Meet the wunderkinds behind Titanium Expo Robotics, a company created by three high school kids from Royal Oak. Their land mine-detecting robot not only took top awards at Lawrence Tech's Robofest, it heralds a potentially game-changing industry for Southeast Michigan, while prompting deep ethical questions about where our technological innovations are headed.

In celebration of the Fourth, the Metromode staff will be indulging in some hard-earned R and R. But fear not, we'll be back July 9th with more tales of growth, innovation, sustainability & entrepreneurship from the front lines of the new economy.

For business owners stymied by city bureaucracy and anti-development ordinances, the "Welcome To..." sign has become "Proceed With Caution". Enter Clawson, a speck of a city that's used progressive downtown strategies and business-friendly policies to become known as Metro Detroit's best-kept secret.

Dear Detroiters: Why do you stay? What will keep you here? GLUE (aka the Great Lakes Urban Exchange) asked people to fill in the blank at a recent party kicking off its regional campaign. Will local leaders listen to their answers?

Regional cooperation. Which, unfortunately, Metro Detroit doesn't have a very good track record with. If light rail and enhanced express buses are to succeed, suburbanites and city slickers are going to have to learn to sit thigh to thigh - physically and metaphorically.

Michigan could take a lesson from Healthmedia. From it's early struggles to find local investment to its recent purchase by Johnson & Johnson, the innovative software-as-service company has stayed committed to remaining in Ann Arbor.

Fringe theater is often viewed as a barometer for a city's hipness.The Ringwald, in downtown Ferndale, has garnered top billing for its campy and unconventional shows, even drawing the city's mayor into the limelight.

It's the urban trend all the kids are talking about! Green roofs are taking root in cities across America, reducing pollution and creating energy efficiency. Metromode looks at how Metro Detroit can emulate the success of the Ford Rouge Plant and move up from the back of the pack.