Popular Mechanics Supported Young Scientists

The finals in the Festival of Scientific, Technical and Engineering Projects organized by Popular Mechanics magazine and the Lomonosov Moscow State University — with support from the Dyson company — were held on Nov. 17.

The jury reviewed 11 creative projects selected from throughout Russia. They included several very original inventions capable of simplifying life in the future — for example, a charging device based on the operation of an ordinary radio receiver, the Electro gadget that generates electricity from the warmth emitted by a human hand, “smart” energy-efficient window blinds and an interactive projector that displays media publications on a physical desktop.

First place was awarded to the team led by Sergei Semik of Samara for their proposed ReCycle project that combines an exercise bike and a computer simulation of a bicycle race. Second place went to Sergei Verkhov for his Mobile System, and third place was given to Ilya Mezdrokhin and his project “Nanostructured direct transducers of nuclear energy to electricity.”

Popular Mechanics magazine gave commemorative gifts to all of the finalists, and the Dyson company awarded special prizes to those finishing in the top three.