Inventor Monday

Yesterday was the anniversary of the death of a very important inventor in American history, but a man that most people probably never heard of—Elmer Ambrose Sperry.  Sperry was a prolific inventor, creating advanced compasses and gyroscopes for the United States Navy to stabilize ships, airplanes and aerial torpedoes. He also invented the gyrocompass and …

As summer approaches and we jump in our cars for a road trip or to simply cruise around, we want to make you aware of an upcoming anniversary for one of the incredible products that makes all that driving possible. On June 15, 1844, Charles Goodyear received a patent for his process to vulcanize rubber, …

As we enter into June and have the entire summer before us, we tend to daydream of beaches, picnics, and the one drink we associate with cooling us off on a hot summers day—an ice cold Coca Cola.  We all know Coca Cola, or Coke as we all call it today, as the quintessential American …

Since today is Memorial Day, we thought we would take a look at some of the products that make it possible for us celebrate the memory of our American heroes, and to start the summer off with our favorite tradition – having a cook-out.  While many things we eat at a cook-out (e.g. beef, watermelon …

This week, May 22, to be exact, is the anniversary of The Wright Brothers receiving their first patent for a ‘flying machine’— the world’s first flyable airplane—that made its historic flight a hundred and seven years ago. So we thought it was a good time to take a look at the Wright brothers and learn …

Benjamin Franklin was a true Renaissance Man. His expertise spanned a significant number of subject areas: publisher, statesman, nation builder, postmaster, scientist, and musician. Franklin was also a prodigious inventor. Among his many creations were: the Franklin stove, an odometer used in horse-drawn carriages, a musical instrument made from glass, and bifocal glasses. His most …

In the history of inventions and inventing, there is always a first: first car ever made, first radio ever built, first rocket into space. So when we came upon a story about the first American women to get a patent, we just had to find out more.  As it turns out, the 204th anniversary of …

Dean Kamen may not be a household word, like Edison or Ford, but he’s an incredibly prolific inventor who holds more than 150 patents and is an inductee of the National Inventors Hall of Fame. Pretty good for a guy that the average man-on-the-street probably never heard of. But, maybe they should know who he …

Some scientists and inventors are household names—such as Edison and Graham Bell.  However, there are plenty of brilliant inventors that are not well known, despite developing critical things we use every day. Wallace Hume Carothers is such a man. Carothers was a brilliant inventor and scholar who held more than fifty patents. He is considered …

As we all know, Leonardo da Vinci was an artist extraordinaire. His art is legendary; especially the “Mona Lisa”, “The Last Supper” and “The Vitruvian Man.” On top of his artistic ability, da Vinci was also a musician, mathematician, engineer, anatomist, geologist, cartographer, botanist and writer. His genius, perhaps more than that of any other …