The ultimate goal, however, is to take such technology off-world.

FORBES: Liquid Mirror Telescope Technology Finally Going Mainstream

We take off-the-shelf IT and Internet technology and transform the power grid and electricity transmission lines into an energy Internet.

FORBES: Jeremy Rifkin's Third Industrial Revolution

What remains to be seen is whether or not there is in fact a demand for mobile payments -- the technology has yet to take off in the US, despite an influx of funding and infrastructure from MasterCard and Google.

ENGADGET: MasterCard and T-Mobile to bring NFC payments to Europe in Q3 (video)

Moogfest isn't happening for another week, but the synth-maker couldn't wait to take the wraps off of its latest bit of technology.

ENGADGET: Moog shows off LEV-96 sensoriactuator prototype on an acoustic guitar

Nowadays, behind Skunk Works' highly secure perimeter, engineers reportedly are working on the aviation wonders of tomorrow, including a lightweight cargo plane called the X-55A and a bizarre, blimp-like airship called the P-791 Hybrid Air Vehicle, which has special technology that allows it to take off and land just about anywhere.

CNN: Where planes go to die

Just as the CFL light bulb market is poised to take off in a bigger way than ever, bulbs that tap rival light-emitting-diode technology, potentially even cheaper than CFL, are on the rise.

FORBES: Boom At Hand, TCP's Ellis Yan Faces New "Green" Bulb Battle

The aircraft had a multi-role capability with advance weaponry, the latest camera technology for intelligence gathering and short take off capability for aircraft carrier duties.

BBC: RAF Marham base for Joint Strike Fighter