Archive for June 2011
Made in China: Human Milk from Cows
NewsCore: Chinese scientists have genetically modified dairy cows to produce human breast milk, and hope to be selling it in supermarkets within three years. The milk produced by the transgenic cows is identical to the human variety, with the same immune-boosting and antibacterial qualities as breast milk, scientists at China’s Agricultural University in Beijing said. [...]
Moose Defense: An Instantly Inflatable Moose
Guardian: When a big bear approaches, some people choose to quietly stroll away. To give them an extra measure of safety, Anthony Victor Saunders and Adam Warwick Bell invented what they call a “pop-up device for deterring an attacking animal”. Saunders, a London-based mountain climber, and Bell, a California patent attorney, applied for a patent [...]
Generate Power While Sunbathing: iKini
An inventor has decided it is not enough to get a great tan while sunbathing during the summer. Andrew Schneider has decided the bikini needs to also generate power. So, according to All Headline News, he created the iKini. The swimsuit … is made with 40 highly flexible and thin photo-volcanic panels takes over 80 [...]
Lighting Up Computer Keyboards
All Clinton Fleenor wanted to do was light up his computer keyboard. He never could have expected his idea to be picked up by Quirky and showcased on the Home Shopping Network. However, that is exactly what has happened, reports Richmond Times-Dispatch. The result is the Mantis, a battery-powered clip-on light that can be used [...]
Young Entrepreneurs Polishing Business Skills
If you’re a high school student near Ashville, a local community college is offering you the opportunity to hone the necessary skills to become a successful entrepreneur. According to Citizen-Times.com, they are not asking kids to run a simple lemonade stand. The students are asked to come up with unique ideas that would make viable [...]
Niche Product: Tent Tree House
Ever wish you could have a tree house when you were a kid? Alex Shirley-Smith has made your dream come true, sort of. He has created a unique tent that can hang in the air using a unique frame or by hooking it to a couple trees, reports Tottenham and Wood Green Journal. Whether the [...]
June Cleaver is nothing compared to today’s mom. The moms of today are raising children and online businesses at the same time. Often, the mom who launches her own business from home is also the woman who buys from like-minded mompreneurs, reports Metro. This virtual community of moms plays a key part in their success. [...]
Inventors are full of ideas. When a particularly good one takes form, it doesn’t hurt to reach out to companies for product reviews. Inventors Digest has some advice to help inventors when they make the decision to contact a business. 1. Don’t send hand-written submissions. If you send your submission via snail mail, include a [...]
Skatecycle: The Skateboard Of The Future
Adventurous people love to try new things. At least, that is what the Brooklyn Workshop founder, Alon Karpman, hopes will be the case with his unique creation, the Skatecycle. Inspired by futuristic Sci-Fi movies and comic books, Alon has successfully created the next new device that will have skaters ready to upgrade. He has eliminated [...]
Adjustable Clothes Racks For All Spaces
Lamar Sexton never realized his simple idea could become a marketable invention. However, with the help of InventHelp, he is on his way to creating a profitable product to fill a variety of clothes hanging needs. According to ForsythNews.com, his grandson called one day to tell him that his mother wanted to have a yard [...]
Today in Entrepreneurial History: June 8
1887 – Herman Hollerith applies for US patent #395,791 for the ‘Art of Applying Statistics’ — his punched card calculator. 1912 – Carl Laemmle incorporates Universal Pictures. 1948 – Milton Berle hosts the debut of Texaco Star Theater. 1959 – The USS Barbero and United States Postal Service attempt the delivery of mail via Missile Mail. [...]
Niche Product: Affordable, Eco-Friendly Charcoal
Joyce Solomon felt it was time to find a charcoal alternative people could embrace. So, she discovered a new way to make it. The technology can transform waste materials and the remains of tree-made charcoal into something people can use, reports ippmedia. The entrepreneur, Joyce Solomon, who operates a plant of the newly introduced eco-friendly [...]
Farming Electricity From Cow Manure
What do dairy farms generate a lot of? Besides milk, its safe to say what goes into a cow will come back out in the form of manure. One innovative man, Kevin Maas, has created a machine that will allow farmers to turn that mess into energy to run the whole farm, reports The Seattle [...]
Open Forum: John Galardi was just 23 when opened his first fast-food hot dog stand, Der Wienerschnitzel, in the Wilmington neighborhood of Los Angeles. Today, 50 years later, Wienerschnitzel (which dropped the “der” in 1977) has grown into one of the world’s largest hot dog chains, selling more than 120 million hot dogs annually through [...]
Currently, our clothes do not change color to match our environment. However, for the camo used in the army may not be far off. According to AirForceTimes, the unique cloth will change colors and patterns just like a chameleon. The fabric’s inventor told a San Diego conference last month that stealthy camouflage is only a [...]
Discovering Opportunity In Power
I’ve encountered a variety of different opportunities where some are similar and some are very different. North American Power is one that is a little different from the rest. Greg Plum is the owner of Plum Energy Group, and a broker with North American Power. We need energy to keep things running in our homes [...]
A New Twist On Eyeglass Repair
If you are tethered to your eyeglasses so you can see like I am, I do not need to tell you how frustrating it is when they fall apart. Many people have searched for ways to make it easier to put glasses back together, and Nancy Tedeschi is no different. Nancy created an eyeglass repair [...]
Another Google Buyout: PostRank
Google is well known for buying web companies and Google-fying them, and they have done it again. Their recent purchase of PostRank hints at their social media goals, reports PC Magazine. PostRank (a play on Google’s own PageRank term) measures how many comments, bookmarks, tweets, and other social interactions a given piece of content generates, [...]
Journalists Make Good Entrepreneurs
People from a variety of careers have sought to become business owners in the past, and journalists are no different. Many are making the transition to entrepreneurs, while others wonder if they have the necessary skills. Poynter has pulled together a few traits journalists possess which make them great entrepreneurs. Journalists become experts in the [...]
Nature Versus Nurture In Entrepreneurship
According to Startup Smart, Ernst & Young has released a report stating that people are not born entrepreneurs, the traits are learned. According to the survey, 54% of respondents say they did not start their business until they were at least 30, contradicting the widespread claim that 25 is the peak age to start a [...]
A Blue Lobster Business Opportunities?
For some weird reason, I have a real fascination with lobster businesses. This haul has made my day: A fisherman hauled an extremely rare blue lobster out of the waters off Prince Edward Island’s North Shore Wednesday. Blair Doucette landed the lobster in North Rustico. Only about one in four million lobsters is blue. The [...]
A College Degree In Multi-Level Marketing
While most people would learn as they go through the MLM process with a company they are passionate about, Bethany College wants to teach people how to succeed in that world, reports Time. Over a period of four years and 56-57 credits, students will learn everything there is to know about network marketing. For those [...]
How to Make $100,000 with an Amazon Kindle Book
Business Insider: …with a $9.99 Kindle download price, the author sees $6.98 in revenue (Kindle Direct Publishing has a 70/30 revenue split in most major territories, including the United States. Amazon takes 30%, you get 70%. They wire the money into your bank account about 60 days after the month in which a sale occurs. [...]
Mompreneur Leaving An Imprint On Personalized Jewelry
Love is not the only motivator behind her business, Pixie Printz. She was also frustrated. Carrie Stanley was on the lookout for a fingerprint jewelry company that could help her turn her daughters fingerprints into treasured jewelry. Her 4 year old daughter, Leiryn, has cancer, and she wanted to create something truly unique that would [...]
Dylan Eirinberg has always been an average kid. He liked to play sports and spend time outside. No one really saw him as a computer geek. However, according to Highland Park Patch, he is now the proud creater of an iPhone app. “I’ve always been an Apple fan,” said Eirinberg, a junior at Highland Park [...]
From Flip Video To Grilled Cheese
If one venture ends, why not start a new one? That is the idea behind Jonathan Kaplan’s foray into a different industry. Cisco has recently killed off his beloved invention, and it was time to move on. So he decided to make his move into the grilled cheese industry, reports Mashable. Kaplan’s genius, as shown [...]
Spring is almost over and summer is approaching fast. If it is already warm enough where you are, you’ve probably hit the beach already. If not, Shelly Ehler hopes you’ll take her unique towel along before you go. Shelly has taken a normal bath/beach towel and cut out head space. Instead of wrapping yourself up, [...]
Twelve years ago, Gene Luoma had a problem. His daughter had long hair, and it loved to clog up his bath tub. He tried a variety of different ways to get the clog out, but he was always unsuccessful. One day he noticed a sled hanging in his garage, and an idea began to emerge. [...]
Pix N’ Tray: Not Your Ordinary Lazy Susan
The lazy susan has been around for years. Most people will recognize it for its swiveling plate for serving food. However, Carmen Molina has taken the basic idea behind this device and turned it into a completely new product called the Pix N’ Tray. Like the lazy susan people know so well, it swivels on [...]
This sounds easy. I created an account on Createspace.com. They are owned by Amazon. Great customer service. You have any question at all you hit a button that says “Call Me” and within 30 seconds they have a customer representative calling your phone. I downloaded a Microsoft Word template they provided. This template took into [...]
Today in Entrepreneurial History: June 2
1835 – P. T. Barnum and his circus start their first tour of the United States. 1896 – Guglielmo Marconi applies for a patent for his newest invention: the radio. 2004 – Ken Jennings begins his 74-game winning streak on the syndicated game show Jeopardy!
Kevin Goldstein was frustrated. He wanted to listen to music while riding his bike, but he felt it was not save to wear earbuds while riding. He tried using only one earbud, but he was still unhappy. So, he combined the stereo of regular headphones into one earbud, reports Tucson Velo. He started selling the [...]
Bringing Hospital Bands Into The Tech Age
Benjamin Bell wants hospital wrist bands to be more appealing to children. However, his idea has the potential to change the way hospitals track their patients, reports Wanganui Chronicle. While the straight-talking 12-year-old student wants his Well Band to be able to be customised with a graphic for more appeal to children, it is a [...]
In the United States, companies like Walmart have helped lower the cost for eye care. So, what about places like Africa? According to NZHerald.co.nz, Joshua Silver and The World Bank are collaborating to bring self-adjustable eyeglasses to 200 million children in developing countries. Silver says more than a billion adults in developing nations have poor [...]
Business Week: Drive-thru is the operational heart of the fast-food industry, as central to a brand like Taco Bell as the kitchen itself, maybe more so. According to the National Restaurant Assn., the fast-food industry will do $168 billion in sales for 2011, and about 70 percent of that will come in through drive-thru windows. [...]
Have you ever wondered how we got from this: to this? If so, check out this neat little pictorial from HigherSalary.com on the evolution of the office.
Often the image of a chimney sweeper brings about thoughts of years long passed. However, this is a business that still has some demand. Not everyone has retired their fireplace yet, and Sally McKnight is there to keep them clean, reports SFGate. Sally has lived a very full life. However, in the 80′s she found [...]
Creating Habitats For Lobsters
It all started when Stewart Hardison was looking into creating wind power. Everything he looked at seemed to lead back to Maine. When looking at concept drawings for wind turbines held in place using large mooring blocks, an idea came to him, reports Village Soup. “It popped into my mind that all that massive structure [...]
Melanie Jacober is definitely at the head of her business. Of course, it helps that she is in the business of upholstering headboards. When some people knit a blanket or sew together a quilt, Melanie found her calling in the world of bedding, reports Calgary Herald. She started on her path to custom headboards as [...]
Today in Entrepreneurial History: June 1
1495 – Friar John Cor records the first known batch of scotch whisky. 1890 – The United States Census Bureau begins using Herman Hollerith’s tabulating machine to count census returns. 1974 – Flixborough disaster: an explosion at a chemical plant kills 28 people. 1980 – Cable News Network (CNN) begins broadcasting. 2009 – General Motors [...]
