Appeals To Aerospace Engineers... And The Young At Heart

Here's an inexpensive gadget that would make a great gift for the aspiring aerospace engineer in all of us: a paper airplane launcher!

Reminiscent of a "Hot Wheels" power booster many of us played with as children, the device incorporates two spinning discs powered by a AA battery that propel anything that comes between them, reportedly at speeds of up to 30 mph.

Designers at UK's Middlesex University invented this nifty gizmo, supposedly to take paper airplane design to new heights, but more likely just to make flying them more fun.

Paper airplane flying has long captured the imagination of young and old alike. The New Millennium Paper Airplane Contest held earlier this year at the New York Hall of Science attracted more than 150 participants competing in six categories.

Inspired by the 1967 International Paper Airplane Competition, artist Klara Hobza organized this year's competition as a performance activity designed to bring people together.

"To me, paper airplanes are the pure, innocent aspect of an innate thing that is universal about humans, which is inventiveness and playfulness," Hobza said.

FMI: www.urbanoutfitters.com