JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Women earn almost half the PhD’s awarded in this country, but they account for only about 12 percent of patented inventions, according to the latest statistics from the U.S. Patent Office.
But some people are working to change those numbers, by helping young women become the inventors of the future.
Getting young girls interested in inventing is the first step to changing the dynamics in a male dominated field.
The U.S. Patent Office says that females face more difficulty securing funding and have a lack of social network that is critical for financing.
Other barriers women face are gender/racial biases in degree choices, hiring practices, work evaluation, and promotion.
Gabriela and Daniela Torres are the best of friends.
Gabriella speaks highly of her sister, describing her as a “really caring, sweet, good person.”
Her sister, Daniela, shares that their sisterly bond consists of “helping each other with homework, telling each other secrets, and hanging out.”
Gabriela is very protective of her big sis, who was diagnosed with hearing loss when she was just six.
“I gotta be protective to make sure no one hurts her,” Gabriella said.
Daniela now hears with a cochlear implant. But continuing to make life better for her sister is what motivated Gabriela to become an inventor.
“I knew she always had to get woken up by my mom every morning to go to school, so I was like, that’s why I made the vibro blanket,” Gabriella said.
With her vibrating blanket alarm clock, Gabriela won an international inventor’s competition by Med-El USA.
Another young inventor, 10-year-old Genevieve Myers, is determined to change the field.
She’s the creator of “The Smart Glasses 3,000. Super-cool captioning glasses for deaf people.”
Genevieve has since gained international recognition for her idea.
“I just, kind of grew up thinking everybody should be included,” Genevieve said, when asked what inspired the idea.
Research shows that if the number of female inventors increases at the same rate as the last 40 years, it will take until the year 2198 to achieve an equal proportion of female and male patent-holders.
Each year, Med-El USA holds a young inventor’s competition. To find out more information click here.