Humans are always creating new things. The more new inventions there are, the easier our lives become. Some new inventions seem too good to be true. Here are some interesting new inventions.
Smart speakers have become popular in recent years. Smart speakers are speakers that include a virtual assistant. You can ask the speakers questions and receive real-time feedback.
Some people worry about privacy. Because you talk to the speaker, it is always listening to you. Do you worry what your smart speaker is listening to in your home?
Augmented reality blurs the lines between the real world and the virtual world. Games use it to allow you to play virtual games in the real world. But it is not just used in games. Museums use apps to overlay information that updates in real time.
Have you ever wanted to fly somewhere instead of walking? Soon that might be possible. Jetpack Aviation's jetpack lets people fly up to 15,000 feet in the air. That is as high as some airplanes fly!
Don't get too excited yet. The jetpack is not perfect. It can only fly for 10 minutes. And unless you have US$340,000, you can forget about flying to school in the morning.
Traffic is a big problem in cities. But buses are so big and take up space. Inventors in China thought they had the perfect solution. They created the Straddling Bus.
It runs on rails on the street. It has two legs on the bottom. Its legs are meant to straddle the road. They allow cars to drive beneath it. It doesn't take up any space on the road.
Sadly, the bus did not work. It was tested in 2016. Inventors found that driving underneath was dangerous. You could not change direction. Even changing lanes was difficult. Now, the bus sits unused. They will have to try something else to solve China's traffic problems!
For most people who use wheelchairs, being able to stand up on their own is a wish that might never come true. But now, that wish might not be so far away. The eLegs Exoskeleton uses robotic legs and crutches to try and help people walk.
eLegs reads the arm movements of the person wearing it. That's how it knows where to move. Hopefully one day soon, eLegs can improve accessibility for many people.
Imagine if your English classes were taught by a robot instead of a real teacher. In South Korea, that is what is happening in some schools. Humanoid robots teach classes where there might not be enough real English teachers. They are controlled by teachers in different countries.
This looks just like a normal car, except for one big difference. There's no driver.
Driverless cars use digital maps, cameras, and sensors to make sure that they do not get into accidents. Because of this, they are safer than a normal car and driver. Soon, most cars will be driverless. What will you do on a long car journey if you don't have to drive?
There are new things being invented every day. Some of them are useful. Some of them are just weird!