swap_horiz Waldo Semon Alternatives

1

Wright brothers

Orville and Wilbur Wright were American inventors whose work established a practical foundation for powered aviation. Th...

American 20TH Century Aviation Airplane

9.61 Brilliant

2

Bob Noyce

Robert Noyce (1927–1990) was an American physicist, inventor, and businessman nicknamed 'the Mayor of Silicon Valley.' H...

American Silicon Valley 20TH Century Microchip

9.46 Excellent

3

Charles K. Kao

Charles K. Kao was an engineer and physicist whose research established the practical basis for transmitting information...

Optics 20TH Century Fiber Optics Communications

9.42 Excellent

4

Stephanie Louise Kwolek

Stephanie Louise Kwolek was an American chemist renowned for her research in polymer chemistry while working at the DuPo...

American Chemistry Materials Mid 20TH

9.31 Excellent

5

James Chadwick

James Chadwick was a British physicist who fundamentally advanced the field of nuclear physics by discovering the neutro...

Science 20TH Century British Nuclear Physics

9.24 Excellent

6

Leo Baekeland

Leo Baekeland was a 20th-century chemist recognized for developing Bakelite, the world’s first wholly synthetic plastic....

20TH Century Plastic Materials Bakelite

8.52 Great

7

James L. Fergason

James L. Fergason was an American inventor instrumental in the development of practical twisted nematic liquid crystal d...

American 20TH Century LCD Display Materials

8.42 Great

8

Mária Telkes

Mária Telkes was a Hungarian-American inventor renowned for her work integrating solar energy into building design durin...

20TH Century Solar Energy Materials Hungarian American

8.00 Great

9

Harry Brearley

Harry Brearley (1871–1948) was an English metallurgist and inventor credited with the industrial development of stainles...

20TH Century Stainless Steel British Materials

7.93 Good

10

Roy Plunkett

Roy Plunkett was an American chemist who discovered polytetrafluoroethylene, or PTFE, while working for DuPont in 1938....

American 20TH Century Polymer Materials

7.91 Good

11

George de Mestral

George de Mestral was a Swiss electrical engineer who invented the hook-and-loop fastener commonly known by the brand na...

Swiss 20TH Century Fastener Materials

7.73 Good

12

Patsy Sherman

Patsy Sherman was an American chemist who co-invented Scotchgard, a widely used fluorochemical stain and water repellent...

American 20TH Century 3M Materials

7.73 Good

13

Ching W. Tang

Ching W. Tang is a Hong Kong-born American physical chemist and inventor widely recognized for his foundational contribu...

Display OLED 20TH Century Electronics

7.65 Good

14

Robert W. Gore

Robert W. Gore was an American chemical engineer and inventor best known for his discovery of expanded polytetrafluoroet...

20TH Century Membrane Fabric Gore Tex

7.59 Good

15

Edith M. Flanigen

Edith M. Flanigen was an American chemist whose research at Union Carbide focused on zeolites and other molecular-sieve...

Chemistry 20TH Century Materials Zeolite

7.47 Good

16

Roy J. Plunkett

Roy J. Plunkett was an American chemist who worked for the DuPont company during the 20th century. In 1938, he accidenta...

20TH Century Materials Dupont Teflon

7.29 Good

17

Spencer Silver

Spencer Silver was an American chemist who worked for the multinational conglomerate 3M. In 1968, he accidentally synthe...

American 20TH Century Adhesive Materials

7.24 Good

18

Richard Gurley Drew

Richard Gurley Drew was an American engineer working for the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company (3M) who made si...

20TH Century 3M Materials Adhesive Tape

7.20 Good

19

Katharine Burr Blodgett

Katharine Burr Blodgett was an American physicist and chemist whose research at General Electric advanced thin films, su...

American 20TH Century Materials Nonreflective Glass

7.06 Good

20

Patsy O'Connell Sherman

Patsy O'Connell Sherman was an American chemist and inventor who worked for 3M. While investigating fluorochemical compo...

20TH Century 3M Materials Scotchgard

6.61 Fair