Inventomania

TIME MAGAZINE'S BEST INVENTIONS OF THE DECADE(2000-2010)

Strap yourselves in for a reality check, Invention Community: the decade is almost over!  The past years have brought us a slew of new inventions and technological advancements that to earlier generations of pioneers seemed like science fiction.

Every year since 2001, World has been looking forward to TIME Magazine's Best Inventions of the Year list. I would like to take you on a stroll down memory lane by revisiting TIME Magazine's Best Inventions of the past decade. Some you've probably never heard of, and some you may use every day. Put on your walking shoes!

2001 – AbioCor Artificial Heart

In July 2001, the medical world changed forever when doctors implanted the Abiocor artificial heart in a patient for the very first time. The patient, a 59-year-old grandfather and retired librarian, was suffering from end stage heart failure. A product of three decades of research, development and testing, the Abiocor changed the game because it provided the first self-contained replacement heart.

2002 – Wireless Headset

While the invention of the year in 2001 changed the world, we certainly hope that none of our InventHelp Newsletter readers ever need to use it. The winner in 2002 is another story – many of you may be chatting on your headsets now! The now-ubiquitous wireless headset, or Bluetooth as many now call it, is nearly as common as a cell phone these days. The drawback of this invention? Passersby may think you're having a conversation with the voices in your head rather than a person on the line!

2003 – The 99¢ Solution

This one isn't technically an "invention," going by the bread-and-butter, tangible definition. What Steve Jobs and Apple did is invent a new lifestyle solution and a new mindset for millions of music fans. It's shockingly simple in its pure brilliance – charge buyers less than a buck for a song and let them play it whenever they like, as long as it's on an Apple iPod. You can thank this invention for making Walkmans more passé than bell-bottoms.

2004 – SpaceShipOne

The Space Race between the Soviet Union and the United States made children everywhere want to grow up to be astronauts. The sad reality for budding cosmonauts is that their dreams were never meant to be; after reaching the moon in 1969 the U.S. shifted focus to unmanned probes and shuttles. SpaceShipOne emerged as an outlet for Earthlings with stellar aspirations. Today, SpaceShipTwo – the newest commercial space vehicle – is happy to propel you into space for a mere $200,000!

2005 – Tweel

In 2005 the world met Michelin's Tweel, which inspired to rid the world of flat tires. The Tweel features a shock-absorbing rubber tread band that distributes energy to a series of thin, polyurethane spokes. And it's airless, which means no middle-of-the-night flat tire changes. The Tweel is still too noisy for regular passenger vehicles – watch for it in 2020, when we're counting down the best inventions of NEXT decade!

2006 – YouTube

We're guessing you've heard of this one. The invention that transformed regular computer users into stars was born in 2005 and earned TIME Magazine's distinction as Best Invention just a year later.

2007 – iPhone

Yes, you've heard of this one, too. Perhaps the most exciting side effect of the world's most intelligent phone has been watching the rest of the cell phone world scramble to catch up. When great phone inventions compete, we all win.

2008 – The Retail DNA Test

Just how much (or how little) do our genes define us? What do they mean for our health and our future? TIME ignited controversy in 2009 by choosing consumer gene-testing company 23andMe as its Invention of the Year 2008.

2009 – NASA's Ares Rockets

That brings us to this year's big winner, which TIME writer Jeffery Kluger calls, "the best and smartest and coolest thing built in 2009." To invent a rocket is extraordinary; to invent an extraordinary rocket is... well, they haven't invented a word for that yet! The Ares 1, which successfully completed its first unmanned flight , is the largest thing that's been launched into space since the 1970s. This rocket could be the machine that takes astronauts to Mars and beyond, and a future in orbit could be a reality for a new batch of aspiring astronauts.