Did you know that some of the most common things in our daily lives wouldn’t exist without women?
In fact, women have played a crucial role in creating and improving some of the products that are popular today.
Without their expertise in technology, design, science and medicine, our daily lives would be very different today.
For this reason, it is natural, especially in this month dedicated to women, that we give a little mention to these great female creations because, in my opinion, I think we do not talk about them enough.
Here are 7 everyday things that wouldn’t exist without us, ladies!!!
1. Windshield wipers
If today you can drive safely in the rain, it’s thanks to Mary Anderson, an American inventor.
In fact, during a visit to New York during the winter of 1903, on a streetcar on a very cold day, I noticed that the stagehand had to drive with the window open because of the frost that was falling on the windshield. .
When she returned to Alabama, she designed a hand-operated windshield cleaning device. Similar devices had already been proposed, but Anderson’s device was the first to be effective, though no company wanted to promote its device, and it was finally only in 1920, 17 years later, that a windshield wiper designed by Anderson became standard equipment.
Two years later, Cadillac would become the first automaker to adopt it as identical equipment to date.
2. Kevlar
For those who don’t know, Kevlar is a heat-resistant synthetic para-aramid fibre with a molecular structure consisting of many bonds between chains, making Kevlar incredibly strong.
It is mainly used in the manufacture of bulletproof vests. She is Madame Stephanie L. Kwolek (July 31, 1923 – June 18, 2014), a Polish chemist, is the one we have to thank for this revolutionary discovery.
Kwolek is more than just a researcher and chemist, she represents the calm and completely invested woman in a “man’s” world.
She has won many awards for her work in polymer chemistry but one particularly attracted attention: She is the only woman to date to receive the Lavoisier Medal from DuPont in 1995.
3. Circular saw
Tabitha Babbitt (December 9, 1779 – November 18, 1853), member of the Harvard Checkers, was an American inventor.
To him we are indebted in particular for the circular saw, the head of the spinning wheel, and the artificial teeth. While carefully observing the men using the main saw, I realized that half their movements were wasted.
Noticing that a round blade was more efficient, Babbitt invented the first circular saw used in a sawmill around 1810. This circular saw was linked to a water-powered machine to reduce effort when cutting wood.
She never patented her inventions, as many doubted whether she or the other Shakers were the first to invent the circular saw.
4. The first algorithm in history.
In the 19th century, just 27 years old, Ada Byron King, Countess of Lovelace (1815-1852), laid the foundations of computing by writing the first machine algorithm in history and working on a machine that today is considered the predecessor of the machine. Computer.
She is primarily known for creating the first real computer program, while working on one of the computer’s predecessors: Charles Babbage’s Analytical Machine.
Remembering and praising her important scientific contribution can encourage girls who want to work in the IT sector or more broadly in science and who do not dare to do so.
In 1979, the gifted mathematician was assigned a programming language: Ada, which is still widely used today.
5. Caller ID and call waiting.
If today you have the ability to identify your caller and hang up the phone, it’s thanks to Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson.
Shirley Ann Jackson is an African-American physicist and the first African-American woman to serve as president of a leading research university, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York.
She is the first African-American woman to earn a doctorate at MIT and also the second African-American woman in the United States to earn a doctorate in physics.
6. Dishwasher.
Josephine Cochrane was born on March 8, 1839 in Ashtabula County, Ohio.
One day in 1893, she realized that her porcelain dinner service was becoming increasingly damaged, due to the mistreatment it was receiving from the servants.
That’s when I designed a dishwashing system using water jets and cleaning products. His machine quickly enjoyed huge success, even winning an award at the Chicago World’s Fair.
Although some dishwashers have been around since the mid-19th century, modern dishwashers are designed according to the principles of this model. These have become common in homes since the 1980s.
7. Home security system.
Mary Van Brittan Brown (1922-1999) was an American nurse who was concerned about crime in New York in the 1960s.
So she decided to create an innovative security system that includes a front door camera, two-way microphone and speaker that allows the owner to see and communicate with visitors.
His invention, patented in 1969, paved the way for similar security systems still in use today.
Although I cannot name them all, remember that there are at least a hundred thousand women’s inventions such as diapers, a natural gas stove, clear glass, a coffee filter, computer programming, Monopoly, car air conditioning, and hair curlers. , paper bags, refrigerator, etc.
Some of them were identified, others remained hidden in the archives or copied by other researchers.
Even today, we have the opportunity and duty as women to break gender stereotypes and make our voices heard outside the kitchen and the confines of marriage.
This concludes this article, don’t forget to like and share if you like it.
For my part, I invite you to read the rest of my first story on Wattpad for free: Leah, a nun like no other.