Faces of Invention

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  • Engineering for Good

    Engineering for Good

    Invention education programs inspired this young inventor to pursue engineering to make an impact in people’s lives.

  • From Past to Present: 12 Black Inventors and Innovators to Know

    From Past to Present: 12 Black Inventors and Innovators to Know

    Throughout history, innovators from diverse backgrounds have helped change the world and improve lives. To celebrate Black History Month, we’re highlighting 12 past and present Black inventors whose impact ranges from medicine to voting accessibility. In February, we commemorate Black History Month and celebrate National Inventors’ Day — an opportunity to showcase both pioneering Black…

  • 2023 Inventor’s Day Roundup: Inventing for a Better Future

    2023 Inventor’s Day Roundup: Inventing for a Better Future

    These innovators are changing the face of invention — and working to change the world. A hundred years ago this year, Jerry Lemelson was born into a world that was being transformed by the power of invention. He himself became a prolific and versatile inventor, with more than 600 patents across a wide range of…

  • How an After-School Invention Program Helped Launch a Career in Big Tech

    How an After-School Invention Program Helped Launch a Career in Big Tech

    Through Oregon MESA, engineer Thien Nguyen discovered his facility for numbers and a supportive community.  Thien Nguyen was born in Vietnam and lived there until fourth grade, when his family immigrated to the United States. At the time Thien spoke no English, yet as he adjusted to his new surroundings in Portland, Oregon, he quickly…

  • This College Inventor Is Making Medicine More Equitable

    This College Inventor Is Making Medicine More Equitable

    University of Iowa sophomore Dasia Taylor has created low-cost, infection-sensing stitches.  Inventor Dasia Taylor is one of those people who seems destined to change the world. At just 14 years old, she was consulting at Harvard on the topic of equity. Now 19, Dasia is in the process of patenting her first medical device —…

  • Meet the Woman Who is Transforming Early Breast Cancer Detection in India

    Meet the Woman Who is Transforming Early Breast Cancer Detection in India

    Through her novel thermal imaging device, Indian entrepreneur Geetha Manjunath is making breast cancer screening more accessible to more women.

  • This Former Rugby Player is Now a Game-Changing Inventor

    This Former Rugby Player is Now a Game-Changing Inventor

    Personal experience drove Jessie Garcia to create her novel head impact indicator. Identify a problem, then work to solve it. That’s the basic formula for invention, and that’s exactly how Jessie Garcia came to create the Tozuda Head Impact Indicator, a tiny tool that attaches to a helmet and signals to its wearer when a…

  • Fighting Global Infant Mortality Through Hypothermia Detection

    Fighting Global Infant Mortality Through Hypothermia Detection

    Biomechanical engineer Ratul Narain’s monitoring devices help detect hypothermia and other illnesses in underweight newborns. Every year, 20 million clinically underweight babies are born worldwide. Of these, eight million are born in India, where many parents don’t have easy access to neonatal care resources. Yet low birth weight — generally defined as less than five…

  • It’s Not Always Easy Being Green, But It Should Be

    It’s Not Always Easy Being Green, But It Should Be

    A pioneer in the field of green chemistry, John Warner talks about the successes and challenges in creating sustainable change. John Warner is, to put it mildly, passionate about his work. He is a prolific inventor holding more than 300 patents, as well as an educator and entrepreneur. He is most passionate when talking about…

  • 2022 Inventors’ Day Roundup: Faces of Invention

    2022 Inventors’ Day Roundup: Faces of Invention

    As we confront complex issues like climate change, sustainable energy, and equitable access to food and healthcare, one throughline is constant: progress and innovation are inextricably linked. In 1992, prolific inventor Jerry Lemelson and his wife Dolly founded The Lemelson Foundation to support  invention that improves lives and strengthens economies. Since then, the Foundation has…

  • From Plastic Surgeon-in-Training to Inventor: How a Family Tragedy Led One Latina to Improve Lung Disease Diagnosis for the World

    From Plastic Surgeon-in-Training to Inventor: How a Family Tragedy Led One Latina to Improve Lung Disease Diagnosis for the World

    Maria Artunduaga is the CEO and founder of Samay, a successful startup aimed at providing low-cost, at-home diagnostics for dangerous respiratory conditions. At age 34, Maria Artunduaga took a leap of faith. Ambitious and focused, she was studying plastic surgery — a highly competitive specialty — at University of Chicago Medicine, on track to become…

  • Engineering for Impact

    Engineering for Impact

    Five Invention-Based Businesses Addressing Development Challenges with Hardware-Led Solutions From COVID to climate change, the world has recently witnessed mounting global challenges that have hindered progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In particular, this year’s report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the COP26 UN Climate Change Conference have shownMore

  • As Earth Heats Up, This Inventor is Focused on Keeping Cool

    As Earth Heats Up, This Inventor is Focused on Keeping Cool

    As the climate heats up throughout much of the globe, more and more people are dependent on air conditioning to live comfortably. But the very technology that helps them stay cool is contributing to the rising temperatures it’s trying to combat. MIT lecturer and engineer Sorin Grama is focused on trying to break that cycle,…