VAXXWAGON

For many developing countries, being able to distribute vaccines is a challenge. If the medicine gets too warm, it could lose its effectiveness. Anurudh Ganesan, a then 15-year-old student, knew firsthand how lucky he was to have received a polio vaccination in his home country of India. The struggles his grandparents went through to get him the shot led him to build the VAXXWAGON, a modified bicycle with a thermos kept cold by user pedaling.

BAND-AIDS

Mr. and Mrs. Earl Dickson lived at the turn of the century and were, by all accounts, quite a loving pair. Mr. Dickson was indeed so caring he sought to help his wife deal with the many cuts and burns she gave herself while making dinner. Using his skills and resources from working at Johnson & Johnson, he attached gauze to pieces of surgical tape, prepared for whenever she was injured. The result? The earliest adhesive bandages.

MADAME CJ WALKER

The daughter of former slaves, Sarah Breedlove Walker struggled during her life but never lost hope. After developing a lotion to deal with her hair loss, she began selling her product door-to-door before establishing a college in Pittsburgh. The Walker System, as it came to be known, revolutionized the sales industry and gave African-American women a chance to provide for themselves. Today, she’s recognized as the first female African-American self-made millionaire.

LEONARDO DA VINCI

The creations of Leonardo da Vinci are well-documented and discussed, but few talk about just how ahead of his time he was. From birth, he was considered different (being born out of wedlock during an age of strict religious ideas). His interpretations of religion in paintings like The Last Supper flew in the face of societal norms. And of course, his inventions- including scuba suits and modern tanks- are still being perfected today. He may be a Renaissance man, but his work is far from ancient.

GUNPEI YOKOI

Long before they manufactured video games, Nintendo made Hanafuda cards. One day, the president visited the factory Gunpei Yokoi was working at and noticed a toy Yokoi had made. The extending arm, later dubbed the Ultra Hand, was then rushed into production and became a smash for Nintendo. Yokoi continued to develop toys for Nintendo, including the first in the lucrative Game Boy line of consoles. He’s also known for the creation of the control pad, a staple on many gaming consoles to this day.

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN

When he wasn’t busy being a founding father, Benjamin Franklin enjoyed experimenting. His discovery of electricity, if somewhat misattributed, is common knowledge. But what about the Franklin stove? The lightning rod? Indeed, not all of his ideas were amazing- he wanted to make the national bird the turkey, for example- but what makes him inspiring was his stance on his inventions. He never patented his inventions because he believed everybody should be able to use them.

DISHWASHER

Josephine Cochrane wanted to make life easier for her servants by lessening the work they had to do to clean the dishes. She built a machine with a motor spinning a wheel inside of a copper boiler. This was the first automatic dishwasher to use water pressure. After her alcoholic husband left her with debt after his death, she patented the creation in 1886 and used it to open her own factory and revolutionize households forever.

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Fittingly enough, this odd treat has an equally odd past. The origins of the s’more are vague and mysterious and we don’t actually know who originally invented them or how. The first public appearance of the treat was in a 1927 recipe in Tramping and Trailing with the Girl Scouts. They titled the recipe “Some Mores” because it’s so yummy you’ll want some more. Cute, right?

As far as where the mysterious inventor (who we’re betting was a Girl Scout) got their inspiration, there’s some speculation. According to National Geographic, the origins could date back to the Victorian era. During that period, ‘sandwich cookies’ and sponge cakes filled with jam, lemon curd, and cream were fairly popular. A few other previous sources of inspiration for the treat could have been the Mallomar (a graham cracker cookie coated with chocolate with a marshmallow topping) which was first sold in 1913. The Moon Pie (two graham cracker cookies with a marshmallow filling dipped in chocolate) went on the market in 1917 (also prior to the creation of s’mores).

The key component of the s’more is the roasted marshmallow. The original marshmallow (Althaea Officinalis) was a swamp plant from Europe and West Asia that vaguely resembled hollyhock. The roots of the plant produce a sticky white sap which, for quite a while, was similar to cough drops. By the mid-1800s, the French had the idea of turning the sap into something more culinary. They whipped up the substance with egg whites and sugar and poured it into molds to form the first marshmallows. During this time, they were extremely expensive and only available to the upper class. It wasn’t until the late 1800s, when the sap was replaced by less expensive gelatin, that the treat became more accessible to the general public.

But roasting of these tiny fluffy treats didn’t come about until the 1890’s. The specifics of the origins are unclear, but all of a sudden roasting marshmallows became the latest summer fad. According to period newspaper reports, “The simplicity of this form of amusement is particularly charming. One buys two or three pounds of marshmallows, invites half a dozen friends, and that is all the preparation required.”

The original recipe for the s’more was a recipe for 8 and called for eight sticks, 16 graham crackers, 16 marshmallows, and 8 bars of plain chocolate (each bar broken in half). The original recipe instructs, “Toast two marshmallows over the coals to a crisp gooey state and then put them inside a graham cracker and chocolate bar sandwich. The heat of the marshmallow between the halves of chocolate bar will melt the chocolate a bit.”

Whether the treat originated from a genius inventor or from a humble girl scout, we can’t say (though we’re guessing the latter). What we can say, though, is this: whoever you are, thank you. You’ve helped make the transition from summer to fall a little sweeter.

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We could go on forever about the importance of brainstorming. When you’re pulling a story together, inspiration can come from the world around you, or you may have to do a little detective work.  Browsing through pages of quotes can help you brainstorm and collect different ideas to help decide the light of the piece. If you’re writing a blog about finding peace of mind, reading  “You’ll never find peace of mind until you listen to your heart,”  (a quote by music sensation George Michael) may steer you in the direction of discussing the importance of listening to your heart when making major decisions, somethng you might not have ever considered.

Are you the type of person who sees someone working or planning or contemplating and you immediately want to offer up some words or wisdom? Not just from a micromanaging standpoint–not that there’s anything wrong with that–but from wanting to genuinley help someone who may be struggling. This is another way inspirational quotes help us: they’re called inspirational quotes because they inspire. If you see someone struggling to take a step in their business or scared to make a big life change even though all the signs are pointing to the timing being right,you might want to remind them of the Danish proverb  “One should do the blacksmithing while the iron is hot.” And even if you don’t pass this bit of wisdom on to someone else, keeping it in mind for yourself when you’re scared to take a big step in your life might be just the right amount of inspiration you need to take the next big step.

Something commonly taught to writers is if you want to be a writer worth any stock, you must first read a lot. You have to read and write and then read more and write more, in order to figure out what works for you. Motivational quotes offer short and sweet passages that we can build bigger ideas off of to pull our thoughts together. For example, if you’re writing a piece about dogs, seraching for inspirational quotes about dogs would get you back to writing faster than reading an entire book would.

Inspirational quotes are greatly beneficial to everyone, especially writers, regardless of where they are in the writing process. Quotes can help generate ideas within brainstorming, which can influence the ideas within the piece. They can send you in new directions by presenting the ideas of others. Finally, quotes can be a succinct way to fuel a writer as they pull a piece together, which will not distract them from writing for too long.

The post Why do Inspirational Quotes Matter? appeared first on Inventionland.

Each and every day, talented Creationeers arrive bright and early to our 61,000 square foot creative facility to do exactly that – get creative! From prototyping, to metalworking, to woodworking, industrial and graphic design and more, each Creationeer is prepared to put their skills to work.

As to be expected, however, even the most creative minds experience burnout. So, how do these Creationeers do it day after day? Here are just a few tips for staying creatively inspired.

Immerse yourself in a creative environment.

Visitors are often amazed and awe-inspired by the whimsical environment at Inventionland. From Pirate Ship Discovery to Inventalot Castle and more, the uniquely designed sets within our space have brought Inventionland to the forefront as one of the most creative office spaces in the world.

It’s important to note, however, that the unique environment here is not just for show. According to a dedication plaque you can find on our treehouse, “Inventionland is a gift that is designed to encourage your creative spirit so you can lead us into the next area of discovery.”

Inventionland is designed to spark innovation and creativity for each and every person that comes to work in our space. While most companies don’t have a themed environment quite like Inventionland’s, there are things you can do to immerse yourself in your own creative environment. Outfit your office, cube or desk with items that are uniquely you. What things spark your creativity? Surround yourself with elements that ignite creative thought and keep you motivated.

Let your creative brain recharge.

Have you ever worked on a project and felt your brain just simply isn’t working to move the project further? It’s certainly true that sometimes you just have to put down a project and come back to it once your brain recharges.

“Each week, we brainstorm with our designers and sometimes the brain just gets stuck or doesn’t seem to work properly anymore.  You have to put things on hold and come back to them with fresh thoughts.  Most of the time when you look at something, the second time around it is easier to figure out,” said Creative Director of Design Curtis.

Creative Director of Design Tim agrees. “Sometimes, you just have to go home and come back the next day having to redo what you’ve already done,” he said.

Let your creativity bring you a sense of accomplishment.

Founder and CEO Mr. George Davison can attest to the sense of accomplishment that channeling your inner creativity can bring.

“The truth is that both men and women get inspired by the release of the creative imagination within them. When you are creating something, you are usually completely absorbed in doing so, and the process allows us to form ideas into a structure that gives a sense of accomplishment,” said Mr. Davison.

Here’s to keeping creatively inspired!

Copyright Inventionland, 2017

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