Ask anyone to name important and great inventions the world has ever seen and you wear people mention the name of Great men like Thomas Edison, Alexander Graham Bell, Michael Faraday or Leonardo da Vinci.
What about the women? Don’t they have great inventions?
Of course, just like we have men inventors, women inventors also exist. Truly, there are many discoveries made by men more than those made by women but you have to appreciate the great things made by women.
Most people don’t know that their great things we use in today’s world that were made or invented by women. Some women have left their mark in the world’s invention history. Women have contributed their fair share of cutting-edge inventions, many of these inventions are what we use every day without any thought to their origins.
While most women inventor is not known is due to the property laws in many states and countries which made it illegal for women to own a property on their own. Smart women have to find a way to own their properties or inventions by applying for a patent in their husbands’ names if they decided to apply at all.
According to Investopedia defined A Patent as granting of a property right by a sovereign authority to an inventor. This means that the inventor has the exclusive rights to the patented process of that particular invention for a comprehensive disclosure of the invention.
In this article, we will be taking a look at (10) great things invented by women.
1. Ironing board- by Sarah Boone:
The famous ironing board we used today was invented by an African-American named Sarah Boone in 1892. Sarah Boone obtained her patent number 473,563 from the United States government for her new invention the ironing board. The board was very narrow, curved, and made of wood.
2. Monopoly Board Game – by Elizabeth “Lizzie” Magie:
The famous landlord or Monopoly board game was invented by Elizabeth J. Phillips. Elizabeth Phillips (nee Magie) was born on May 9, 1866, she was an American game designer, writer, feminist, and Georgist.
Her invention “The Landlord’s Game, the precursor to Monopoly, was to illustrate the teachings of the great economist Henry George.
3. Computer programming – by Grace Hopper.
The famous computer programming we all use today was invented by an American woman called Grace Brewster Murray Hopper.
Grace Hopper was an American computer scientist and so a United States Navy admiral. She was one of the first programmers of Havard Mark computer and is considered as one of the pioneers of computer programming. She invented the first linker and she was the first person to devise the theory of machine-independent programming languages. Her theory gree into Flow-Matic programing language which later extended to Cobol, a high-level programming language which is still on use today.
4. Computer Algorithm- by Ada Lovelace.
The tough algorithm and logic used in computing and programming were invented by Ada Lovelace in 1843.
Ada Lovelace got her ideas while going through or translating some of the laid down notes of Charles Babbage’s invention of the analytical engine. She added her own notes which tripled the original text and became the world’s first computer algorithm.
5. Submarine lamp and telescope- by Sarah Mather.
Sarah Mather is the proud inventor of the Submarine lamp and telescope in 1845.
Sarah developed an apparatus with a lamp that was attached to a tube which was then sunk underwater. Her Telescope lamp can shine even under the deep ocean.
6. Paper bag making machine- by Margaret Knight.
Margaret Knight invented the paper bag making the machine in 1871.
Margaret Knight showed great courage to finally have her invention in 1871 after having her invention stolen by a man who claimed that there was no way a woman could have developed such a thing.
She got her patent in 1871 and became the founder of a machine that is capable of producing paper bags.
7. Dishwasher – by Josephine Cochran:
The famous dishwasher we use today was invented by Josephine Cochran in 1872
She created a dishwasher that is capable of cleaning dishes perfectly.
8. Car heater- by Margaret A. Wilcox.
The famous car heater we use today was invented by Margaret A. Wilcox in 1893.
Margaret Wilcox break headline when she invented a way to heat cars by channelling air over the engine and into the cab.
9. Medical syringe- Letitia Geer:
The medical syringe we use today in the hospitals and clinics was invented by LetitiaGeerin 1899.
LetitiaGeer invented a one-handed syringe in 1899. Before her invention, medical doctors and professionals in the past centuries made use of hands to administer injections.
10. Street sweeper- Florence Parpart.
in the year 1900, Florence Parpart invented the machine that can sweep an entire street.
