: In music, an invention is a short composition with two or three part counterpoint. See Invention (music)

In general terms, an invention is an object, process or technique which displays an element of novelty. In certain circumstances, law protection may be granted to an invention by way of a patent.

=What drives the process of invention=

Over time, Humanity has invented objects and methods for accomplishing tasks which fulfill some purpose in a new or different manner, usually with the objective of realising that purpose in a faster, more efficient, easier or cheaper way.

Although it is evident that people do invent , the circumstances which facilitate or optimise the development of inventions is less clear. One school of thought, popularized in the phrase necessity is the mother of invention , argues that in essence, lack of resources leads to invention, while the opposing school of thought argues that it is only an excess of resources which has this result. However, the actual position may not be understood simply by reference to one or the other of these perspectives.

=From idea to invention=

Although a new or useful object or method may be developed to fulfill a specific purpose, the original idea may never be fully realised as a working invention, perhaps because the concept is in some way unrealistic or impractical.

A castle in the air or a pie in the sky (or castles in Spain ) may refer to a creative idea which does not reach fruition due to practical considerations. The history of invention is full of such castles, as inventions are not necessarily invented in the order that is most useful. For example, the design of the parachute was worked out before the invention of powered flight. Other inventions simply solve problems for which there is no economic incentive to provide a solution.

On the other hand, any barriers to implementation may simply be an issue of Engineering or Technology which can be overcome in time with scientific advances. History is also replete with examples of ideas which have taken some time to reach physical reality, as demonstrated by various ideas originally attributed to Leonardo da Vinci which are now expressed in everyday physical form.

=Invention and innovation=

Following the terminology of political economist Joseph Schumpeter, an invention differs from an innovation. While an invention is merely theoretical (even though the legal protection of a patent may have been sought), an innovation is an invention that has been put into practice. However, this conflicts with the theory of social anthropologists and other social sciences researchers. In social sciences, an innovation is anything new to a culture. The innovation does not need to have been adopted. The theory for adoption (or non-adoption) of an innovation is called diffusion of innovations. This theory, first put forth by Everett Rogers, considers the likelihood that an innovation will ever be adopted and the taxonomy of persons likely to adopt it or spur its adoption. Gabriel Tarde also dealt with the adoption of innovations in his Laws of Imitation.

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