Unsung Heroes
All of us are very much familiar with Graham Bell, Thomas Alva Edison and Sameer Bhatia. They are all credited with great achievements that changed the world. However, there are a few people whose inventions also have altered the face of technology and who have contributed greatly to the scientific progress of mankind; however, there is not much mention about those inventors. Below are a few of such inventors and their breakthrough inventions.
JOHN. W. BACKUS (1924 -2007), FORTRAN
Fortran, short for formula translation, provided the foundation for the development of modern high level languages by reducing the programming lines needed to perform a computer operation. The language was designed by John Backus when he was working with IBM. His acheivement won him the 1977 Turing Award from the “Association for Computing Machinery”.
MIKE LEZARIDIS (1961 – to date), BLACKBERRY
Blackberry, the mobile device which incorporated the concept of wireless email for the first time, was developed by Mike Lezaridis. Today his invention is widely used for sending messages and e-mails apart from calling, navigating, enjoying MP3s and MP4s, and getting news updates. It also provided the basis for later inventions like Iphone and Ipod.
STEVEN.J. SASSON (1950 – to date), DIGITAL CAMERA
Digital camera, which formed the basis for digital photography and digital cinematography, was invented by Steven J Sasson, by employing an analog to digital converter and CCD chips. He is an electrical engineer by profession. His invention has made photography with “digi cams” and the concepts of digital imaging more easier and rewarding.
DOUG ENGELBART (1925 – to date) , MOUSE
The computer mouse, which changed the way the computers worked and made GUI navigation possible, was invented by Doug Engelbart. The mouse has now become a part and parcel of a computer, without which the operation with a computer is unimaginable.
MARTY COOPER (1928 – to date), MOBILE PHONE
The mobile phone, which has become too common in today’s world was invented by Marty Cooper while working with Motorola Inc.. He was awarded the Wharton Infosys Business Transformation Award for his technological innovations in the field of communicatins. The cell phone is now used by one and all and has become indispensable in our lives.
VINTON CERF (b. 1948) & ROBERT.E.KAHN (b. 1938) , TCP/IP Protocol
Known as the “Father of Internet” Vinton Cerf is credited with the development of the TCP/IP protocol which is a milestone invention that formed the basis for the modern internet. He worked together with Robert. E. Kahn and invented the TCP/IP protocol, which gradually led to the rapid progress of the internet. Today, the internet has become synonymous with a knowledge repository and we have become fully dependant on it for information as well as for entertainment.
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