The past year has seen plenty of new technologies and inventions unveiled, some to make life easier, some with the potential to save lives, and some that might even help rescue the planet. First up, though, some gadgets and gizmos sure to make it onto Christmas wish-lists of the future.
The year's most desirable gadget accessories included a fold-up telephoto lens that gives ultra-slim devices zoom vision, a way of sharing snaps between gadgets by giving the two a good shake, and, for those who prefer a hard copy, a compact inkless colour printer designed to be built into cameras or cellphones.
Other ideas for portable self-expression included a vest that writes messages on its wearer's back using motors and an earplug that transforms tongue movements into computer commands.
While most people carefully protect their gadgets from dirt, grime, and water, some of the year's most interesting gadgets were designed with messy environments in mind. A new mechanical nose used a healthy helping of artificial snot to sniff out odours, while a leech-like robot crawled around the chest cavities of live pigs to perform surgery.
And for greater reliability, future devices might be powered by laser-powered motors, which promise to be more resistant to magnetic interference than ordinary electric motors.
Continuing the slimy theme, seafloor sludge was proposed for powering oceanographic sensors while a bath of cooking oil proved an unusual idea for keeping computer servers cool without power-hungry air-conditioning.
The year was about more than just gadget fever too. Some scientists showed the environmental hazards of technology addiction, revealing the way electronic waste sites in China cause dioxins to accumulate in breast milk. Others demonstrated new machines to clean up our mess, like this circuit board recycling machine, and a giant microwave that breaks down plastic for recycling.
The human impact on the environment was a theme that loomed large in 2007, and one that technology developers did their best to tackle. They brought us greener ways to make energy, including an improved method for brewing hydrogen from plant waste, the prospect of bacteria-powered cellphones, and even catalysts that use CO2 from the atmosphere to make fuel.
We also learned that electric cars might help manage energy in future by using their batteries to backup the electric grid while parked.
On the move
Ever since the invention of the wheel, humans have been creating new forms of transportation and then pimping them up. The last year generated ideas including extendible fenders to protect future cars during a crash, a remote-controlled helicopter for rescuing stranded mountaineers, and faster skis that dribble wax from built-in reservoirs to keep their speed up.
Robots have also got better at travelling. Improved robotic navigation technologies revealed in 2007 include a fish-like electrical sensing system, software that tries to guess what may be just around the next corner, and a robot that could map out its surroundings as it dived into the deepest freshwater sinkhole on Earth. Plus, three-legged robots with a unique "flip-flop" way of walking showed just how future interplanetary rovers might choose to get around.
Another technology that got smarter in 2007 was surveillance, with software watching students for signs of boredom and billboards tracking a person's gaze from 10 metres away to judge their level of interest. Even virtual characters were being watched, with a lurching automated avatar performing psychology experiments on unsuspecting users of the popular virtual world Second Life.
One start-up company enlisted web users in an effort to improve automated facial recognition search. And when researchers performed the largest ever analysis of the connections formed by phone calls - 7.1 million calls - they found casual acquaintances, not firm friends, underpinning the social fabric of whole countries.
Biometric technologies announced in 2007 included a laser device that scans fingerprints without the need for dusting and a security system that uses people's brainwaves as their password.
Like most years, 2007 saw its fair share of technological firsts. A new material made from barium titanate and molten tin stole diamond's stiffness crown and researchers visited every IP address on the web for the first time in 25 years.
Big achievements on small scales included compounds 20 times more sensitive to light than anything else, a way of trapping light and then setting it free, and the discovery that nanoscale wheels can roll just like full-sized ones.
Finally, here's to the next crop of inventions, breakthroughs, and technological firsts that 2008 will surely bring.
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