Gomboc

Sunday's Time Magazine had a short article about the Gömböc, an object which - without a motor, counterweight, or any other assistance - can right itself from any position. Originally nothing more than speculation by a mathematician in Russia, two Hungarian scientists subsequently devised the actual, physical object. It's not much to look at, but when you watch it tip back and forth as it rights itself, you get the sense of something magical happening. (You can see the video by going to the inventors' website.)

For just 1001 Euros ($1450 or so), I could buy my own Gömböc with my birth year for a serial number. Maybe next year, when the Chinese have knocked it off.