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Found 90 Stories
Color woodcut of a turkey in profile, with a farmer sharpening his knife in the background
Invention Stories

Innovating to Avoid Turkey Trauma

About 30 million turkeys are sold each year with built-in pop-up timers designed to tell cooks when the bird has reached that magic temperature. Here's the story behind the pop-up timer's inventor.

Martha Stewart and Mario Batali in 2007
Invention Stories

Innovations in "FOOD"

The kitchen is definitely a place of invention. Here are five invention stories from our food exhibition, "FOOD: Transforming the American Table, 1950 – 2000."

A pair of high-tech cooking spoons.
Invention Stories

Just Like Mom's: Will an Invention Finally Reveal her Secret Ingredient?

Will a new gadget finally let me recreate my favorite dish? Or is the secret ingredient really "love"?

Lemelson Lightbulb Graphic Identity
Invention Stories

Starting the Day Right: Coffee Innovations

While I can’t remember the first great cup of coffee that I ever had, I can certainly remember the last.  It was brewed here in our offices earlier this week with freshly ground coffee beans, the perfect amount of cream & sugar, and a strong caffeine kick that cleared my early morning brain f

Archival photo of an early cup holder
Invention Stories

I’ll Take That Drink To Go!

Today we take cup holders in vehicles for granted, but this indispensable feature wasn’t common in the early 1960s.

Fresh Paper inventor Kavita Shukla
Invention Stories

Try It: Fresh Paper

A young woman's concern for food waste lead to a remarkable invention.

Eskimo Pie box.
Invention Stories

Beat the Heat with a Cool Treat

One of the more fun ways to cool down is by enjoying a cold treat. Here are three frozen treats (and their invention stories) to beat the heat.

Pencil sketch of a flexible drinking straw.
Invention Stories

An Inventive Dad

This is the story of Joseph B. Friedman and the product—ubiquitous to you and me—that his daughter inspired him to invent.

Warren Belasco
Beyond Words

Podcast: Warren Belasco Studies Food for Tomorrow

Professor Warren Belasco traces a history of the “future” of food.

Bess Williamson speaks at the 2010 symposium, Food for Tomorrow
Beyond Words

Podcast: Bess Williamson Traces Universal Design

Historian Bess Williamson describes innovative, accessible design approaches to kitchens and cooking.

NASA Food Scientist Vickie Kloeris
Beyond Words

Podcast: Vickie Kloeris Creates Meals for Outer Space

NASA food scientist Vickie Kloeris develops healthy, tasty meals for astronauts.

Ian Cheney speaks at the 2010 symposium, Food for Tomorrow
Beyond Words

Podcast: Documentary Filmmaker Ian Cheney Imagines a Future Food System

Cheney’s film and food project, Truck Farm, profiles inventive urban farmers.

Stock photo of pouring a beer
Beyond Words

Podcast: John Andrade and Jennifer Orgolini Support Environmental Stewardship

John Andrade and Jennifer Orgolini discuss innovative approaches to beer-making…and place-making.

Lemelson Lightbulb Graphic Identity
Invention Stories

Hunting and Gathering for the Museum's Collections

When it comes to food-related collections at the National Museum of American History, it's a veritable feast.

Steven Gdula
Beyond Words

Podcast: Steven Gdula Speaks about an Invention "Hot Spot" - Your Kitchen!

Invention in the warmest room in the house--the kitchen!

Series of pencil sketches illustrating the bending of a flexible drinking straw
Invention Stories

The Straight Truth About the Flexible Drinking Straw

Joseph Friedman didn't invent the straw, he just made it better.

MIND database logo for non-Smithsonian archival materials
Archives

George H. Mahon Papers, 1887-1986

Inventor Name Mahon, George H.

Logo for the Modern Inventors Documentation database, showing a stylized head with words like creativity and innovation written on different parts of the brain
Archives

S. Morris Lillie Records, 1893-1964

Inventor Name Lillie, S. Morris

Logo for the Modern Inventors Documentation database, showing a stylized head with words like creativity and innovation written on different parts of the brain
Archives

Peter Schlumbohm Papers, 1922-1979 (bulk, 1939-1956)

Inventor Name Schlumbohm, Peter

Logo for the Modern Inventors Documentation database, showing a stylized head with words like creativity and innovation written on different parts of the brain
Archives

Marc Harrison Papers, 1928-1996

Inventor Name Harrison, Marc

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