wood-based paper.
	I wonder how heavy our paperwork would be then? People complain about the paperwork now!
	This plastic expands in water, maintaining its proportions. The material, manufactured by Texas-based Industrial Polymers, can be used to produce a cast for enlarging sculptures or fossils.
	I think this is different. Weird creations, but I see the point.
	This durable antifog coating is the creation of Film Specialties in New Jersey. The coating’s hydrophilic properties means that water slides off the surface rather than turning to fog.
	I guess this will help our windshields and the glass inside a visor for you bikers.
	This water-soluble glass is blown and can break like regular glass but dissolves in water.
	I am still not sure why we would want that when there is so much water around. What if you accidentally wash a glass? Oops! Its gone! Ok, Ok, noone accidentally washes dishes.
	This paint contains iron powder, making it magnetic. Several companies, including Kling Magnetics, Inc., and Krylon, make magnetic paint.
	Not bad for people that ran out of room on their fridge.
	This all-natural, stretchy fabric is made by the Swiss company Rohner Textil AG and contains wool and ramie. Unlike most stretch fabrics, which are made of synthetic materials like lycra, it can be fully composted.
	I guess another "green" product. No more naked sheep.
	Developed by Watson Inc. in Connecticut, this edible glitter can be added to food products.
	A little bling on our cupcakes........Dumb!
	This paper honeycomb is lightweight but strong. Developed by the Dutch company Honicel, it can be used in furniture and as packing material.
	Another "greener". Instead of peanuts? They are so much fun though.

Now, I think everyone knows that I am no genius, by any stretch of the imagination, but I know that some of this is useless. How about you all give me some uses.