We wanted to explore emerging developments in science and technology which could generate real social benefit.

To widen the pool of ideas, we cast our net outside of Nesta with an open call for ideas. Our Director of Explorations explains why we need fresh thinking to avoid the pitfalls of the hype cycle.

From the crop of nine articles below, we identified a winner, Dr Edmund Hunt, who makes the case for swarm robotics, and two runners-up Dr Anna Ploszajski and Sally Adee, who discuss bioelectricity and wonder materials.

You'll be hearing much more about these topics in the future, but you can start here.