FORGOTTEN VISIONARIES
10 Unsung Scientists and Inventors Who Shaped History
Published on May 6, 2024
Image: National Cancer Institute
History has a notoriously capricious memory. Casting a spotlight on a select few, it condemns others to oblivion, no matter how significant their contributions. However, it’s never too late to change this!
Let’s uncover some of the stories behind 10 forgotten figures of history that, in one way or another, helped shape our modern world.
Hedy Lamarr
Image: Compare Fibre
As if a glamorous Hollywood career was not enough, Hedy Lamarr was also a brilliant inventor who - among other things - developed a groundbreaking frequency-hopping system during World War II to secure both communications and radio-guided torpedoes. And besides helping Allied forces gain a technological advantage during the war, her innovative ideas also laid the foundation for modern Bluetooth and Wi-Fi technologies.
Émile Gagnan
Image: Adrien Delforge
Émile Gagnan was a French engineer who partnered with famous diver Jacques Cousteau to create the Aqua-Lung, the first self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (or SCUBA). The device, which utilized compressed air to allow divers to explore underwater for extended periods, not only completely revolutionized underwater exploration but its relative ease of use also led to a boom in recreational diving.
Mary Leakey
Image: Johannes Plenio
Mary Leakey was a pioneering figure in the field of paleoanthropology who made significant contributions to our understanding of human evolution. Alongside her husband Louis Leakey, she unearthed numerous hominid fossils in East Africa, including the famous discovery of the "Nutcracker Man," a skull of Paranthropus boisei, an extinct species of hominid that lived around 2.5 million years ago. Mary's meticulous excavation techniques and a keen eye for detail led to many more groundbreaking discoveries, such as the Laetoli footprints, providing crucial insights into early human locomotion.
Alice Ball
Image: Towfiqu barbhuiya
Alice Ball was a true pioneer in all regards. The first woman and first African American to graduate with a Master’s degree from the University of Hawaiʻi, she developed the first effective treatment for leprosy, known as the "Ball Method." Her technique allowed to make chaulmoogra oil - an antimicrobial extract obtained from the seeds of Hydnocarpus wightianus - water-soluble and thus injectable. She died before publishing her work, which was then stolen by fellow chemist Arthur L. Dean. However, thanks to the insistence of her colleagues, she eventually received the rightful recognition for her groundbreaking contributions.
Emilie du Châtelet
Image: Bozhin Karaivanov
The outstanding work of the Marquise du Châtelet, also known as Emilie du Châtelet, significantly contributed to our understanding of energy conservation and the principles of calculus. Her 18th-century French translation of Isaac Newton's Principia Mathematica helped disseminate Newton’s work in Europe, and she introduced a series of contributions to Newtonian mechanics, including the postulate of an additional conservation law for total energy and a scientific definition for the concept of energy.
Al-Jazari
Image: Possessed Photography
Considered by some to be the true "father of robotics" and modern-day engineering, Al-Jazari was a 12th-century polymath who revolutionized mechanical engineering with his ingenious designs, including the first recorded programmable humanoid robot. Among his many designs for automata were a waitress that could serve various drinks, an automaton that helped with hand washing, and a musical robot band.
Edmond Becquerel
Image: American Public Power Association
Edmond Becquerel's experiments in the 19th century paved the way for solar energy research. His discovery of the photovoltaic effect laid the groundwork for modern solar cell technology, and his research in the topics of optics and light also contributed to the development of photography. Curiously, he was the father of Nobel laureate Henri Becquerel, one of the discoverers of radioactivity.
Jethro Tull
Image: Dan Meyers
Not to be confused with the rock band of the same name, Jethro Tull was an English agriculturalist born in the 17th century who revolutionized farming practices with his innovative inventions. His most famous creation, the seed drill, transformed agriculture by allowing seeds to be planted in neat rows at consistent depths, vastly improving crop yields and efficiency. Tull's dedication to scientific farming methods laid the groundwork for modern agricultural techniques.
Ada Lovelace
Image: Florian Olivo
Often regarded as the world's first computer programmer, English mathematician Ada Lovelace made groundbreaking contributions to the early development of computing in the 19th century. Collaborating with Charles Babbage on his Analytical Engine, Lovelace is also notable for being the first to foresee potential in computing beyond mere calculation, as she reasoned that such an engine could easily work with entities other than just quantities, and could be applied to music, science, or have many other general uses.
Mary Anderson
Image: Max Tokarev
Next time you are driving in the rain, think of Mary Anderson. An American inventor and entrepreneur, Anderson left an enduring legacy on the automotive industry with her groundbreaking invention - the windshield wiper. In 1902, while visiting New York City, Anderson observed streetcar drivers struggling to maintain visibility in inclement weather. Thinking on this problem, she envisioned a solution: a moving wiper blade that could be operated from the inside. Despite initial skepticism, Anderson's invention soon became standard equipment for automobiles, improving road safety everywhere in the world.
