Rochester Institute of Technology

Entering passcodes on smartphones can be difficult for the blind, as they can't see the screen, nor can they tell if someone else is peeking at it. The OneButtonPIN app is designed to help, by utilizing vibrations instead of visuals.

​In the not-too-distant future, when congestive heart failure patients are being released from hospital, they may be given a special toilet seat to take home. That device would measure their vital signs every time they sit on it, sending alerts if more heart trouble was detected.

With emergency services and disaster response teams reliant on the latest data, a traffic jam on the information superhighway can be fatal. Researchers have come up with a kind of internet express lane that would allow emergency responders to circumvent any digital roadblocks.

The most commonly-used water filtration media are silicon gels and activated carbon. These can only be used once, however. By contrast, not only can filters made with carbon nanotubes be reused, but they're also reportedly more effective at removing organic pollutants.​