Three ideas from IdeaSpies were presented by Lauren Garrett at the Ashurst August 2018 Boardroom Lunch. The idea receiving the most votes from directors was the world's first ocean cleanup system. This idea now goes to the final at the December Boardroom Lunch to select the top idea for the year. www.ideaspies.com/post/the-worlds-first-ocean-cleanup-system/

Crows are highly intelligent, copy each others behaviour and live abundantly in cities making them the ultimate cleaners of the city. They are capable of collecting cigarette filters on the most difficult places where normal city cleaners can?t reach.The Crowbar is the device developed by a startup called Crowded Cities. It?s designed to train crows to pick up and deposit cigarette butts. A crow drops a cigarette filter onto the device?s funnel, where a camera scans it. After the camera recognizes the item as a filter, it releases a piece of food for the crow to pick up as a reward. The crow then flies off to find more cigarette butts and recruit more crows to participate. www.crowdedcities.com

Florida-based Saltwater Brewery has used by-products from the beer-making process to create six-pack rings that can safely be eaten by marine wildlife. This bio-based?packaging?is made from edible wheat and barley. It?s the first ever 100 per cent biodegradable, compostable and edible packaging to be implemented in the beer industry. https://www.fastcompany.com/40519960/publishing-1-23-9-am-finally-you-can-buy-beer-with-a-biodegradable-six-pack-ring

Researchers are planning transplants that may revive tissues thought to be hopelessly damaged, including the heart and brain. The plan is to infuse mitochondria or a placebo solution into the coronary arteries of people having bypass surgery or ? an even more dire situation for the heart ? having both bypass and valve surgery. The patients would be those whose hearts are so damaged that it would be difficult to wean them from heart-lung machines after surgery. For these patients, mitochondrial transplants are an appealing option. https://mobile.nytimes.com/2018/07/10/health/mitochondria-transplant-heart-attack.html?

Rolls-Royce believes these tiny insect-inspired robots will save engineers time by serving as their eyes and hands within the tight confines of an airplane?s engine. The company plans to mount a camera on each robot to?allow engineers to see what?s going on inside an engine without have to take it apart. Rolls-Royce thinks it could even train its?cockroach-like robots to complete repairs. https://futurism.com/cockroach-robots-rolls-royce/