The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation

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• Learn more about innovation, inventions, inventors, and technology.

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The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation at the Smithsonian Institution features a variety of engaging and multimedia fascinations on its website. The most special, and perhaps most useful to students and teachers include online exhibits, educational materials, featured collections from the archives, and the audio and video clips.In the online exhibits, you will find a concise assembly of special features documenting the invention of the electric guitar; how a watch works while discovering the fascinating stories behind the invention of the quartz watch; Edison’s life and inventions through an interactive game (make your own light bulb!); the invention of whole cloth while exploring women’s, African American, and labor history; and more!The educational materials section includes free resources such as an interactive CD-ROM that explores the motivation and vision of Nobel laureates and the history of Alfred Nobel and his prize; a VHS video entitled Reinventing the Wheel: The Continuing Evolution of the Bicycle; a VHS video called She’s Got It! Women Inventors and Their Inspirations; and a VHS video Lewis Latimer: Renaissance Man, African American Inventor. There are also teaching guides to accompany these videos that may be downloaded as well as experiment projects for making a lightbulb, building a “buckyball”, and making solar energy.From the Archives, you can access primary source collections about accessible snowboards (designed for people with physical disability), several inventors, and company inventions. And in the audio and video clips, find a reenactment of Edison’s first recording of sound, a levitation of a magnet to explain how atoms form bonds, a demonstration of similarities in the structure of chemical compounds and soccer balls, and more.