Camera flashcubes of the 1960s, high-definition TVs and the Nicoderm quit-smoking patch have at least one thing in common: Each found a place by the years on R&D Magazine’s annual list of the 100 most technologically significant new products.

For 46 years, the Rockaway, N.J.-based publication has bestowed awards to products its editors and outside experts believe represent “quantum leaps of technological improvement.”

R&D Magazine acknowledges that obvious advances — a cure for cancer, say — are rare. Indeed, the

2008 list of winners, announced Wednesday, lacked consumer blockbusters, but among the acronyms and technical jargon, a few with relevance to everyday life stood out.

Japan’s Koito Manufacturing Co. made the list for its LED car headlights, which use less energy, last longer and produce a light that’s brighter and more like daylight.

Another automotive winner was the “Adaptive Airbag” from Key Safety Systems Inc. in Sterling Heights, Mich. It adjusts how […]

Orginal post by Top Tech News