InventNow Challenges

Imagine winter without snowboarding, skating, sledding, or even snowball fights. Not only would it be cold, dark, and snowy… but BORING! No wonder people have been playing winter sports since the dawn of the last Ice Age. Can you create a new sport or game to be played outside in winter?

Getting tired of the same old games played on the playground? What kind of sport can you invent? Are you going to use teams or will it be one on one? What types of equipment will be required?

How would you make the most bouncy ball ever?
What would you use to make it?
How would you test it?

During the new Presidents’ first term in office, he will be faced with the growing energy crisis and global climate changes.

If you were elected President, how would you reduce global carbon emissions? How would you reduce energy consumption in your home? What new sources of renewable energy would you create?

The 2008 Summer Olympics will be held in Beijing, China, which suffers some of the worst air pollution on earth. Already, scientists from competing countries are trying to figure out how to keep their athletes safe. How would you get Olympians fresh air during competition without slowing them down?

Each year, America cuts down more than 30 million Christmas trees, used once, then thrown away. Artificial trees are often made with PVC, a harmful chemical. Can you create an equally festive, more environmentally-friendly way to celebrate the holiday season?

The amount of waste humans produce is neverending. Landfills are overflowing throughout the world. Can you create a new way to store garbage? Where would it be located? How does it get there? How does it help the environment?

Every February 2, all eyes fall on Punxsutawney, Pa., where a groundhog named Phil pops out of his hole to issue his forecast: if he sees his shadow, six more weeks of winter; if he doesn't, early spring. Fun is fun, but weather reports from a rodent? Can you think of a more reliable invention to predict the coming of spring?

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care—how cool would it be to know what was in there? No matter what holiday you celebrate, chances are, the suspense is killing you. Can you create an invention to help you figure out what gifts you might be getting, without opening them?

Come up with a new way of sending your friends notes or text messages. This new method should incorporate some form of new language. Now when someone intercepts the note they will not be able to understand what it says!

Conveyor Belts are used to move grain at farms, cars on assembly lines, people at airports and much more!
Invent something that uses a conveyor belt!

More and more astronauts are making their way to the far reaches of space. Typically, they travel in groups and are transported via a space shuttle. What if one of the astronauts wanted to go to outerspace by themselves? See if you can come up with a spacesuit that doubles as a spacecraft! Imagine how fun it would be to fly to space without a shuttle!

Did you know that NASA is now planning the first manned moon landings since the 1970's? They also plan on building a permanent moon base.
What do you think it should look like? What things should it have? What should the astronauts do while

Parents just don’t understand… remote controls, that is. How many times has your mom or dad asked you to turn off the music, put on a movie, record a TV show, and run the whole thing through the home theater system? Can you create a new remote control even your parents can use?

Since the invention of personal video games, the controller has been something that engineers have spent tons of time developing. Controllers have taken the shape of joysticks, keyboards, trackballs, knobs and even lasers! Can you create a new controller for your video game system?

Imagine you live in a time before television, computers and video games- that's the hard part. Now, invent a game that would entertain you and your friends using stuff you could easily find around the house.

No matter how well you bundle, there's always one body part that could be warmer, drier, or more comfy. Can you design a new piece of clothing or outdoor gear to battle the cold, ice, and/or snow?

When the snow piles up in your yard and it's too cold to spend a long time outside, why not turn all of that snow into an igloo? Design an igloo that can stay around all winter! What kind of activities can you do within the igloo? How does the snow/ice combination hinder or help your activities?

If you could build a treehouse anywhere in the world, where would it be? What would you use to make it? What would it look like? What would you do in your treehouse?