Taiwan claimed the top spot among exhibiting nations in this year’s World Genius Convention and Education Expo in Tokyo, winning 27 gold, eight silver and four bronze medals.
The youngest gold medal winner was Janet Chen (陳紀蓉), a fourth-grader from Taipei’s Jian-an Elementary School.
She and her sister, Christine Chen (陳思穎), a sixth-grader from the same school, won the medal for their invention of a controller that makes cats exercise before they can be fed.
Photo courtesy of Chinese Innovation and Invention Society
They said their inspiration came after learning that 60 percent of domesticated cats are overweight.
As cats like to snatch objects with their claws, they incorporated the feline habit into a device that requires a cat do some exercises before it can access its food.
The device consists of a roller, on which the cat must turn 20 times before a machine drops food for it.
Another win for Taiwan came from a team consisting of students from Chung Hua University’s Department of Landscape Architecture. They won a gold medal and a special mention for their playground equipment, which included a slide, landscape lamp and public bench made from discarded blades from wind turbines.
Chinese Innovation and Invention Society chairman Wu Chih-yao (吳智堯), who led the Taiwanese delegation, yesterday said that Taiwan submitted 48 works among more than 120 entries from 12 countries, including Canada, China, Japan, Morocco, Thailand and the US.
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