NYU Kids Inventors' Day Event Showcases Youthful Innovations
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- From Thomas Edison to Alexander Graham Bell to the Wright Brothers, there's one thing all great inventors have in common -- once upon a time they were all kids.
3D software company Auto Desk and the New York University Tandon School for Engineering hosted a special showcase Tuesday to celebrate National Kid Inventors' Day.
Seven smart, inventive kids from across the country -- ages eleven to 17 years old -- were brought together for their unique and forward thinking inventions.
"Design can be fun, and it's not just something boring," kid inventor Jordan Reeves said.
11-year-old Jordan from Missouri was born with a limb difference. She customarily wears a prosthetic arm, but through her free spirit and imagination invented a special prosthetic that shoots sparkles.
"I'm above all else curious," 17-year-old Alexis Lewis told CBS2's Scott Rapoport.
The teen from North Carolina came up with the emergency mask pod to help people trapped in the upper floor of a house during a fire. The football shaped device opens up to reveal a smoke mask and goggles. First responders can throw the pod up to victims to help them cope with the smoke until they're able to make their way in themselves.
Alexis currently has a patent pending on her invention and hopes it will eventually become a real life saving technology.
15-year-old Jakob Sperry invented and designed what he calls "gyrings" -- a fidget widget of sorts for people with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.
People like Jakob.
"For me, my problem was fidgeting a lot," he said. "And I needed to solve that."
Jakob said it allows people to manipulate the "gyring" any way they want while staying focused on what they are actually doing.