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A suburban Chicago police officer used a $132 speeding ticket he issued to track down a woman and ask her for a date, saying the least he could do for costing her so much money was to buy her dinner, a lawsuit filed by the woman alleges.

Jeanne Gang designed the Nature Boardwalk at Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo: "It's a hyper-urban site, and yet it provides a space for a natural habitat." Photo by Michael Lewis See more of the best photos of 2011

Dave and Carrie Kerpen got so much buzz when sponsors helped foot the cost of their big wedding that they opened Likeable Media, a social media firm now in New York, Boston, Chicago, and Mexico City. Here Dave tells that story--and what you need to know about word-of-mouth marketing in the new year. View the video on Inc.com at: http://www.inc.com/andrew-maclean/how-i-did-it-likeable-media-dave-kerpen.html

Picture this: You are sitting in, say, a Bermuda hotel on vacation. Suddenly you are struck by a crazy idea for a new soft drink taste

What if you took a product, service, or company that only existed in an alternate reality--and then made it real? Thats the gist of reverse product placement.

A site started by travel and search industry veterans--including Calvin Yang, who designed Google's image search--gives users a peek at what's inside and outside of a hotel room, before they arrive.

You're far from VCs and surrounded by people who don't like risks. Then again, the potential to be a big fish in a small pond is huge. Launching a tech start-up outside the VC-obsessed Silicon Valley and New York City comes with a catch-22.

Rope bridge? Check.

An inside look at how YCharts scored $4.75 million in funding. YCharts CEO Shawn Carpenter had a great idea when he was still at Google.

Michael Rooker only needed a handful of scenes to turn Merle Dixon into a fanboy favorite. But it was his real-world commitment to bringing the character to life that gave the AMC series its watercooler buzz.

Media companies aren't the only ones in the content-providing business these days. Meet Anthony Noguera, editorial director of Virgin's tablet magazine, Project

Pat Button , a former registered nurse and bed-and-breakfast proprietress, took a non-traditional route to transforming health care as chief nursing officer of Zynx Health . After climbing the corporate ladder at electronic medical-records company

Main Street Hub, a start-up that wants to help you manage your reputation on social media, received $2.6 million in funding.

Investors are hot on coupons.