Taiwan teams take gold at world invention contestBy Chen Chia-i and Liu Tzu-hsuan / Staff reporter, with staff writerA Taiwanese-designed biodegradable bottle cap that hermit crabs can use as their homes won gold at this year’s World Innovation and Invention Competition in South Korea, as Taiwan ranked first overall, according to the results, which were announced yesterday. The competition attracted 243 entries from 12 countries, including Taiwan, which submitted 51 inventions, as well as Canada, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, South Korea, Thailand and Turkey. Bottles with biodegradable caps invented by teachers and students at National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology are pictured in an undated photograph. The team designed a waterproof layer in the cap made with edible wax, which would not harm sea birds if ingested by accident. They have filed a patent for the project, which has been awarded a grant from the National Science and Technology Council.
