If you come up with regular ideas and inventions like myself, why not try get on the growingly popular show, Everyday Edisons?

They are now casting in several spots around the country. Visit the Everyday Edisons website for more information.

Shows like these are a great way to inspire you to work at your ideas, and to come up with new ones.

People are often afraid of telling people of their ideas, or showing their ideas in public like this. Let me tell you, however, that hoarding your ideas prevents that circulation of innovation that happens when you are confident about your own inventing ability to tell others your ideas.

Guess what, if you know you have the ability to come up with great ideas, then there’ll certainly be more where that idea came from. Also, it’s unlikely that the people you tell your idea to are going to steal it.

Disclaimer: If you take this advice, I am in no way to be held responsible if someone does copy, change, or steal your idea.  

Good luck to all those readers going for the casting!

Objects that can have multiple uses always interest me. An interesting concept is the Fishtank Table. Tired of boring table clothes and placemats? Why not turn your table into something live and entertaining.

To create a fishtank table, simply purchase a Fishtank and all the bits and pieces (don’t forget the fish!). Then get a piece of wood or rubber to cover the top. Make sure that your fish are oxygenated and there you have your table.

It would be amazing to see restaurants using such a concept, where every table is alive with brightly colored and luminescent fish. It would be quite funny (and perhaps ironic) to see this in a fish restaurant.

Hmm..the next idea I have is a fishtank restaurant.

Old people don’t always have many comforts in life. They’ve lost loved ones and friends over the years, and can often feel lonely and alone in the world. An invention I’ve had to help bring back psychological comfort in their lives is a holding hand umbrella and holding hand walking stick (and in fact this could be extended to any apparatus that has a handle).

The basic idea is that the handle of the walking stick be moulded into the shape of a hand. Thus, when gripped, it feels like holding a hand. The same goes for an umbrella, or any thing that has a handle. It gives a person the comfort and psychological feeling of holding someone’s hand. The same invention could be adapated for children, to give them the feeling that their mother or father is holding their hand when they’re not around.

I have not yet produced a prototype of this invention idea, but am willing to share the concept with anyone who wishes to develop it. If you’re interested in pursuing it, please contact me.

With a lot of focus going into China recently, a lot of people have asked me about Chinese inventions. What did the Chinese invent, and what modern day inventions should we give the Chinese credit for?
According to Joseph Needham , we can thank the Chinese for their four great contributions to humanity: paper, gunpowder, the compass, and printing.

Paper and Printing

The origins of the inventions of paper and printing began around 2000 BCE, where the Chinese wrote onto bamboo strips and sowed them together. Apparently silk was also used but being expensive it was only used in royal circles. The great drive towards this invention was the need to record, the need to create a history. So when you think of the invention of paper and printing, think of how that necessitated a change towards recording a more accurate history and moving beyond the reliance upon oral recordings and traditions. There is also evidence to suggest that the Chinese invented toilet paper.

Gunpowder

The Chinese apparently invented Gunpowder in the search for elixir of immortality. It was no doubt invented by alchemists or pre-chemists whilst experimenting with various elements and they eventually started experimenting with saltpetre (or Potassium Nitrate), which is critical to oxidizing gunpowder. This led to them using it for fireworks and also for more sinister means such as bombs.

The Compass

The concept of the compass must be linked with that of magnetism. However it is possible that the Chinese ‘discovered’ magnetism by observing how needles could be set up and pointed almost by their own in a particular direction. This taught the Chinese how to magnetise a needle and thus how to find their way (as the needle would always point in a particular direction, no mater which direction they were). Thus the discovery of something intangible was made possible by the discovery of something tangible. The Chinese produced various forms of compasse, using for instance needles floating in water, or later a compass which specific points used in maritime navigation.

Other Chinese Inventions

I have already spoken about the Invention of the toothbrush, which is an invention by the Chinese. Other interesting ideas include the parachute, porcelain, tea, steel, and windmills.

For for information on the subject, check out the List of Chinese inventions.

It’s often difficult to think that something so commonplace - like a toothbrush - must have been invented at some point in time.

People have been brushing their teeth in one form or another since a few thousand years BC. In those days they didn’t have modern technology to produce nylon (like we find in our brushes today), so relied on sticks which they sharpened and cleaned their teeth with.

The idea of using bristles in a toothbrush only came about in the 16th century in a province in China. They used hairs from a hog tied to an object like a stick.

Much later, this time in the 20th century, nylon technology was developed and introduced into toothbrushes. And so was the invention of toothpaste!

Doing some research on the topic, I have come across a toothbrush invented in Japan that does not even require toothpaste. It apparently uses the metals iron, copper, and magnesium to create a small electrical reaction that (allegedly) cleans your teeth. I’m still sceptical, but check out the Proton Toothbrush if you’re interested.

Here’s a great invention for men who shave their heads. It’s known as the HeadBlade:

As you can see you simply attach the blade to your dominant hand and run it across your head. The reason it’s a good invention is that it takes a past invention (the razer) and improves the process. Apparently the inventor tried to get Gillette and Schick to buy into the idea to no avail. This spurred him on to develop it himself using his own funding and funding from his father and friends. The result is a very successful invention that has sold over 20 million units.