National Inventors Hall of Fame Inductees Go to Camp

At the National Inventors Hall of Fame® (NIHF), summer is one of our favorite times of the year. Not only does our Camp Invention® program take place at over 1,600 schools across the nation, but at select locations, a few of our world-changing NIHF Inductees make special appearances!

Research from Opportunity Insights has found that the more often children are exposed to innovation from an early age, the more likely they will innovate when they grow up. Introducing children to a diverse group of STEM role models is particularly important and encourages groups that are underrepresented in these career fields to follow their dreams. While all Camp Invention participants are introduced to innovation through each year’s all-new, engaging curriculum, our Inductee visits give campers the chance to meet and interact with world-changing inventors in person.

During these exclusive visits, campers are given the unique opportunity to hear about Inductees’ successes and failures, learn more about how they developed their inventions and receive valuable feedback on their creations at camp. Often, Inductees will conduct open Q&A discussions and speak on the importance of perseverance and teamwork. 

During the month of June, six NIHF Inductees visited Camp Invention sites all over the country. Read below to learn more!

Frances Ligler — Elon Park Elementary and Swift Creek Elementary School, North Carolina

NIHF Inductee Frances Ligler is best known for developing smaller and more efficient biosensors — devices that use living organisms like enzymes or antibodies to detect chemicals. Today her portable optical biosensor technology is used to detect dangerous substances in food, pollution sites and hospitals.

Edmund O. Schweitzer III — Lewis-Clark State College Activity Center, Idaho

NIHF Inductee Edmund O. Schweitzer III revolutionized the electric power utility industry by bringing the first microprocessor-based digital protective relay to market. This new technology improved on previous protective relay techniques and allowed the precise detection of faults in power lines. His technology protects and ensures reliable power for factories, hospitals, universities and data centers.

Alois A. Langer — Hyattsville Elementary School, Maryland

NIHF Inductee Al Langer was the engineer on the team that invented the world’s first automatic implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD). When implanted inside the body, an ICD automatically corrects irregular heartbeat patterns. Since its creation, this technology has saved thousands of lives and improved the way doctors treat heart patients.

Jacqueline Quinn — Windermere Elementary School, Florida

NIHF Inductee Jacqueline Quinn co-invented an environmentally safe clean-up technology called emulsified zero-valent iron, or EZVI. Using this emulsion, thousands of government and private industry facilities have been able to clean up harmful chlorinated solvent contaminates (also known as dense nonaqueous phase liquids) and prevent the pollution of fresh water.

Gary Sharp — Hudson Elementary School, Colorado

NIHF Inductees Gary Sharp and Kristina Johnson co-invented the patented technology used in projection televisions, front-projection displays and a majority of the 3D digital cinema installations in use today. The duo’s work enabled the advancement of liquid-crystal-on-silicon technology (LCOS), that resulted in inventions serving several industries.

Arogyaswami Paulraj — Doral Academy-Saddle Campus, Nevada

NIHF Inductee Arogyaswami Paulraj pioneered the MIMO (Multiple Input, Multiple Output) technology that has revolutionized broadband wireless internet access for billions of people around the world. Thanks to MIMO’s ability to enhance transmission data rates and expand network coverage, signal technologies such as Wi-Fi and 4G mobile have become ubiquitous.

Learn More About Our Revolutionary Inductees

Throughout the summer, NIHF Inductees will continue to visit Camp Invention locations across the country. Check out our blog and Facebook page to keep up to date on these exciting visits. To learn more about our Inductees, we encourage you to visit our website.