American and Dutch companies announced their prototype flying cars completed first flights. The American car flies like a plane; the Dutch one like a helicopter.

We may not get flying cars or robot maids any time soon, but physicist Michio Kaku says other inventions just as amazing are in the pipeline: imagine a working invisibility cloak, teleportation, and contact lenses that display the Internet.

To understand how and why tornadoes form, some researchers are taking to the skies with small unmanned aircraft.