What's NASA ever done for us - except put our representatives on the Moon?
Well what about earthquake protection systems modelled on shock absorbers invented for the space shuttle? What about cabin pressure monitors for aircraft, or bacteria tests for water quality, or finding water in the driest places on Earth?
All NASA.
The space agency has unveiled the 2015 edition of its ultra cool 'Spinoff' guide, listing the ways it has changed the real world in the last twelve months.
The guide has been produced once a year since 1976 and looks at how its "initiatives in aeronautics and space exploration have resulted in technologies with commercial and societal benefits across the economy, in areas such as health and medicine; transportation; public safety; consumer goods; energy and environment; information technology; and industrial productivity".
Let's face it though - it's also fairly passive aggressive. It's a bit like your flatmate leaving a note outlining exactly what cleaning jobs they did last night, just in case you forgot, and so don't dare be late with the rent or I'll stop spotting asteroids.
"NASA enjoys a large and varied technology portfolio unlike any other in existence,” said Daniel Lockney, NASA’s Technology Transfer program executive. “And the range of successful technology transfer documented in Spinoff each year is as diverse as NASA’s many science and exploration missions.”
You can check out the guide in full over at NASA's website (the highlights are above).
There's also a "Spinoffs of Tomorrow” section, which looks at ways NASA tech currently in development (and available for licensing) could be used if and when industry decides to pick up the idea.