Did you know the very best role models can be found in the National Inventors Hall of Fame®? It’s true! More than 600 inventors have been inducted so far, and each one has a unique story to share.
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Hall of Famer Jacqueline Quinn helps an elementary student put the finishing touches on their robot prototype made of pipe cleaners and popsicle sticks.
National Inventors Hall of Fame Inductee Victor Lawrence listens as a Camp Invention® camper describes the structure they built using cardboard and duct tape.
Hall of Famer Robert Bryant encourages a group of elementary students as they work together to design and create an invention prototype at Camp Invention.
A group of Camp Invention campers welcome National Inventors Hall of Fame Inductee Steve Sasson to their program.
Inductee Sylvia Blankenship talks with Camp Invention campers about the fishbowl environments they are creating during one of the program experiences.
Hall of Famer Rodolphe Barrangou listens as a student at Camp Invention explains their innovative idea for a miniature pop-up business.
Inductee Frances Ligler helps a camper test the ballgame that they designed at Camp Invention.
Meet Some of Our Newest Inductees
Our 2025 Inductees have shaped the world around us with their inventions — and they started out as curious kids, just like you!
John R. Adler Jr.
Inductee John R. Adler Jr., a brain surgeon, invented the CyberKnife® stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) system. To treat tumors and other abnormal lesions, this invention’s robotic arm moves around a patient and delivers X-ray beams from different angles. Guided by 3D imaging, it tracks the patient's exact position in real time and keeps the beams focused on the tumor, delivering lifesaving radiation therapy without damaging any healthy tissue.
What is a fun fact about him? Adler had his first paper route at age 11.
What advice does he have for aspiring young inventors? From his time in Boy Scouts, Adler learned to, “Leave your campground better than when you found it.”
James Fujimoto, David Huang and Eric Swanson invented optical coherence tomography (OCT). This technology lets doctors see detailed images of body tissues, like the retina in the back of our eyes. In a process that takes less than a minute, OCT bounces light off a patient’s eye – without any discomfort – and provides 3D images that help doctors to see if there are any eye diseases or other problems.
What was one of his childhood hobbies? He studied classical organ because of a performance he heard on the radio.
What advice does he have for aspiring young inventors? It is not a eureka moment or a big breakthrough, it's a number of incremental steps and it is important to keep working at it. To have an invention be realized, people go through very complex, incremental validation steps. It is sustained work.
David Huang, James Fujimoto and Eric Swanson invented optical coherence tomography (OCT) to help doctors see tiny details in body tissues like the thin layers of the retina in the back of our eyes. This technology can see light reflected from inside the body to make 3D images. OCT scans a beam of light across the body part being imaged without having to touch it at all. This makes it easier for doctors to examine very small and delicate parts of the body and determine if they are healthy.
What was one of his childhood hobbies? Building model airplanes out of wood and rubber bands and carving out the propellers.
What is a fun fact about him? He moved to the U.S. from Taiwan at the age of 12.
Eric Swanson, James Fujimoto and David Huang helped doctors see inside our eyes when they invented optical coherence tomography (OCT). This technology makes extremely detailed images of body tissues, like the retinal tissue in the back of the eye. Without any pain or discomfort, OCT bounces light off a patient’s eye to make a 3D image that helps doctors identify and treat diseases or other problems.
What is something that gives him nostalgia from his childhood? Taking apart his parents’ clock radio and trying to rebuild it into something new.
What is something that would surprise you about him? Eric started to play guitar in recent years and has made amateur nature films/documentaries of sea life near where he lives.
Inductees Barney Graham, an immunologist and virologist, and Jason McLellan, a structural biologist, invented a way to protect our health by modifying viral surface proteins to help our bodies recognize the right protein shape and make antibodies that block viruses before they make us sick. Their research led to vaccines that protect us against RSV and COVID-19. Billions of doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been given since 2020, saving millions of lives!
Was he involved in any sports growing up? Graham played football, basketball and baseball.
What advice does he have for aspiring young inventors? “Your family is the most important thing. It is almost the only thing that matters in the end.”
Inductees Jason McLellan (a structural biologist) and Barney Graham (an immunologist and virologist) discovered a way to help fight off viruses. They modified viral surface proteins to help our bodies recognize and attack a virus before it can infect our healthy cells. Their work helped create vaccines to fight RSV and COVID-19, and since 2020, billions of COVID-19 vaccine doses have helped people around the world.
What advice does he have for aspiring young inventors? “Find something you love to do and just do it and try to be the best at it.”
What is something that would surprise you about him? McLellan enjoys fishing, and he takes his family to their cottage in Houghton Lake, Michigan, for vacation every summer.
Kerrie Holley is a computer scientist who developed service-oriented architecture (SOA). This is a smart way of creating software. It turns different applications into tools that work like building blocks, so they can be arranged and rearranged to create new applications. SOA has helped businesses in many industries to quickly adapt to changing technology and business needs.
What is a fun fact about him? He practices yoga.
What is something that would surprise you about him? Holley has spent his life writing professionally about technology, but he would love at some point to venture into writing sci-fi.
Inductee Pamela Marrone, an entrepreneur and entomologist (a scientist who studies insects), created nature-based products for effectively managing pests and supporting plant health. Her products help farmers and gardeners to prevent infestations and protect their fruits, vegetables and other plants without using chemicals that can harm the environment.
What is something that gives her nostalgia from her childhood? Her parents were very encouraging growing up. Her mother put all kinds of science books, because of her interest in science, in the living room, they're still there to this day – topics from pond entomology and all these different botany books and so forth. She could sit in this wonderful old rocking chair that she loved and pull out books.
What inspired her to become an inventor? Since Marrone was about 8 years old, she wanted to be an entomologist and in biocontrol because of her experiences of growing up in 40 acres of woods.
Inductee Richard Schatz collaborated with Inductee Julio Palmaz to invent a device to help doctors treat coronary artery disease, a condition where an artery carrying blood to the heart becomes too narrow or blocked. The Palmaz-Schatz coronary stent is a small, flexible metal tube that expands to hold an artery open. Since 1988, this invention and others based on it have helped millions of patients worldwide.
Was he involved in any sports growing up? Growing up, Schatz loved football, played baseball, was a gymnast, and did track and field. He ended up doing gymnastics for almost 15 years, including competing in college. His father and brother were also gymnasts.
What is a fun fact about him? He enjoys the sport of horse racing and owns racehorses.
