Fast Forward

Anyone planning a trip to Chicago will definitely want to check out a new exhibit that opened today at the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry. The interactive, multi-media exhibit is called "Fast Forward... Inventing the Future" and it's all about visionaries of today and how they are shaping the future. One of those visionaries happens to be our very own Peter Diamandis! He's being featured for his creation of the X PRIZE Foundation as well as his many entrepreneurial space ventures.

The other innovators are also doing some pretty cool things. For example, Dickson Despommier is leader of the Vertical Farm Project that proposes to grow food in high rise buildings in urban centers, helping to feed increasing urban populations while also allowing sprawling farmland to be returned to nature. Another "Fast Forward" innovator is Dana Myers, the entrepreneur behind electric vehicle company Myers Motors -- a company that also happens to be a serious contender for the Progressive Automotive X PRIZE.

The purpose of the exhibit is to inspire us all to dream big, and to believe that the impossible can become possible. Anyone of us can produce extraordinary ideas, no matter our age or background. One young innovator is a self-taught 20-year-old, William Kamkwamba, who as a teenager built a windmill out of scrap materials to provide electricity for his family. He now dreams of powering every village in his African nation of Malawi. How amazing is that??