Youngsters show off winning ideas from ‘Invent Idaho’ competition
First- through 8th-graders who won prizes in the “Invent Idaho” state competition are in the fourth-floor rotunda of the Capitol today with their inventions, showing them off from 11:30 to 1:30. The inventions will remain on display until 4 p.m. The state finals were held a week ago at the University of Idaho, after regional competitions in Coeur d'Alene, Boise and Blackfoot; the youngsters’ ideas range from a first-grader’s idea for a “Dewey drone” to both return and shelve library books – making sure they don’t end up overdue – to a 7th grader’s idea for a robot to use a high-powered, ultrasonic sensor to detect problems in building foundations.
Other inventions range from a snow shovel with a de-icer dispenser handily installed, to a banana-mush battery, to a car with external airbags, the better to prevent damage and injuries in car crashes.
