Innovative innovation

In The Sorcerers and their apprentices, author Frank Moss introduces us to new fields like Biomechatronics.
personal robots
OPera of the future
Lifelong kindergarten
New Media medicine
Affective computing
Cognitive machines
Speech+Mobility
Tangible Media
'to create a better future for everyone'.
This book works at two levels. On one hand the reader learns of what makes innovation happen at the MIT lab - the coming together of minds in solving problems faced by many and on the other how the problems are solved with applications that are products of the lab. Its inspiring to know how some scientists are fueled with the experiences from their own life to work towards technologies that make life easier for others.
Some of the projects like the City car were hard for me to understand. There is some repitition in the text. Curiosity about the projects will get you to the end.

At the Media lab, the scientists 'build,test and demonstrate' their inventions. some projects like the MIT Red balloon challenge and Roy's Speechome project have received lot of coverage in the media.
The author finds that most of the discoveries are serendipitous by nature. But once an invention is in place, it is unthinkable how one ability leads to another. A technology used to capture movement of a music artist is used in automoives to figure if a passenger is a small adult or a child for purposes of airbag deployment. the same technology went into gait analysis.
Roy's Speechome project analysis led way to look at early detection of autism and empowering the affected with social abilities.
Othotics
Nephrolithiasis