Let’s talk trash. Chemical engineers are developing a new kind of plastic made from wheat or corn starch that’s more earth-friendly.

An engineer in Milwaukee, Wis., invented what has to be the most complicated answering machine, in 1949.

The first traffic light was a red-and-green gas-powered lantern in London in 1868.

Tiny flashlights, instrument lights, TV remote controls, truck and bus tail-lights, traffic lights — even stadium TV screens — all are lit up by LEDs.