Last Updated on Wednesday, 11 July 2012 08:21 Written by dbhalling Wednesday, 11 July 2012 08:21

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GUEST POST By Lauren Gurley, FindTheBest Writing Intern

If you took an American History course in high school or college, you are probably familiar with Eli Whitney who invented the infamous cotton gin – symbolic of the economic success of slavery in the American South. While information about Whitney and the cotton gin is readily accessible, a comprehensive guide to the world’s inventors, both famous and obscure, is difficult to find.

A new quick and comprehensive resource for those who are interested in the history of inventors and intellectual property or who are personally involved in the creation of patents is http://inventors.findthedata.org/. From Samuel F.B. Morse and the telegraph system to James J. Wynne and LASIK Eye surgery, this online tool allows users compare over 450 of the world’s most revolutionary inventors, both living and dead, and their intellectual property.

More than just your average patent database, this side-by-side comparison tool has loads of facts about inventors and the various aspects of their inventions. Users have the option to search by a number of criteria including the date that an inventor’s most important patent was issued, the number of a U.S. patent, the inventor’s field(s) of study, and the inventor’s home country. A profile of each inventor also includes biographical information, and descriptions of significant inventions and their impact.

 

Compare, for example, two nineteenth century engineers, Thomas Edison and Nicola Telsa, who are long outlived by their inventions, the light bulb and AC (Alternating Current), respectively. The comparison informs a user that both men were experts in electrical engineering, but only Telsa was a mechanical engineer. Edison was far more prolific than Telsa with over 1,000 patents in his name. Both men died in their eighties. The information goes on.

 

Whether you are doing research about a specific inventor or just want to browse the database for your next piece of trivia, FindtheData.com is the perfect resource for inventor enthusiasts of all sorts.